Ahead of its premiere next month, an explosive new trailer for the Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon has been released online. And yes, you guessed it, there are dragons!

The much-anticipated fantasy epic is set around 200 years before the events of its acclaimed predecessor which aired on HBO for eight series between 2011 and 2019.

Adapted from author George R.R. Martin’s successful 2018 novel Fire and Blood, the story focuses on the Targaryen dynasty during the Dance of Dragons and its civil war.

The chief cast members for the series include BAFTA-winner Paddy Considine (Dead Man’s Shoes, Hot Fuzz) as King Viserys, Matt Smith (Doctor Who, The Crown) as Daemon, Emma D’Arcy (Wanderlust, Mothering Sunday) as Princess Rhaenyra and Olivia Cooke (Ready Player One, Sound of Metal) as Alicent Hightower.

Additionally, the rest of the versatile ensemble includes BAFTA winner Rhys Ifans (Notting Hill, Not Only But Always), Eve Best (Nurse Jackie, Lucky Man), Steve Toussaint (Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, Small Axe: Red, White and Blue), Sonoya Mizuno (Crazy Rich Asians, Maniac), Fabien Frankel (Last Christmas, The Serpent), Milly Alcock (Reckoning, Uptight), Emily Carey (Casualty, Wonder Woman), Ryan Corr (Hacksaw Ridge, Mary Magdalene), Jefferson Hall (Vikings, Devs), David Horvitch (The Young Victoria, Mr. Turner), Graham McTavish (The Hobbit trilogy, Outlander), Matthew Needham (Casualty, Doctor Who), Gavin Spokes (Brexit: The Uncivil War, The Ipcress File) and Bill Paterson (Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, Fleabag).

While loyal fans of Game of Thrones were left disappointed by the show’s maligned final series (and its treatment of Daenerys Targaryen!), they’ll certainly be intrigued to see how this latest story pans out especially with its focus being on the origins of one of Westeros’s most revered families.

House of the Dragon will air the first of ten episodes on Sky Atlantic on Monday 22 August.