HBO commented recently on the big hiccup that followed one of the highly anticipated season 2 finales of “House of the Dragon,” which leaked online days before its official release. A huge stir was created among fans, but more so within entertainment circles; HBO had to quickly step up and manage such a situation.
HBO releases statement after the season finale of ‘House of the Dragon’ leaked online:
“The clips were posted after an unintentional release from an international third-party distributor. HBO is aggressively monitoring and removing clips from the internet, and fans can watch the… PIC.TWITTER.COM/KWNBU8AC3Q
— Pop Base (@PopBase) JULY 31, 2024
One TikTok user account was said to have uploaded 14 videos that contained almost 30 minutes of footage from the episode. The account itself has since been banned but not before damage was already done. Now, viewers are scrounging about madly to avoid spoilers at any cost before this weekend’s official air date.
In response to the leak, HBO issued a statement.
“We are aware that clips from last night’s House of the Dragon season finale leaked out on social media this morning,” an HBO spokesperson told Entertainment Weekly in a statement. “The clips in question were posted prior to the intended airing and were made available by an international third-party distributor. HBO aggressively monitors the removal of content from the internet, and fans can view the episode in its entirety Sunday night on both HBO and Max.”
The episode is due to officially air on HBO on August 4th, and in the UK will be simulcast by Sky Atlantic in the early hours of August 5th. But though this leak will no doubt please some fans, others expressed a desire to see the finale in its proper format, having waited years to get to this point.
The leak has been attributed to an accidental release by a third-party international distributor. Clips from the episode began cropping up on multiple platforms ranging from social media all the way through illegal torrent sites. This sad misfortune finds its confirmation with HBO, who is now aggressively scrounging the Internet for any leaks to remove them.
This isn’t the first such problem for House of the Dragon. In October 2022, its season one finale was leaked online two days before its drop date. Another leak went viral in May when one of the season two trailers came out early. Recent incidents only add to the troubles HBO had with leaks during the first iteration of Game of Thrones.
It isn’t history before now, though, as many leaks of this nature have normally not affected viewership figures. At the other corner, the Season 1 finale of “House of the Dragon” also leaked and yet secured a record 9.3 million viewers on premiere night. Its season two premier raked in 7.8 million viewers, indicating that it still has a gigantic fan base and is one of the stiff competitions on Television.
Although George R.R. Martin, the co-creator of “House of the Dragon,” has not said anything explicitly regarding the leak, his commitment to listing and going on about the series is clap-trap. Martin is someone who constantly harps on storytelling and development in the Game of Thrones world. His continued work as a co-creator and executive producer proves his diligence to make sure that the series resonates with fans and produces quality visual material.
Fans are encouraged to watch the finale during its official premiere this Sunday night on HBO and Max. Despite the leakage, the network is quite sure that this official release will still gain a big audience as fans are highly excited and wildly curious about how the season will close out.
Meanwhile, HBO is doing everything in its power to remove this leaked content and trying to make sure that in the near future, such incidents are avoided as far as possible. The fact that your network is already on its toes regarding this issue and ensuring a quality view for audiences speaks enough about the commitment it has towards its fan base.
