House Of The Dragon Season 2 Episode 1: Will JioCinema Censor Sex and Violence? What We Know

House of the Dragon is set to ignite screens once again on June 17 for its second season, making its debut on Max (formerly HBO Max) and in India on JioCinema. Surprisingly, the new season in India arrived amidst a cloud of uncertainty. Recent reports sparked by a social media post suggest that the initial episode of House of the Dragon Season 2 was uploaded on JioCinema with certain scenes censored.

The source of concern for certain netizens stems from the disparity in episode length between the versions on Max and JioCinema. While reports suggest that the international broadcast runs for around 58 minutes, the JioCinema version clocks in at approximately 55 minutes. This three-minute reduction has led to suspicions that scenes may have been edited from the Indian release.

But the question still looms: Has JioCinema truly censored House of the Dragon? The answer remains shrouded in mystery for now. From available information, it appears that the violent and intimate scenes in the JioCinema version are unaltered. Moreover, JioCinema’s support team, responding on X, vouched for the unedited nature of the episode, addressing a subscriber’s concerns. They attributed any alterations in runtime to ‘technical aspects,’ further adding to the mystery surrounding this speculation.

According to a report by Latestly, the initial episode of House of the Dragon Season 2 maintains its integrity, even with the inclusion of two intimate scenes—namely, one depicting cunnilingus and another referencing a child’s murder, portrayed through eerie sound design rather than visual depiction. Despite this content, the essence of the episode seems unaltered. The whereabouts of the missing three minutes and the nature of the described ‘technical aspects’ responsible for their absence are yet to be ascertained.

This Game of Thrones spin-off focuses on the Targaryen history. The first season set the ball rolling, introducing the GoT fans to Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith), Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke), Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy), Rhaenys Targaryen (Eve Best), Otto Hightower (Rhys Ifans) and other Targaryen ancestors. The first season ended on a high, showing a civil war break out within the Targaryen family.

The new season is set to take off from those final moments. In the first episode, which News18 Showsha watched and reviewed, the Targaryen are plotting against each other while the fight for the Iron Throne continues. The new season also teases the thirst for revenge after Queen Rhaenyra’s son Aemond Targaryen killed Lucerys Velaryon. The first episode also hints a gory season.

The new season also features a number of new cast members. These include Clinton Liberty, Jamie Kenna, Broome Kieran Bew, Tom Bennett, Tom Taylor, Vincent Regan, Abubakar Salim, Gayle Rankin, Freddie Fox and Simon Russell Beale.