House Of The Dragon: Ryan Condal And Leo Ashton Discuss Aemond's Turn To Villainy
«Driftmark» was a landmark episode for House of the Dragon. Not only did it feature the final split between Princess Rhaenyra (Emma D'Arcy) and Queen Alicent (Olivia Cooke), it also featured young Prince Aemond (Leo Ashton) claiming the largest dragon of all, Vhagar, and losing an eye in the process. In a new behind-the-scenes featurette, Ashton and showrunner Ryan Condal discuss how this turn affects Aemond's character.
House of the Dragon's seventh episode was a rollercoaster of emotions. It began with a quiet, contemplative look at the funeral of Laena Velaryon (Nanna Blondell), who died via dragon fire when she realized she likely would have died from childbirth complications. This left her dragon, Vhagar, the oldest and strongest Targaryen dragon of that age, without a rider. House of the Dragon episode 7 turned chaotic when Prince Aemond sought to claim Vhagar after the funeral, which caused conflict between him and Laena's daughter, Rhaena Targaryen (Eva Ossei-Gerning), who felt that her mother's dragon was destined for her. Facing the angered Rhaena, her sister Baela (Shani Smethurst), Jace Velaryon (Leo Hart), and Luke Velaryon (Harvey Sadler), Aemond fought the four of them and embraced a new persona after having his eye cut out by Luke: he went from a bullied child to a villain.
House of the Dragon: Emma D'Arcy Talks Audience Reaction to Recast
In a new featurette, showrunner Ryan Condal and Ashton discuss the character's turn. Discussing the events leading up to Aemond's bonding with Vhagar, Condal said, «We really did want to dramatize the claiming of a dragon. And this little kid on the biggest dragon in the world felt like the best way to do that. He is the only kid on that side without a dragon. He
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