According to Deadline, Turner is currently in talks to star as Lara Croft in yet another adaptation of the hit video game franchise Tomb Raider. The series is being developed over at Amazon MG Studios, and they’ve tapped Fleabag creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge to develop the show.

Admittedly, the last successful adaptations of Tomb Raider were the Angelina Jolie films, and even those fizzled out at the box office. The last stab at a live-action version of Lara came out in 2018 with Alicia Vikander (Ex Machina) playing the lead.

There’s also the animated series that released on Netflix recently:

We don’t know much about the new series yet, but it’s said that the series is aiming to be ‘epic’ in scale with the promise of a globe-trotting adventure. Though I would prefer Waller-Bridge to just gives us shows about socially (and sexually) awkward adult women, I’m interested to see how she could tackle a franchise like Tomb Raider; maybe she picked up a thing or two while she was working on the last Indiana Jones film.

As for Turner, I’ll admit, I only ever noticed her play Sansa Stark for a long while, and the only other memorable role for her that I can remember is her short cameo in Do Revenge where she goes on an epic rant about cocaine:

I don’t imagine her Lara would have that energy, but she’s sure welcome to surprise me.

No release date has been set for the upcoming Tomb Raider adaptation from Phoebe Waller-Bridge.

With another season underway, and GRRM being clear with his displeasure with some of showrunner Ryan Condal’s decisions, HBO head Casey Bloys tells Deadline about the current state of the series relationship with Martin. He explains:

“He’s very important to me, to us… But when we put shows together, it’s like putting a marriage together. Marriages can be difficult, especially when Ryan Condal is making creative decisions and adapting work. It can be fraught. Any marriage can get rocky. I would prefer everybody get along, of course. But with the creative process, we are always going to have bumps. That’s to be expected.”

In Martin’s deleted post about House of the Dragon, he had complained about the omission of Maelor Targaryen, who was supposed to be present in the scene where Jaehaerys was beheaded. In Martin’s rant, he said that removing the character would possibly result in several moments in the story to be changed in the context; and there are story moments that he thinks would not make sense if certain events didn’t happen.

GRRM’s blog on HOTD is out, and he is NOT happy. pic.twitter.com/UILFedmIcJ

— hypatia (@actuallyhypatia) September 4, 2024

It’s crazy because this is only a fraction of what Martin was allegedly complaining about when it came to House of the Dragon; and fans can only imagine what else issues he had with the second season.

Personally, I thought there was a lot to enjoy about the series, and it’s nowhere near as bad as the final season of Game of Thrones. The character arcs still feel pretty solid, and the spectacle is definitely still there.

Hopefully the third season manages to mend the divide between Martin and Condal. But even if that was the case, I’m sure there are already several toxic fans and grafters who are ready to tune in every week and make hours of hate content for the show.

No release date has been set for the next season of House of the Dragon, but a 2026 premiere could be realistic.

This was his post (via @westerosies):

Tom Glynn-Carney shares a message on his Instagram story regarding the harassment his friends and family are facing due to him portraying King Aegon II Targaryen in ‘HOUSE OF THE DRAGON.’

“It has been brought to my attention that there are messages being sent to my friends and… pic.twitter.com/PK5i2P8GCZ

— westerosies (@westerosies) October 23, 2024

We don’t know if this is going to stop anyone from harassing Glynn-Carney’s family, but it at least puts the spotlight on a very real thing that happens in fandoms when actors who play characters that fans don’t like get bullied online. Fans have been doing it since The Phantom Menace, and the act has only gotten more lucrative since then, with multiple Youtube channels dedicated solely to spreading toxicity and promoting bigotry in specific fandoms—like the Star Wars communities.

There has been a recent calling out of the huge companies like Disney for taking responsibility for this harassment, and so far the only solution they’ve come up with was to give actors a ‘social media bootcamp’ as well as offer to completely take over a performers’ social media.

Any act outright condemning the fandom for racism/bullying is usually done personally by the actors. Here’s what Ewan McGregor did when fans were attacking his Obi-Wan Kenobi star Moses Ingram:

The next season of House of the Dragon is expected to come to HBO in 2026.

