HBO Defends Dark Lighting in Recent House of the Dragon Episode

The most recent House of the Dragon episode was, to quote Game of Thrones, “dark and full of terrors.”

During the Oct. 2 episode of the Game of Thrones spinoff, Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) and Daemon (Matt Smith) finally got together, but viewers had trouble seeing it due to the episode’s dark lighting. 

“Me trying to watch House of the Dragon with the brightness turned up to 100,” one Twitter user wrote alongside a pair of magnifying glasses. Another pointed out that publicity photos HBO released from the episode were easier to see, noting, “It’s the fact that even the official Game of Thrones and HOTD Twitter pages have to brighten up the photos they post from the episodes and yet still don’t see a problem with the lighting.”

But despite the disapproval from fans, according to the HBO Max, this was all part of the plan.

“We appreciate you reaching out about a night scene in House of the Dragon: Episode 7 appearing dark on your screen,” the HBOMaxHelp Twitter account replied to one concerned viewer. “The dimmed lighting of this scene was an intentional creative decision.” Well then!