House of the Dragon’s upcoming finale has been leaked online, and HBO isn’t very happy about it. House of the Dragon is a prequel to Game of Thrones. It follows the Targaryen family, their feuds, and their complicated and intimate (sometimes far too intimate) relationships.
There was a lot of pressure on the fantasy series ahead of its debut, because the Game of Thrones ended in such an unpopular way. Therefore, if House of the Dragon had failed to live up to the success of the earlier seasons of Game of Thrones, it would have likely put an end of the world of Westeros on TV screens.
However, the series has ended up being hugely popular, with some fans going so far as to claim that is it just as good (if not better) than the early seasons of Game of Thrones. Given that the TV series hasn’t even had its first season finale yet, that analysis might be a bit premature. If the finale does land well though, then it would prove that Game of Thrones is officially back in business.
Now, ahead of the upcoming finale’s official release on October 24th, the final episode has been leaked online. HBO has officially acknowledged the leak, and has provided a statement on the situation to Variety. It said “[The leak] appears to have originated from a distribution partner in the EMEA region. HBO is aggressively monitoring and pulling these copies from the internet.”
The statement continued “We’re disappointed that this unlawful action has disrupted the viewing experience for loyal fans of the show, who will get to see a pristine version of the episode when it premieres Sunday on HBO and HBO Max, where it will stream exclusively in 4K.”
While the leak will barely impact viewing figures – if at all – it will be hugely frustrating for HBO and will mean that they could end up reviewing their security and privacy practices to prevent against leaks in the future.
Of course, fans who were desperate to catch the finale early might have seen the leak. But, as HBO makes reference to in its statement, the quality will have been compromised and the best viewing experience will be when the episode airs officially, in a high quality stream. For more on House of the Dragon, check out our deep dive on Rhaenyra Targaryen, or for something more salacious check out why did Alicent show Larys Strong her feet.