Game of Thrones prequel series ‘House of the Dragon’ achieved record viewership, with nearly 10 million viewers (9.986 million) watching the series premiere.

This viewership includes telecasts as well as HBO Max streams during premiere night.

HBO says House of the Dragon drew the most viewers in the TV channel’s history.

“It was great to see millions of Game of Thrones fans return to Westeros last night,” Casey Blues, chief content officer for HBO and HBO Max, said in a statement.

Notably, the prequel series has also surpassed the original Game of Thrones series premiere, which garnered 2.22 million viewers for its pilot episode in 2011.

House of the Dragon has now also become HBO Max’s biggest series launch in the US, Latin America, Europe, Middle East and Africa.

Based on George RR Martin’s book Fire and Blood, the 10-episode series follows the tumultuous story of the House of Targaryen, set 200 years before the events that enthrall fans in Game of Thrones.

The series is a mesmerizing tale that takes us deep into the extraordinary world of Westeros and explores the Targaryen family, the all-powerful dragon riders and invincible rulers of the Seven Kingdoms. Bitter rivalries, jealousy, lust, power-seeking and betrayal will tear the Targaryens apart and threaten to destroy a family that has ruled unchallenged for a century.