Just recently, Martin has posted on his blog about one of his major grievances with the series, particularly how they’ve toned down the violence of the whole Blood and Cheese incident that lead to the death of Prince Jaehaerys and the exclusion of a character from the books. He has since deleted the blog post, but now HBO has decided to release a statement.

According to Deadline, HBO said about the post:

“There are few greater fans of George R.R. Martin and his book Fire & Blood than the creative team on House of the Dragon, both in production and at HBO… Commonly, when adapting a book for the screen, with its own format and limitations, the showrunner ultimately is required to make difficult choices about the characters and stories the audience will follow. We believe that Ryan Condal and his team have done an extraordinary job and the millions of fans the series has amassed over the first two seasons will continue to enjoy it.”

In Martin’s original post, he had complained about the removal of Prince Maelor, Heleana’s youngest son, and how it would mean that more key scenes from the book would be removed from the show. He then teases that there would be more ‘toxic’ changes in the series moving forward, but the blog mostly focuses on the Blood and Cheese incident and how it could ‘butterfly effect’ more crucial events down the line.

GRRM’s blog on HOTD is out, and he is NOT happy. pic.twitter.com/UILFedmIcJ

— hypatia (@actuallyhypatia) September 4, 2024

Immediately fans who had been hating on the show since Season 2 came out have used Martin’s quotes to fuel their anger at showrunner Ryan Condal for changing some elements of the story. Admittedly, there are some who thought that the series was right to tone down the child murder.

We don’t know exactly what the beef between Martin and HBO is, but as of now, it does look like they’ve somewhat silenced GRRM from cooking up any more bad faith for the series and showrunners. Either that or GRRM just wants to edit more on his original blog entry.

House of the Dragon Season 3 is expected to come out in 2026.

As it turns out, we should only expect two more seasons out of the show moving forward. As confirmed by Variety, showrunner Ryan Condal has confirmed during a press conference that House of the Dragon is expected to conclude by Season 4.

It’s interesting that Condal would mention four seasons, as this was also said to be the plan by series co-creator George R.R. Martin who confirmed back in 2022 that they would need four seasons with ten episodes each to cover the events of the Fire & Blood book.

As of now, the show’s third season is still being written, and the goal is to start production early next year. When asked about the length of the season, Condal has said that there has been no episode number discussed yet. He explains:

“I haven’t had discussions with HBO about it. I would just anticipate the cadence of the show, from a dramatic storytelling perspective, will continue to be the same from Season 2 on.”

Admittedly, the series has been taking liberties from the source material, but it has been doing some interesting character choices—especially with the emphasis on the two queens Rhaenyra and Alicent being at the center of the conflict.

Though the finale may not have been as bombastic as some fans were expected, any seasoned Game of Thrones watcher knows that the ‘spectacle’ episode is always the penultimate one, and the finale is used to wrap up arcs and build up what’s to come in the next season.

Catch the complete second season of House of the Dragon now streaming on Max.

Check this out:

The dragons were just the beginning. New stories, fresh chapters. It’s all coming soon to Max. Get excited for the upcoming HBO Original Series The Penguin, Dune: Prophecy, The Franchise, It: Welcome to Derry, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, and more.

New seasons of the HBO Original Series The White Lotus, The Last of Us, and The Gilded Age are coming soon, plus new seasons of Max Original Series And Just Like That, Sex Lives of College Girls, and more.

We’ve been getting small updates on series like the Dune spinoff, but this is the first time we’re getting a look at the IT prequel which is expected to feature Billy Skargard as Pennywise the Clown. There’s also a short clip of a show called The Franchise which is supposed to be a parody on a big studio like Marvel trying to run one of the most lucrative box office IPs for as long as it can.

Though there are a lot of new original shows incoming, fans also can’t wait for follow-ups to existing series like The White Lotus, The Gilded Age, and The Last of Us. Too bad Euphoria fans still don’t know when they’ll get a third season; hopefully Sam Levinson and Zendaya will be able to figure things out soon, because a lot of the cast—Jacob Elordi, Hunter Schafer, and Sydney Sweeney specifically—could be going on to bigger things.

