House of the Dragon season 3's ratings are in, and the premiere's all-timer naval battle couldn't help it stack up against the second season.
As per Warner Bros. Discovery (via Variety), 21.5 million people tuned in across the first three days of availability for House of the Dragon season 3.
So, it's hardly sinking without a trace – but has suffered an 8% drop on House of the Dragon season 2's 23.4 million figure across the same three-day window in 2024.
All told, it's difficult to pinpoint why numbers have dropped. Variety has pointed to the World Cup being on – was Sunday's Uruguay vs. Cape Verde match really that big of a draw? – as a factor, though it's likely some felt dissatisfied by season 2's wheelspinning in Harrenhal with Matt Smith's Daemon Targaryen, as well as the continued years-long gaps between seasons.
There is also the small matter of Game of Thrones creator George R.R. Martin engaging in a one-sided public feud with showrunner Ryan Condal.
"It's worse than rocky," Martin told The Hollywood Reporter of their working relationship in January, "It's abysmal."
"I would give notes, and nothing would happen," Martin explained. "Sometimes he would explain why he wasn't doing it. Other times, he would tell me, 'Oh, OK, yeah, I'll think about that.' It got worse and worse, and I began to get more and more annoyed. Finally, it got to a point where I was told by HBO that I should submit all my notes to them and they would give Ryan our combined notes."
Whatever the behind-the-scenes tensions, that hasn't dimmed the critical reaction to House of the Dragon season 3, which exploded onto our screens with the Battle of the Gullet.
The latest season is currently sitting at 91% on Rotten Tomatoes, while our own four-star House of the Dragon season 3 review suggested "this could be the best season of a Westeros-set show in over a decade."
House of the Dragon season 3 is airing weekly on HBO, HBO Max, and NOW TV/Sky in the UK.
For more, check out the complete House of the Dragon season 3 release schedule.
