George RR Martin says he ‘wanted more’ of House of the Dragon’s most divisive feature

Author claimed he wanted ‘even more time jumps’ and ‘even more recastings’

George RR Martin has claimed he was the “only one” who wanted more of House of the Dragon’s most polarising storytelling device.

The hit Game of Thrones spin-off finished its first season earlier this month to rave reviews and a glowing reception from viewers.

However, the decision to include multiple time jumps in season one proved controversial with fans, as some of the series’ most popular characters were replaced with new, older actors.

Among the characters to be portrayed by multiple actors were Rhaenyra Targaryen, played by Milly Alcock and Emma D’Arcy, and Alicent Hightower, played by Emily Carey and Olivia Cooke.

In a video interview with Penguin Random House, A Song of Ice and Fire author George RR Martin discussed the time jumps, and revealed that he pushed for the series to have even more.

“One of the big issues with all of these writers was where to begin” he said.

“[Showrunner Ryan Condal] began with the Great Council where the Lords vote that Jaehaerys’s heir – he’s just lost his son Baelon, who has died of appendicitis – so who is his heir now? And the lords vote to choose Viserys over Rhaenys.”

Martin argued that the series’ start point “was not handed down by some muse from ancient Greece”.

“We – myself and the other writers – had a lot of spirited discussions about where to begin that story,” he continued.

“I would have began it like 40 years earlier with the episode I would have called ‘The Heir and the Spare’, in which Jaehaerys’s two sons, Aemon and Baelon, are alive,” he revealed. “And we see the friendship, but also the rivalry, between the two sides of the great house.

Emma D’Arcy’s Rhaenrya in the ‘House of the Dragon’ finale (Sky)

“You know, Aemon dies accidentally when a Myrish crossbowman shoots him by accident on Tarth and then Jaehaerys has to decide who becomes the new heir. Is it the daughter of the older son who’s just died or is it the second son, who has sons of his own and is a man and she’s just a teenage girl?”

He added: “You would have had 40 more years and you would have had even more time jumps and you would have even more recastings and, yeah, I was the only one who was really enthused about that!”

House of the Dragon season one can be streamed now on Sky and NOW in the UK.