HOTLY anticipated “Game of Thrones” straight-to-series spinoff “House of the Dragon” is likely to premiere in 2022, HBO programming chief Casey Bloys said at the Television Critics Association tour Wednesday, calling that his “best guess.”

He was not able to narrow down a more precise premiere date at this stage of development. No production dates have been determined yet. Co-created by George R.R. Martin and Ryan Condal, “House of the Dragon” is based on “Fire and Blood” and set 300 years before the events of “Thrones,” telling the story of House Targaryen.

“They are in the room breaking story right now,” said Bloys. “My guess is we’ll see it on the air in 2022.”

As for the untitled “Game of Thrones” prequel pilot starring Naomi Watts, which HBO ultimately passed on, the cause of death was characterized as no singular thing.

“Pilots — sometimes they come together, sometimes they don’t,” said Bloys. “And I would say that was very much the case here. There’s nothing I would point to and say ‘Oh, this was the problem.’”

He added that Jane Goldman, who co-created the project with Martin, took on the challenge of world-building “beautifully.”

“That prequel was 8,000 years before the current show, so it required a lot more invention,” he said. “One of the benefits of ‘House of the Dragon’ is there was a text from George and there was a little bit more of a roadmap. Goldman’s prequel did have more challenges in terms of establishing a world, but I think she handled that beautifully; there wasn’t one glaring thing.”

And as speculation continues to roil over whether Damon Lindelof’s “Watchmen” could return for a second season, Bloys said he is giving Lindelof some space to consider his next move.

Though “Watchmen” is based on the 1986 graphic novel of the same name, the HBO adaptation “is so much from Damon’s head,” said Bloys. “It’s hard to imagine, but let’s see.”

Meanwhile, ahead of the launch of HBO Max in May, Bloys addressed the idea that HBO’s curated identity as a prestige cabler may face brand dilution, essentially taking a wait-and-see approach to how consumers receive the new streaming service.

(SD-Agencies)