Max is now available in select countries.

What’s funny is, he actually has a cameo in the latest season of House of the Dragon, but very few have noticed so far.

As it was pointed out in the latest episode of House That Dragons Built, Martin actually appears onscreen in the series—not as himself, but as part of the set. As it turns out, the weirwood tree in Harrenhal has the face of George R.R. Martin. Check this out:

It’s not a 1:1 recreation of Martin’s face, but it does have enough features that people could look at it and immediately think of him. I thought the face looked fine, but I was kind of hoping they found a way to replicate the glasses, suspenders, and beret as well.

Game of Thrones is no stranger to guest stars and cameos. They had Ed Sheeran appear as a Lannister soldier, and had guest appearances from actors like Ian McShane and Pedro Pascal. Even Raised by Wolves fans have noticed that Amanda Colin (Mother) and Abubakar Salim (Father) also have prominent roles in the second season of House of the Dragon.

We don’t know if the show will ever want to show Martin as himself, but I think he’ll fit right in as an old maester. Maybe they can take a leaf out of Peter Jackson’s book and just have him be a commoner munching on a carrot.

Catch House of the Dragon now streaming on Max.

Talking to TV Insider, Mysaria actress Sonoya Mizuno was asked whether we should expect more ‘opportunities for romance’ this season, especially counting that there are only two episodes left since the kiss. Mizuno then replies, “You bloody well hope so. I hope so. For the sake of all the gays, I hope so.”

Though there are already angry ‘anti-woke’ fans who are review bombing the episode because of the kiss, it can be argued that the moment between Rhaenyra and Mysaria didn’t ‘come out of nowhere’. Rhaenyra has been constantly bombarded with disrespect the whole season from the men in her council, but Mysaria has been nothing but supportive. All the two really needed was a moment of vulnerability, and that would have been the final push toward a kiss.

With Rheanyra having spent the whole of Season 2 just stuck in Dragonstone, fans are hoping that she and Daemon get to do something more exciting soon—especially with so few episodes left. There’s more to the whole Dance of Dragons story that the story is yet to cover, and we should expect the penultimate episode to come with the most serious ramifications.

As for the future of Rhaesaria, Mizuno said, “Well, who’s to know? All I’ll say is there’s a civil war brewing, so I don’t know how much time there is to talk about what happened last night.”

I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

Catch House of the Dragon Season 2 now streaming on Max.

Fans have been speculating a romance between the characters for a while, and as it turns out, their kiss in the show wasn’t actually planned in the script—it was just something the actors thought felt right for the characters.

Talking to The Wrap, Sonoya Mizuno explained:

“It wasn’t scripted as a kiss. I think it was scripted as … there’s just breath between them or something, and then whatever happens is interrupted… Because we were separate in the room … [and] Mysaria has told this story, [D’Arcy] felt the instinct to hold her, to comfort her… From that, it felt so organic to go into the kiss.”

What’s interesting to note is that Rhaenyra and Mysaria never had a romance in the book Fire and Blood, but Mysaria still ended up becoming the Mistress of Whispers for Rhaenyra anyway. I guess the writers decided to give ‘mistress’ a whole new kind of meaning when it comes to series. Either way, a lot of book readers had found themselves shocked by the development.

With two episodes left for HOTD, fans are wondering how far the Dance of Dragons will go until it cuts to the next season. Admittedly, it will have to be another long wait, but seeing the quality of the VFX and overall writing, it does seem that the 2-year wait has been worth it for the show.

Catch House of the Dragon Season 2 now showing on Max.

In an interview with Mashable, director Geeta Vasant Paterl confirmed that the dragon eggs that Rhaenyra sends to the Vale with Rhaena are the same eggs that will be gifted to Daenerys Targaryen a hundred years later. Patel says, “Those are Daenerys’ eggs… All of us who work on this show are big Game of Thrones fans, so it was very exciting to shoot that scene.”

While this sounds like a harmless easter egg, there are those fans online that are already crying foul that the show isn’t keeping to the established lore. While it wasn’t explicitly pointed out, it was theorized that Daenerys’ eggs come from Dreamfyre, Helaena’s dragon.

