In the sprawling realm of Westeros, where mighty dragons roar and power struggles churn in the backdrop, the production for the Game of Thrones prequel, House of the Dragon, continues despite the multiple strikes affecting Hollywood. As the writers from the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and actors from the Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) echo their dissent in the picket lines, filming for the second season is undeterred, proceeding apace at Leavesden Studios in the United Kingdom.
Yet, the landscape beyond House of the Dragon paints a much bleaker picture. The prolific author of the A Song of Ice and Fire novels, George R.R. Martin, announced the suspension of his overall deal with HBO, a revelation that cast a long shadow over the development of other spinoffs tethered to the Game of Thrones universe.
The overarching question lingers - did HBO clamp the brakes, or did Martin himself elect to suspend the deal in a show of unity with the striking writers?
Martin, a stalwart advocate for the ongoing writers and actors strikes, offers a nuanced perspective on the impasse in a new post on his blog, Not A Blog. While the strikes wield implications that reach across the entire industry, Martin underscores their significance for those struggling to breach the walls of Hollywood, from entry-level writers to the story editors and the fledgling actor trying to catch a break. His voice rings with a resonance shaped by his own experience, tracing back to his early days in the '80s.
