House of the Dragon most watched premiere in Foxtel, Binge history

It was a huge gamble off the back of the success of GoT, but House of the Dragon pulled an army of Aussie viewers for its first episode.

House of the Dragon pulled record audiences in Australia following its premiere last Monday.

Binge and Foxtel, both of which express stream the series to Aussie audiences, said an astonishing 1.235 million viewers watched the very first episode, making it the number one premiere ever for the platforms.

“The show has launched to strong critical acclaim from reviewers here and around the world and we are so thrilled that the series has reignited Game of Thrones fans, and brought in a new audience as viewers tune in to see what all the hype is about,” Binge executive director Alison Hurbert-Burns said.

“We can’t wait to bring the remaining episodes to fans each Monday as the story of House Targaryen unfolds, and we are incredibly excited the series has been renewed for a second season.”

House of the Dragon saw record viewing around the world. Picture: HBO/Binge/Foxtel

It comes after HBO reported the first episode of the Game of Thrones prequel attracted an audience of 9.986 million viewers across linear and streaming platforms in the US, also making it the most-watched premiere in the premium cable company’s 51-year history.

Further, it also proved the largest series launch in Latin America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

In contrast, the pilot of Game of Thrones, which premiered back in 2011, drew 2.2 million viewers. Of course, by the eighth season it had amassed a significantly larger army of fans, with the 2019 finale notching 19.3 million viewers in the US – not counting delayed viewing.

“It was wonderful to see millions of Game of Thrones fans return with us to Westeros last night. House of the Dragon features an incredibly talented cast and crew who poured their heart and soul into the production, and we’re ecstatic with viewers’ positive response,” Casey Bloys, chief content officer at HBO and HBO Max, said in a statement.

“We look forward to sharing with audiences what else George [R.R Martin], Ryan [Condal], and Miguel [Sapochnik] have in store for them this season.”

Stream House of the Dragon on Binge or Foxtel. New Binge customers get a 14-day free trial. Sign up at binge.com.au

The first episode became HBO’s most watched premiere in the US and Australia. Picture: HBO/BINGE/FOXTEL

Famed US author Martin is credited as co-creator of House of the Dragon alongside Condal, who also serves as co-showrunner with director Sapochnik.

There are eight episodes left in the first season, which will air weekly on Mondays in Australia.

It’s a promising start for the future of the show, especially given the woeful response to the hugely anticipated final season of GoT, which attracted global backlash for feeling rushed.

There were, understandably, questions over whether those diehard viewers had permanently switched off from the world of Westeros, and if there was an element of fatigue after Thrones’ decade-long run.

But overall, fan reaction for the prequel has been overwhelmingly positive:

so we all just collectively crawled back to HBO quicker than Jaime went back to Cersei #HouseOfTheDragonHBO#HouseoftheDragonpic.twitter.com/FLgYeRQwZW

— Trina Watters (@trinawatters) August 22, 2022

Big night for #HouseoftheDragon 🔥

🎥 @Bkillinitpic.twitter.com/j4W5VRBMwe

— Culture Crave 🍿 (@CultureCrave) August 22, 2022

One episode in and I’m absolutely and completely OBSESSED with #HouseoftheDragon

I mean ⬇️🥲🤯 pic.twitter.com/IDEYzzo6gP

— 🐉 (@skarsgaryen) August 22, 2022

My ass was SO bitter for so long but one episode of #HouseoftheDragon and I’m like LFGOOOO pic.twitter.com/WNMjOqEUr4

— phyllis ⚾️ (@phyfash) August 22, 2022

HotD is set 200 years before the events of Thrones, focusing on the rise and fall of House Targaryen – Daenerys Targaryen’s family.

The series will hone in on several chapters from Martin’s book, Fire & Blood, during an era dubbed ‘Dance of the Dragons’, which chronicles a civil war that breaks out among the ruling house over the successor for King Viserys Targaryen (Paddy Considine).

After just one episode, a showdown is being set up between Viserys’ daughter, Rhaenyra Targaryen (Milly Alcock), and his brother, Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith).

And then there’s young Alicent Hightower (Emily Carey), who it appears is being groomed by her father and the King’s Hand Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans) to move in on Viserys and potentially start a new line of succession entirely.