Matt Smith (image via BBC), Olivia Cooke (image via Instagram), and Emma D’Arcy (image via Instagram)
The cast of House of the Dragon, the Game of Thrones prequel set 300 years before the events of the HBO series, is finally coming into focus. Via The Hollywood Reporter, the show has added Olivia Cooke (Ready Player One), Matt Smith (Doctor Who, The Crown), and Emma D’Arcy (Wanderlust).
The events of this new show will be drawn from Fire and Blood, George R.R. Martin’s 2018 book about the history of the Targaryen house. In October, HBO announced that Paddy Considine will play King Viserys Targaryen. Now, we know a bit more about the rest of the Targaryen clan.
Smith is set to play Prince Daemon Targaryen, described by HBO as 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.” In other words, expect a personality even more volatile than the 11th Doctor.
As for D’Arcy, she’ll play Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, said to be “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.”
Finally, Cooke has been cast 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.”
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Additionally, three new directors have been announced for the 10-episode series. These are Greg Yaitanes (Banshee), Clare Kilner (Snowpiercer), and Geeta Patel (The Witcher). Despite coronavirus delays, House of the Dragon is still targeting a 2022 premiere. In October, author Martin explained what happens to Hodor in the books he has yet to finish.
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