Mexico’s historic Chapultepec Castle has been depicted flying the black Targaryen flag and officials in Mexico are not amused.
The plot of the House of the Dragon, a Game of Thrones prequel, apparently involves countries taking sides in a civil war for control of the fictitious Iron Throne.
The producers of the HBO series on Monday posted a video of the 19th-century Mexico City hilltop castle showing the black Targaryen flag hanging over the battlements.
Photo: Reuters
The flag, representing Queen Rhaenyra, predictably has a dragon on it.
Mexican officials on Monday issued a statement saying it was not true and threatening to sue.
However, it is not because they support Laenor Velaryon.
Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) said that the flags were generated by technology and had never really hung at the site.
Game of Thrones social media accounts posted similar images of other world landmarks, including New York City bridges.
The institute, which is the legal guardian of Mexico’s historic buildings and artifacts, was hopping mad that the historical site had been used in the ad campaign, and said that it would take legal action.
“The reproduction of images of this site for use in promoting this series has not been authorized,” it said. “For this reason, the INAH legal department will take all necessary legal measures, because this constitutes an improper use of images of a historical site.”
HBO did not respond to messages seeking comment.
It is unclear whether Mexico can win the legal battle against artificial intelligence and computer-generated images.
The institute did not claim authorship rights of the original video.
The site is open to the public, so anyone could have filmed it.
During the 1846-1948 Mexican-American War, the castle was the site of the 1847 battle of Chapultepec, when Mexicans defending the heights where the castle stands died rather than surrender to US troops.
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