The upcoming “Game of Thrones” prequel “House of the Dragon” has added several high profile cast members to the series with production starting soon…
The highly anticipated “Game of Thrones” prequel titled “House of the Dragon” has finally announced several key roles that have been cast ahead of the start of production.
This news follows the casting of Paddy Considine (“The Outsider”), who will be playing King Viserys I Targaryen, who is sitting on the Iron Throne prior to the biggest civil war in the history of Westeros — The Dance of Dragons.
Here’s the list of new cast members along with the roles they’ll be playing:
Olivia Cooke (“Bates Motel”) as Alicent Hightower — “The daughter of Otto Hightower, the Hand of the King, and the most comely woman in the Seven Kingdoms. She was raised in the Red Keep, close to the king and his innermost circle; she possesses both a courtly grace and a keen political acumen.”
Matt Smith (“Doctor Who”) as Prince Daemon Targaryen — “The younger brother to King Viserys and heir to the throne. A peerless warrior and a dragonrider, Daemon possesses the true blood of the dragon. But it is said that whenever a Targaryen is born, the gods toss a coin in the air…”
Emma D’Arcy (“Truth Seekers”) as Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen — “The king’s first-born child, she is of pure Valyrian blood, and she is a dragonrider. Many would say that Rhaenyra was born with everything… but she was not born a man.”
“House of the Dragon” is based on George R.R. Martin’s book “Fire and Blood,” which details much of the history of House Targaryen including the events in the Dance of Dragons, which is also called the Targaryen civil war. To put these new roles into better perspective, let’s take a look at how each of them play a part in this upcoming story — at least based upon the books.
King Viserys and his first wife were unable to produce a male heir so he began grooming his daughter Rhaenyra as the natural successor to the Iron Throne despite the fact that only kings had ruled Westeros. After the King’s wife died, Viserys was paired with Alicent Hightower, who was the daughter of his Hand of the King, Otto Hightower.
Much like a future queen named Cersei Lannister, Alicent Hightower was both beautiful and cunning with political ambitions, especially after she produced male heirs for the king. When King Viserys passed away, Alicent wastes no time putting her children in line to take over while Princess Rhaenyra obviously stakes her own claim per her father’s wishes. That’s essentially the spark that begins the fire leading to the Targaryen Civil War.
The third role cast in the series — Daemon Targaryen — is also important because he is the younger brother of King Viserys, who eventually marries his daughter Princess Rhaenyra. Prince Daemon was known as the most skilled warrior in the Seven Kingdoms and he carried a Valyrian steel sword known as Dark Sister. He was also a noted dragonrider, who sat upon a fierce beast named Caraxes.
Once the Targaryen civil war begins, Daemon serves as the commander of Rhaenyra’s forces after he crowns her queen while naming himself Protector of the Realm.
Of course while it appears these roles will be similar in the upcoming “House of the Dragon” series, there are always potential tweaks and changes that could be coming that are different from the books.
Production on “House of the Dragon” is expected to begin in early 2021 with the series likely debuting on HBO in 2022.
