Emma D'Arcy has a "powerful desire" to make House of the Dragon season 3

The second season of HBO's Game of Thrones prequel series House of the Dragon wrapped up earlier this year, as Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy) planned to take the Iron Throne in King's Landing, lately occupied by her younger half-brother Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney). The second season ended on a bit of a weird note; there wasn't really a proper climax, but plenty of teases for big events ahead. The third season, whenever it airs, will at least hopefully start with a bang.

D'Arcy, for their part, is jazzed to get back to it. "I mean, obviously it’s coming around," they told Variety. "As soon as we kind of get into the new year, I know that I’ll be sort of creeping toward pre-production and we’ll be headed that way. I’m kind of excited about everything. I mean, I’m just at the point where I have this powerful desire to go back. I miss everyone. The show is made by such extraordinary people who pour love into this production over a big period of time. The commitment is at the very top level and I feel deeply honored whenever I get to sort of spend big portions of my life in that company."

"And in terms of Rhaenyra, I’m waiting with bated breath to read exactly what she’s going to be doing. It’s exciting leaving the second season in such a moment of change, both sort of personal and political change. Rhaenyra is a character who’s finally coming into her power. I think it’s taken two seasons for her to sort of come into herself. And so I think it’ll be quite a different challenge to start to wear that confidence."

It's a little odd to hear D'Arcy talk about Rhaenyra only now coming into her power; she may be a queen in abstentia, but she's still a queen, and she made some big moves during the show's second season. Then again, that season did get dinged for moving a bit slowly, and the writers changed things from the source material — George R.R. Martin's book Fire & Blood — to put more obstacles in Rhaenyra's way, like her season-long feud with her husband Daemon (Matt Smith).

Beware SPOILERS for House of the Dragon season 3 below

Readers of Fire & Blood know there are two big events on the immediate horizon for House of the Dragon: the Battle of the Gullet and Rhaenyra's conquest of King's Landing, which was alluded to in the season 2 finale. According to a new book that takes readers beind the scenes of the show, the Battle of the Gullet was originally supposed to happen at the end of season 2, but got pushed back. So perhaps that will open season 3. If so, it should get the blood pumping nice and early.

We won't see it for a while, though; as best we can tell, filming on House of the Dragon season 3 won't start until March of 2025, with new episodes starting to air on HBO and Max in 2026. In the meanwhile, D'Arcy has been enjoying hearing fan feedback about season 2, most of which they get in person, since they've made the wise decision not to hang out too much on social media.

"[W]hen I meet people, I love it," D'Arcy said. "I feel deeply proud of the season, and maybe it feels quite specifically personal to me. And my sense certainly is that it really connected with people. I guess one of the beautiful things about a recurring series and about characters that we get to spend so many hours with is that you as a viewer really start to live with them. It becomes less presentational. And as the audience builds a familiarity and the actor also builds a familiarity with that character, the nature of the relationship changes. That, for me, is when television starts to be a thrilling medium because it’s the long form that allows that extended relationship."

House of the Dragon is set to run for two more seasons. However it goes, I feel like D'Arcy is a real find. They're a great actor, they're well-spoken, and they seem to have a lot on their mind. Even beyond House of the Dragon, I'll be keeping an eye on their career. And of course, congratulations to D'Arcy on their nomination for a Golden Globe!

To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and Twitter account, sign up for our exclusive newsletter and check out our YouTube channel.