Confirmed: Daeron Targaryen is in House of the Dragon!

The second season of HBO's Game of Thrones prequel series House of the Dragon is airing now, and by the end of its second episode, assassination attempts have been made on both the Blacks and the Greens. King Aegon's (Tom Glynn-Carney) son Jaehaerys lies dead, his funeral buying the goodwill of the people of King's Landing before Aegon throws it all away by executing every rat catcher in the city in revenge. On Dragonstone, Queen Rhaenyra (Emma D'Arcy) barely escapes with her life as the Kingsguard twins Erryk and Arryk Cargyll (Elliot and Luke Tittensor) fight to the death in front of her.

Now it's all but certain: armies will march to war, and the realm will bleed. In the coming conflict, the Greens and Blacks will both need all the help they can get to come out on top. It's fortunate then that "[Episode title]" confirmed that the Greens have an extra royal son up their sleeve: Daeron Targaryen, the youngest child of Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) and the late King Viserys Targaryen (Paddy Considine).

Yes, you read that right! After not so much as a single mention during House of the Dragon's first season, it has been confirmed at long last that Daeron Targaryen was not cut from the television adaptation of George R.R. Martin's book, Fire & Blood. Otto Hightower, Daeron's grandfather, mentioned him by name while talking with Alicent. We still don't know what actor is playing him or when we'll see Daeron onscreen, but now that he's been talked about in the show, it's all but certain hell make an appearance at some point.

Who is Daeron Targaryen in House of the Dragon?

Now that we know Daeron is coming, it's the perfect time for a bit of a refresher on who this character is and how he'll change the dynamics of the Dance of the Dragons. Daeron is the third and youngest son of King Viserys and Alicent, born right around the same time as Rhaenyra's son Prince Jacaerys (Harry Collett). In Fire & Blood, Daeron bonds with the beautiful blue she-dragon Tessarion at the early age of 6, though it would be a few more years before he was old enough to fly her. Viserys ordered Daeron and Jace to be weaned together as milk brothers, hoping it might tamp down the growing enmity between the rival branches of his family, but it didn't take. Just like his brothers Aegon and Aemond, Daeron developed a simmering resentment for Rhaenyra's children.

Despite that, Daeron is generally regarded as a kind and righteous Targaryen, rather than one of the more unhinged variety. A large part of that has to do with Daeron's upbringing. At age 12, he was sent to Oldtown to serve as a squire to Ormund Hightower, Otto Hightower's nephew in the book, who has been changed to his brother in the show. Daeron spends most of his youth there. When Ormund marches his forces north to aid the Greens in the Dance, Daeron goes with him on Tessarion.

Daeron proves his mettle time and again throughout the Dance of the Dragons, earning the nickname "Daeron the Daring" after he saves Ormund's army during a crucial battle. While he hasn't yet appeared in House of the Dragon, there's a chance for the show to emphasize how different and noble Daeron is compared to his two older brothers.

We won't talk too much about Daeron's ultimate fate in the Dance of the Dragons; it's early days still for him in House of the Dragon, and some spoilers are better left to discover on your own, or by reading Fire & Blood. But suffice it to say, his inclusion in the TV series adds an exciting new element that could reap big rewards down the line...especially once we lose a few beloved main cast members to the brutality of the Dance, and there's more room for new characters to become fan favorites.

Will Daeron Targaryen appear in House of the Dragon season 2?

House of the Dragon airs new episodes Sunday nights on HBO and Max. One of these weeks, we'll even be able to see Daeron Targaryen in it!

But it won't be this season. Talking to Variety, showrunner Ryan Condal confirmed that Daeron hasn't been cast yet, which precludes him from appearing in season 2, which has finished shooting in its entirety:

"Daeron has not been cast yet. I’ve said he’s a character in the show, but at this point in the story, he’s in Oldtown where he was warded off as a young child. So we don’t have a point-of-view character in that world yet and there is no dramatic reason to go there. This happened all the time in medieval times, particularly in the high nobility. You would take your youngest children and ward them off to other places, so they grow up away from court and learn things and have their own place and station in the world. We know he’s not yet a dragon rider, but he’s had a dragon born to him. So he will come to the narrative and have a role to play, just as he does in the book — we’re just not there yet in the storytelling."

So that probably means that Daeron will appear in season 3, which has already been renewed.

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