Based on clues from the book, Dreamfyre (Helaena’s dragon in #HouseOfTheDragon) was theorized to be the mother of Daenerys’ dragons.

In 54 AC, Elissa Farman, lover to Queen Rhaena Targaryen (the first rider of Dreamfyre), stole three of Dreamfyre’s eggs before escaping across… https://t.co/Tb9bpEbu7b pic.twitter.com/zyN4ZxCcf1

— westerosies (@westerosies) July 1, 2024

Since the series itself has been taking liberties with the source material, it’s easy to deduce that they’re just making a new origin for the eggs. After all, it doesn’t have any huge consequences to the overall story. It’s just an interesting piece of lore that gives backstory to the dragon eggs that will eventually hatch into the only dragons that appear on Game of Thrones.

We should expect more connections to A Song of Ice and Fire down the line, but for now I think some fans should accept that the show is going to take liberties with the established lore of the books (and that’s okay).

Catch new episodes of House of the Dragon every Sunday night on Max.

Just in, we have our first look at Peter Claffey as Ser Duncan the Tall in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight. Check this out:

Set a century before #GameOfThrones, the new @HBO Original drama series, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, is now in production. Coming soon to @StreamOnMax. pic.twitter.com/CS7tX7iND2

— Game of Thrones (@GameOfThrones) June 18, 2024

At 6’4’’, Claffey really does fit the part of Ser Duncan a.k.a. Dunk, as you can see that he’s taller than everyone else in the frame. We’ve yet to have a look at his co-star Dexter Sol Ansell who will be playing the part of Aegon “Egg” Targaryen.

While the shows we have so far are based on full-length novels, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is actually based on shorter novellas from George R.R. Martin. The first is The Hedge Knight, then The Sworn Sword, ending with The Mystery Knight.

In the lore, Duncan the Tall became a legendary member of the Kingsguard, and it was his squire Egg that would become Aegon V Targaryen ruler of Westeros and brother to Maester Aemon of the Night’s Watch. Here’s a brief mention of Dunk in Game of Thrones:

No release date has been set for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms yet, but with production ongoing we should expect a release early next year or maybe even something by the end of this year.

In the meantime, check out House of the Dragon now streaming on Max.

Check this trailer for House of the Dragon out:

Admittedly, nothing too significant has been changed with the status quo between the two sides of the Targaryens, but we do know that Rhaenyra now definitly knows that her son is dead, and now the Greens will have to retaliate as Daemon has ordered Aegon’s heir to be killed.

Fans have known that this show will ultimately lead to the Targaryen Civil War known as the “Dance of Dragons”, but for this first episode, it does look all all the pieces are still being set. We know all the major players from each house, and we’re also seeing how far they are in the effort to keep the throne.

Besides the Targaryens though, we are getting teases for other established houses in the world of Westeros. We just saw The Wall again and its state during this era of the timeline, and it’s also teased in the preview that we’re going to be seeing the Tullys (Caitlyn Stark’s original house) and the Tarlys (Sam Tarly’s ancient house).

All in all, it’s great to be back in Westeros, and we should expect some heart-clenching drama in the coming weeks. Oh yeah, maybe some dragons as well.

Catch new episodes of House of the Dragon every Sunday night on Max.

Watch the new trailer for season 2 of House of the Dragon:

For the second season of House of the Dragon, we expect the show to follow even more of the events of the book Fire & Blood. Though the series did try to be as faithful as possible to the source material, it has been known to take some liberties from time to time.

If anything, some changes have been for the better. Viserys Targaryen was kind of a stock character in the original book, but even George R.R. Martin praised the series for giving the character much more gravitas and making his exit in the series much more meaningful than in the books.

For now, the teams have been established with team Black and Green, and thogh the story has already been set in stone in the lore, it’s quite a different thing to watch all of it unfold onscreen. Hopefully the showrunners have more surprises up their sleeves for not just the TV audience, but for the book readers as well.

Fingers crossed the show doesn’t breed more toxic fandom, but at this point, that’s probably unavoidable.

