The cast of crew and HBO's Game of Thrones prequel series House of the Dragon are filming the third season as we speak, and we've heard a lot of talk about a major battle scene coming up very early in the season, probably in the first episode. It's the Battle of the Gullet, a ship-to-ship navel conflict that was originally supposed to serve as the climax for season 2, but which got pushed back. Now, the cast and crew are laboring to bring to life what showrunner Ryan Condal called "probably the most complex sequence that's ever been done for television."
Those are big words, but they're backed up by members of the cast. Steve Toussaint plays Corlys Velaryon, an experienced seafarer who will play a key role in the battle. "Not to give any spoilers, but I've spoken to Loni Peristere, one of our directors, and he said, 'What we're doing in this particular episode, we don't think it's ever been done on television before,'" Toussaint told Gold Derby.
Loni Penistere directed episodes of Warrior, which is a great show you should watch now, before signing onto House of the Dragon, where he directed the action-heavy episode "The Red Sowing" in season 2. He's directing the first and sixth episodes of the upcoming third season. Given that we know the Battle of the Gullet is coming very early on, and given what Ryan Condal has already said about it, that's the only thing he can be referring to.
Toussaint didn't give many other details, except to say that they had built a full set for Corlys Velaryon's ship the Sea Snake (technically now renamed to The Queen Who Never Was in honor of Corlys' late wife Rhaenys). "That thing that you see being polished and cleaned in all of Season 2, they built something like three-quarters of it," he said. "[Y]ou can go on it, walk around. There's the cabin, but I haven't been in there. I've literally just been rehearsing on it a couple of days ago, because there's quite a lot on it in the opening episode of the new season. It's extraordinary the amount of time and effort they put into it."
Keep on eye on Corlys' clothes in House of the Dragon season 3
Toussaint dropped a couple other minor hints. For instance, when Gold Derby asked him to name his favorite look he's worn in the show, he named two: the outfit Corlys wears to the wedding of his son Laenor, which you can see above, and another outfit yet to come: "I'm wearing something very nice in Season 3 that I can't talk about."
As for Corlys' personal journey, Toussaint says he's still smarting from the loss of his wife, not to mention the deaths of both his children and one of his grandsons, all of whom died in season 1. "One of the things that he's doing, certainly throughout Season 2, and for a majority of what we're shooting so far, is trying to secure his legacy. He's lost everybody, and so he's trying to reconcile," Toussaint said. "I think he would like to somehow find peace with that aspect of his life."
We'll have to wait until House of the Dragon season 3 airs on HBO next year for the details.
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.