House of the Dragon, HBO’s upcoming Game of Thrones prequel series, comes out in just a couple of months. Set some 200 years before the original series, it tells the story of the Dance of the Dragons, a brutal civil war fought between rival factions of the Targaryen dynasty. When the story starts, the Targaryens are at the height of their power, with a great many dragons at their disposal. By the end…well, to quote an icon and a legend, if you think this has a happy ending, you haven’t been paying attention.
HBO released a trailer a while back. Now they’ve released a poster, and it’s pretty wicked:
That is Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen, one of the big players in this drama. The story basically involves her fighting her younger half-brother Aegon Targaryen for the Iron Throne after their father, King Viserys I Targaryen, dies. As for the dragon behind her, it’s probably Syrax, a yellow she-dragon who was bonded with Rhaenyra. Pretty much every member of the Targaryen family has their own dragon; dragons bond with their riders for life.
Milly Alcock is Young Rhaenyra Targaryen on the key art for House of the Dragon
Two actors will play Rhaenyra in the first season of the show: Milly Alcock will play the princess as a young woman and Emma D’Arcy will play her as an adult. It’s interesting that the poster features Alcock rather than D’Arcy. We’ve been unsure how much time the younger actors would get vs the older, but it must be a fair amount if Young Rhaenyra features on the key art.
House of the Dragon premieres on HBO and HBO Max on August 21. Not long now!
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