HBO’s hit series House of the Dragon has been hit with yet another online leak. Dozens of clips from the highly anticipated season two finale appeared on TikTok ahead of the scheduled premiere on August 4.
The leaked footage, apparently recorded from a screen, was uploaded to a new TikTok account on Tuesday night. In no time, it garnered over 100,000 views before being taken down. Despite the swift removal, the clips have since been re-shared extensively on both TikTok and X (formerly known as Twitter).
The identity of the leaker remains unknown. The Hollywood Reporter has reached out to HBO for a response but has yet to receive any comment.
This isn’t the first time House of the Dragon has faced such issues. The season one finale also leaked online just days before its official air date in 2022. At that time, HBO attributed the leak to a distribution partner in Europe, the Middle East, or Africa (EMEA).
“It appears to have originated from a distribution partner in the EMEA region,” an HBO spokesperson said in a statement. “HBO is aggressively monitoring and pulling these copies from the internet.”
Leaks are not a new problem for HBO. In 2017, an episode of Game of Thrones from season seven was unlawfully uploaded to torrent websites ahead of its release. HBO identified the breach as the result of a third-party vendor’s mistake.
These recurrent leaks pose significant challenges for HBO, as they not only disrupt planned release schedules but also potentially spoil the experience for eager fans. The network continues to battle such breaches, implementing stringent measures to safeguard its content. However, the persistence of these incidents highlights the ongoing struggle against digital piracy in the entertainment industry.
As fans await the official release of the House of the Dragon season two finale, HBO’s efforts to control the spread of the leaked clips continue. The show’s popularity makes it a prime target for leaks, and the network’s response to this latest incident will be closely watched.