Harrold Westerling, played by Outlander veteran Graham McTavish, speaks one of the first-ever lines on House of the Dragon, welcoming back a young Rhaenyra Targaryen after she finishes a joyride on her dragon Syrax in the series premiere. He’s there when Rhaenyra picks Criston Cole to join the Kingsguard…and then we barely hear anything from him until Episode 9, when he quits his job as Lord Commander of the Kinsguard walks out of the small council chambers when it becomes clear that the greens to seat Aegon Targaryen on the Iron Throne, rather than following the wishes of King Viserys and crown Rhaenyra.
Oh, and he’s also mad that Criston Cole kills Master of Coin Lyman Beesbury in front of everyone. “Well, you know, is kind of different,” McTavish told TV Line. “He’s strong. He’s brave, but he’s sort of sociopathic.”
"But yeah, Harrold definitely championed him, yeah…He values what Criston brings to the table, or what he appears to bring to the table. But yeah, I mean, it’s a slow realization for him, and by the time we get to Episode 9, I mean, it’s all he can do not to literally just kill him on the spot."
I think it’s interesting to hear McTavish talk about Ser Harrold’s “slow realization” about Criston, because as I said, we see next to nothing of this character between Episodes 2 (“The Rogue Prince”) and 9 (” The Green Council”). I don’t think Harrold’s “take this job and shove it” moment landed very well in Episode 9, because we didn’t really know him. (And also because it raises the question of why the green council would let this disgruntled man walk away when he likes Rhaenyra and knows of their plans to supplant her.)
I wonder if there aren’t several Harrold Westerling scenes in this season that ended up getting cut for time. Where was the development between him and Criston, for instance? Why would you hire a guy with as impressive a resume as McTavish and give him so little to do?
Graham McTavish reveals his cut line from House of the Dragon
McTavish revealed that there was at least one line that was cut from his quitting scene in Episode 9. “There was actually a line which I was a bit disappointed it didn’t make it in, where I’m facing off with in the end. It was about ‘The rats in the Red Keep have more honor than you.’ He really let him have it in that sense.
"And I understand why they would have maybe kept that out, because if you have that statement, what is the reaction from somebody? What is the believable reaction from somebody as hot-headed as Criston Cole? So, I can see why they might have left it out, but that’s certainly what he’s thinking, that this person standing in front of him has no honor. None."
No arguments there. With tongue in cheek, McTavish names Harrold as “he only morally decent human being in the all of Westeros…It’s a lonely life, I have to tell you.” And that sounds like an interesting angle…if only the show had explored it.
What does Harrold Westerling do in House of the Dragon season 2?
What’s next for Harrold Westering now that he’s off the Kingsguard? Even those who have read Geroge R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood are in the dark, since Harrold is dead by this point in the story on the page.
“Harrold’s entire life had been about his devotion to that family, and really in particular to Rhaenyra,” McTavish said. “He would’ve known her since she was literally born, so it would have been a very, very difficult moment for him, but also one in the end he didn’t hesitate about. So when he leaves, I mean — hey, you know, in my mind, I imagined him sort of striding out, getting on his horse, riding out of town and really taking time to decompress to actually think, you know, ‘What am I going to do next?’ Because I don’t think he has a plan. I don’t think Harrold would go home at night having an exit strategy if things went wrong. He would never have imagined that ever happening.”
"So, it’s a sort of cataclysmic moment for him, but also for [the Targaryens], you know, because this is somebody that they’ve entirely relied upon, who never questioned anything. I mean, to them he probably appeared almost just like a functionary. You know, “Fetch. Sit. Do that. Kill them.” And for that kind of a person to turn around and say, “You know what? I just hate the lot of you and so I’m leaving,” they’ll have a few things to think about, as well. Because it’s not like Harrold Westerling is no threat to them."
So basically, your guess is as good as ours, or as McTavish’s. “As you said, I don’t know where it’s all going, all the rest of it,” the actor said. “But I mean, the possibilities are there for any number of scenarios at the moment.”
We’ll find out when House of the Dragon returns for season 2, probably in 2024.
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