Key element of House of the Dragon finale was Matt Smith’s idea

The first season of House of the Dragon ended with a death that will inevitably cause Westeros to plunge headfirst into war next season. After Viserys Targaryen passed and the Hightowers crowned Alicent’s firstborn son Aegon as the king of the seven kingdoms, the tension between the blacks and the greens teetered at the brink of a full-blown war. Upon hearing the news, Rhaenyra lost the child she was pregnant with, but still refused to draw first blood. Instead she sends two of her sons as messengers to great lords of Westeros to remind them of the oaths of fealty they swore to her years ago.

Lucerys is entrusted to carry a message to Lord Boros Baratheon at Storm’s End. Unfortunately, Aemond Targaryen is already there. Lucerys never makes it back to Dragonstone.

The final scene of the finale has Rhaenyra find out about the death of her second-born son. Her uncle and husband Daemon brings her the news. It’s a tense scene because we don’t actually see Rhaenyra’s face when Daemon gives her the news. Her back is to the camera as her body shakes and crumbles. When she finally turns around, we see war in her eyes.

Matt Smith came up with House of the Dragon blocking in “a turn f**king genius”

Emma D’Arcy, who plays Rhaenyra, talked to GQ Magazine about shooting the scene where she finds out about her son’s death. She reveals that it was that Matt Smith, who plays Daemon, who suggested some of the key blocking:

"When we got on set to rehearse, it has to be known, it was Matt Smith, in a turn of f***ing genius, who offered the idea that Daemon should give Rhaenyra the news while we’re both walking away from camera, towards the fireplace. It was sublime choice, and I could see it instantly. We’ve sort of touched on it, but I think losing a child, losing her son, it reframes immediately."

The closing scene has left a mark on viewers and will surely cast a long shadow over the rest of the show, as Rhaenyra abandons restraint and decides to plunge headlong into war.

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