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HBO Releases First Costumed Photos from House of the Dragon


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After a deal of footage has made its way to the internet from photographers with long lenses, HBO has now released to media images of some of the costumed lead performers from House of the Dragon. These feature Emma D’Arcy and Matt Smith as Rhaenyra Targaryen and Daemon Targaryen, Steve Touissant as Corlys Velaryon, and Olivia Cooke and Rhys Ifans as Alicent Hightower and her father Otto Hightower. See the images below, with some comments.



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Never was a big fan of the costumes in GOT, felt they overdid it, and these look pretty much identical. But still looking forward to this. Velaryons being black if I feel something George would do if he rewrote the story, I think it will have been a good move.

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This is a very substantial change from the novels, as Rhaenyra was made her father’s her when she was still a child, and in fact that is the real root of the conflict since she was placed ahead of her brother Prince Aegon, who would claim the crown by ancient custom. By keeping Daemon as heir, it would seem to us that they’re very much throwing that conflict out of the window.

Based on the mention of the Great Council of Harrenhal in the bio for King Viserys they put out, I think that the Otto bio about Daemon being heir to the throne is simply describing the state of events early in Viserys's reign, around the time Aemma died. When Daemon was technically the closest male heir.

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or if the idea is that the Valyrian nobility were in fact multi-racial.

The books state that the lower-ranking Valyrian families, below the ruling dragonlords, weren't as strict about the blood purity thing. Velaryons were never dragonlords, but admirals of the Targaryen fleets:

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"Founded by Valyrians as a trading outpost, Pentos soon absorbed the hinterlands surrounding it...including almost the whole of the ancient realm of Andalos, the original homeland of the Andals. The first Pentoshi were merchants, traders, seafarers, and farmers, with few of high birth amongst them; perhaps for this reason, they were less protective of their Valyrian blood and more willing to inter-breed with the original inhabitants of the lands they ruled."

- The World of Ice & Fire, "Pentos"

Colonial Cuba wasn't just European Spaniards (Peninsulares & Criollos) that ruled over an indigenous population, there was a middle-tier of lower ranking Spaniards who interbred with the locals making a mixed middle rank group (Mestizos). 

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Notice that they cunningly draped Corlys's hair over the head of his sigil, so you can't tell if it's a seahorse head or a horse's head on a seahorses's body. The fiends.

 

(I mean, we can tell because we're going over it with a magnifying glass, but the casual fans won't notice from just this one photo)

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3 minutes ago, The Dragon Demands said:

The books didn't mention Corlys to be left-handed did they? I guess the actor is just left-handed?

That's a dagger, I think, not a sword, so fine to be on that side. From the fight scenes he had in Prince of Persia (and the fact that he wears his watch on his left wrist), I'm pretty sure he is right-handed.

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26 minutes ago, The Dragon Demands said:

Notice that they cunningly draped Corlys's hair over the head of his sigil, so you can't tell if it's a seahorse head or a horse's head on a seahorses's body. The fiends.

 

Of course not. Can't let anybody see a mistake. :whip:

1 hour ago, Westeros said:

His face is too narrow. Much too narrow. 

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OMG they gave Corlys white dreads.

Alicent’s costume is very reminiscent of Anne Boleyn, which I’m guessing was intentional. I’m glad they’re using a different style than the kimonos and death metal garb from GOT. 
 

I have a feeling Aemma is going to be in the show, only to die in the first few episodes. It’ll be interesting to see her, seeing as we don’t even get a description of how she looks in the books. 

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14 minutes ago, Corvinus85 said:

What's the story about the Velaryon sigil?

So you know that House Velaryon has a seahorse sigil, right? Well, those lackwits over at HBO gave the seahorse a freaking HORSE'S HEAD for the head of the seahorse! And @The Dragon Demands says that after like Season 5 or 6 of GoT, they just started Googling the house sigils. 

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2 minutes ago, Jaenara Belarys said:

So you know that House Velaryon has a seahorse sigil, right? Well, those lackwits over at HBO gave the seahorse a freaking HORSE'S HEAD for the head of the seahorse! And @The Dragon Demands says that after like Season 5 or 6 of GoT, they just started Googling the house sigils. 

I don't recall the Velaryon sigil appearing in GoT. Is that where they did that or was it for promo material for this show?

Of course, it doesn't surprise me. In season 8 the Targaryen three-headed dragon sprouted two additional legs.

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3 minutes ago, Corvinus85 said:

I don't recall the Velaryon sigil appearing in GoT. Is that where they did that or was it for promo material for this show?