House of the Dragon Season 2 is set to come out on June 16 on Max.

Just in, HBO has officially announced the two lead cast members of the show playing the pair of “Dunk and Egg” a.k.a. Ser Duncan the Tall and Aegon “Egg” V Targaryen. Here’s the post:

Send a raven.

Peter Claffey and Dexter Sol Ansell will star in the new @HBO Original Series, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight, as Ser Duncan the Tall and Egg. Coming to Max. pic.twitter.com/OAXVSQKLrB

— Max (@StreamOnMax) April 5, 2024

Peter Claffey (Dunk) is best known for his work on the series Wreck, and his co-star Dexter Sol Ansell had a small part as a young Coriolanus Snow in the recent Hunger Games prequel A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.

Unlike the previous Thrones series which is based on full-length novels, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is a series of novellas from George R.R. Martin, and three have been published so far—The Hedge Knight, The Sworn Sword, and The Mystery Knight.

In the lore, Duncan the Tall would grow on to be a legendary member of the Kingsguard, and his squire, Egg, would rule Westeros as Aegon V Tagaryen. Egg is also the brother of Aemon Targaryen in Game of Thrones, and he calls out to him before he dies in the series. Here’s a scene from GoT where they briefly mention Ser Duncan:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBb15PQn-gQ

The story is a prequel set 90 years before the events of Game of Thrones, and after the Dance of Dragons from House of the Dragon. We don’t know what kind of tone the showrunners will be going for, but I am up for something more wholesome that takes place in a world as brutal as Westeros.

No release date has been set for A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight, but you can watch out for House of the Dragon which is set to come back to Max on June 16.

House of the Dragon is set to return this June, and we have two new trailers dropped, each focusing on different sides of the Targaryen Civil War—Black and Green. Watch this:

Unlike Game of Thrones which had to come up with its own ending because there was a lack of source material, House of the Dragon has a completed story in the lore, so a lot of fans are hopeful that we get a concise ending.

Even if the story is completed though, the series has been taking some liberties. In the books, Viserys Targaryen was more of a forgettable character, but the series actually gave hime a very meaningful arc, which made his death all the more devastating.

We don’t know what else the show could change, but so far, the series has managed to ignite excitement in the GoT fandom again; especially after the disappointment with the finale that a good chunk of fans cannot seem to shut up about.

Hopefully the showrunners of House of the Dragon have a good enough sense to condense the story without overstretching episodes or making some questionable character decisions. I don’t think the fandom can take another hit like GoT Season 8.

The second season of House of the Dragon comes to Max on June 16.

The synopsis reads:

A young woman’s fateful decision in 1960s China reverberates across space and time to a group of brilliant scientists in the present day. As the laws of nature unravel before their eyes five former colleagues reunite to confront the greatest threat in humanity’s history.

Admittedly, the premise is kind of confusing to grasp for a series, and that’s why a lot of people considered the book to be unadaptable—much like Watchmen and Dune before it. By any case, “D&D” have been known to be very good at adapting material for television—just make sure that the source material is complete and that they don’t start getting bored with it after a couple of years.

With so much online vitriol following Benioff and Weiss online, you can imagine the angry GoT fans are going to be spamming the comments with how much they hate pair in the official 3 Body Problem pages; but I am hoping that we get a fantastic adaptation that will be able to stand on its own when it premieres.

Catch 3 Body Problem when it premieres on Netflix on March 21.

Check the trailer out:

The official synopsis for the project reads:

Phil Loder (Peter Dinklage) is a dreamer. Most dreams don’t come true. Phil hates that. As a low-level adjunct professor, his grand dream of owning a home is tragically out of reach…until a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity comes his way.

Besides Dinklage, the movie also stars Shirley MacLaine, Matt Dillon, and Danny Glover. The movie is also being directed by Paul Dektor, who has worked with Dinklage on Netflix series How to Become a Cult Leader, How to Become a Tyrant, and How to Become a Mob Boss.

You would think that after the role of Tyrion Lannister, Dinklage wouldn’t be able to find any more significant little person roles in the future, but he has somehow managed to land roles that don’t have to depend on his stature and simply rely on his star power as an actor.

