House of the Dragon star Ewan Mitchell on playing a "grey" character like Aemond Targaryen

Ewan Mitchell has broken out in the past few years thanks to role in movies like Saltburn and shows like House of the Dragon, where he plays the one-eyed dragon-riding revenge machine Aemond Targaryen. “He almost floats into scenes," Mitchell told GQ about the character. "He’s almost an idea rather than a person,” says Mitchell. “The way he looks, he screams ‘villain.’”

That he does. Mitchell went even further, comparing Aemond to famous movie monster Michael Myers, who's been hacking and slashing his way across the big screen since the 1970s. “No matter how much Jamie Lee Curtis’ [character] tries to wind through the trees to escape Michael Myers, [he always] catches up with her. The idea that this guy is your maker, and you will meet him eventually.”

And yet, it's possible to see where Aemond is coming from, at least some of the time. In the first season, we saw how he was bullied by his brother and nephews, which gave him a huge chip on his shoulder. And his one nephew dashing out his eye during a childhood squabble certainly didn't help. “I think that’s what’s so good about George R.R. Martin’s works. His characters are never black and white – they’re grey,” Michell said. “Maybe Aemond wants the people of King’s Landing to think he’s a monster, [but] secretly, deep down, he needs that affection from his mum. He just needs to be loved.”

Did Aemond Targaryen try to kill his brother Aegon on purpose?

Aemond's most controversial act came in the barn-burning episode "The Red Dragon and the Gold," which finally featured a dragon-on-dragon midair brawl of the kind fans had been waiting for since the show began. Aemond's older brother Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney) rode his dragon Sunfyre into battle against his cousin Rhaenys Targaryen (Eve Best) atop her dragon Meleys. While they fought, Aemond swooped in on his dragon Vhagar, the biggest and older dragon alive. Aemond bathed both Rhaenys and Aegon in flame. Was Aemond trying to kill his own brother, or was he merely collateral damage?

“It was inevitable that he was going to blast Rhaenys… but his brother being there, that wasn’t part of the plan. So he was in the way, but then also, there’s a little glimmer in Aemond’s eye," Mitchell said. “What I love about that sequence is that it’s this unlayering of surprises,” Mitchell said. “Aemond is just picking his moment, and above Rook’s Rest, he seizes it.”

Playing Aemond requires Mitchell to go to something of a dark place, which you imagine could be weird for his castmates. “He’s definitely not a mind I’d want to stay in for a very long period of time,” the actor said.

Happily, it doesn't sound like Mitchell actually pretends he's Aemond even when the cameras aren't rolling. In other words, he's not a full method actor, although you sense that he gets into it more than some of the other people in the cast. "[I]f I was to go method for Aemond, does that mean I’d have to carve my eye out? I don’t know! Or is it just about staying in the mindset?” he says. “I don’t think it’s method, but it’s my method.”

Ewan Mitchell hasn't seen scripts for House of the Dragon season 3 yet

The producers of House of the Dragon are currently working on a third season, although Mitchell hasn't seen any scripts yet. “I definitely think it’s going to be interesting.” That puts him in the same company as castmates like Matt Smith (Daemon Targaryen).

In the meanwhile, fans are still digesting season 2, which got lower marks from many fans (okay, from me) than the first season did. “I read some reviews online… I kind of keep my blinkers on, keep my mind on the job at hand,” Mitchell said. “But I love all the [reactions], whether bad or good.”

There's been basically no ire directed at Mitchell himself, whose performance has been praised across the board. He's made the smart decision to stay off social media, so any direct fan interaction he gets has been through a charmingly old-fashioned form of communication: fanmail. "The letters that I receive are often beautifully articulated, and often badass. I use that as motivation,” he said. “I never take that for granted.”

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