I’m still waiting for Dinklage’s next big role in the future, but as for now, I’m just happy to still see him work and really set a new standard when it comes to roles that little people can play in Hollywood projects.

You think he’ll ever be in Star Wars?

American Dreamer officially releases on March 8.

Writing on his own personal blog, Song of Ice and Fire author George R.R. Martin talks about how difficult of a year he’s had and how he anticipates 2024 not to be any better. He goes on to talk about ongoing wars, both publicized and ignored, but also has something to say about the recent fandom spaces. Martin writes:

“I take solace where I can.   In chocolate thrones, if nowhere else.   In books.   In films and television shows… though even there, toxicity is growing.  It used to be fun talking about our favorite books and films, and having spirited debates with fans who saw things different… but somehow in this age of social media, it is no longer enough to say ‘I did not like book X or film Y, and here’s why.’  Now social media is ruled by anti-fans who would rather talk about the stuff they hate than the stuff they love, and delight in dancing on the graves of anyone whose film has flopped.”

If anything, Martin definitely knows what he’s talking about. After all, the Game of Thrones fandom has been filled with the same ‘anti-fans’ ever since the series ended; on top of that, Martin has also been the victim of constant fan ridicule for taking his time when it comes to finishing the next book in the Song of Ice and Fire saga. Some are even blaming him for taking so long that the TV series had to write its own ending.

For now, the social media climate does seem to be cultivating a lot of hate—especially since they are very good with engagement. We don’t know how we could take on this toxicity moving forward; but some fans are trying their best to stay positive amidst the noise of it all.

Winds of Winter still has no release date, but watch our for the next season of House of the Dragon coming to Max this summer.

We never got an official look at the show, but thanks to make-up artist @floramoody, we have a look at Naomi Watts in costume for what was supposed to be called Game of Thrones: Bloodmoon. Check this out:

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Flora Moody (@floramoody)

Here are the stills thanks to @westerosies:

First look at Naomi Watts in the pilot episode of HBO’s cancelled ‘BLOOD MOON’ #GameOfThrones prequel series.

The pilot reportedly revolved around a wedding between a Stark and a Casterly, taking place at Casterly Rock. pic.twitter.com/4htFRbSJsg

— westerosies (@westerosies) February 2, 2024

We don’t know who Watts was supposed to be playing in the show, but based on the blonde hair and yellow clothing, I’m going to guess she was a Casterly.

The official logline from the series did say (via ComicBookMovie): “From the horrifying secrets of Westeros’s history to the true origin of the White Walkers… the mysteries of the East to the Starks of legend, only one thing is for sure: it’s not the story we think we know.”

Besides the origin of the White Walkers, the show as also speculated to reveal how the Wall ended up being built; and we would also see how the Lannisters came to be the ones who would take over Casterly Rock.

We don’t know exactly why the series was cancelled, but seeing where House of the Dragon was going, I can imagine that HBO wanted something on the same level of scandalous that maybe the other prequel wasn’t able to match.

Maybe they can try again after HOTD ends, but we’ll just have to wait and see.

For now, fans are gearing up for the return of House of the Dragon on Max sometime later this year.

The official description reads:

A young woman’s fateful decision in 1960s China reverberates across space and time to a group of brilliant scientists in the present day. As the laws of nature unravel before their eyes five former colleagues reunite to confront the greatest threat in humanity’s history.

Like Dune before it, there had been a lot of discussion about 3 Body Problem by author Liu Cixin and how it was impossible to adapt into television or film. It’s possible there could be some concepts dropped when it comes to the series, but we’ll just have to wait and see what Benioff and Weiss have in store.

Admittedly, the two have become synonymous to internet poison ever since the final season of Game of Thrones, and any mention by them online is immediately followed by annoying fans who ‘hate D&D’ in the comments; but I am hoping that they will manage to shake it off with 3 Body Problem.

I mean, we could have had a Star Wars series from the creators of Game of Thrones, but they dropped that to do this—so it better be worth it, right?

3 Body Problem is set to start streaming on Netflix on March 21.