 

It didn't. The House sigils were literally copied from Google. And the sigil is for HotD so far as I know. Ask @The Dragon Demands, he can tell you better than I can. 

 

3 minutes ago, Corvinus85 said:

Of course, it doesn't surprise me. In season 8 the Targaryen three-headed dragon sprouted two additional legs.

Ah, yes this. Another sign of incompetence. 

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Until we know more it makes no sense to assume Daemon being the heir is a departure from the setting.

Instead, if we assume they want to do a somewhat faithful adaptation then the idea is we start early in the reign of Viserys when Daemon Targaryen was, in fact, the king's heir, and Rhaenyra was not.

They are also keeping the book stuff that Otto is determined to stop Daemon from becoming king.

A scenario where the Dance were about Rhaenyra and Daemon fighting each other would make Otto and Alicent and the entire Green faction superfluous. That's not going to happen.

Instead, we should assume that the start of the show is the setting we get early in 'Heirs of the Dragon' - a young king without a male heir and a quarrelsome brother as presumptive heir, a daughter he dotes on who isn't the heir just yet (and whose installation as heir is going to be controversial in light of how the king himself took the throne), we also have the king's cousin, the Velaryon family who view themselves as the rightful heirs to the throne, and we have an ambitious Hand and his daughter as well as other ambitious people like Criston Cole and Mysaria.

Whether they will stick to George's outline in the details is unclear so far, but it seems clear to me that the only way to really make sense of this is to assume they do not want to rush the beginning of the Dance nor the creation of the factions which are going to tear the Realm apart.

Depending when those scenes take place - since they film the season back to back they really don't have to start shooting with early episodes - it might be the case the whole 111 AC tourney with the black-and-red and green dress is dropped, considering Alicent and Otto are already wearing green at this point.

And if you think in detail about the narrative structure of 'Heirs of the Dragon' then one of the open question there is in what direction Daemon Targaryen and the Velaryons will go. The succession of the Old King was unclear, the Velaryons lost and were pissed, and Daemon later has all sorts of problems of his own making ... the original threat to Viserys I's reign isn't his Hand or his new wife, but Daemon Targaryen trying to usurp the crown with the help of the Velaryons, especially after his marriage to Laena Velaryon. Only in 120 AC when Laena and Laenor die and Daemon ends up as the leader of the Blacks as Rhaenyra's second husband is that threat truly averted.

And it seems to me that those are the things the writers want to play with before they come to the actual Dance of the Dragons. Not to mention the personal stories - Daemon-Mysaria, Rhaenyra-Criston, Rhaenyra-Alicent, etc. - all that has to be told in great detail to make the people care about the characters and the plot.

In fact, I'll say it again - they cannot postpone the Dance enough in my opinion. The Dance as such is boring. It is a pretty simple war with interesting episodes, but it would make a very dull show if adapted faithfully.

As for the Velaryons as black Valyrians - I'd not like that because it would mean they would have to change the Targaryen family and turn Valaena and Alyssa Velaryon into non-Velaryons. If they were both black, then all Targaryens of the first century would have to be black since they either married their siblings or Velaryons. Viserys I and Daemon should then be as black as Corlys.

But I don't expect them to take that route since the Corlys could also only be as black as he is if the Velaryons were to intermarry exclusively with their own ... but they don't really do that, either. So the idea of Corlys having a Summer Islander mother would work much better in my opinion.

6 hours ago, The Bard of Banefort said:

I have a feeling Aemma is going to be in the show, only to die in the first few episodes. It’ll be interesting to see her, seeing as we don’t even get a description of how she looks in the books. 

If that big scene they had there was a funeral then it could have been Queen Aemma's funeral.

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3 minutes ago, Lord Varys said:

Until we know more it makes no sense to assume Daemon being the heir is a departure from the setting.

Instead, if we assume they want to do a somewhat faithful adaptation then the idea is we start early in the reign of Viserys when Daemon Targaryen was, in fact, the king's heir, and Rhaenyra was not.

They are also keeping the book stuff that Otto is determined to stop Daemon from becoming king.

A scenario where the Dance were about Rhaenyra and Daemon fighting each other would make Otto and Alicent and the entire Green faction superfluous. That's not going to happen.

There is one logical reason why they would make a lot of changes to the source material.

There are simply too many characters in "dance" for it to be fully adapted. Obviously that making daemon the other faction would be making a completly diferent story.

But starting the dance several years before the king dies also doesn't make sence unless they will divide the story in 2 and have several seasons about the events pre dance.

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1 minute ago, divica said:

There is one logical reason why they would make a lot of changes to the source material.

There are simply too many characters in "dance" for it to be fully adapted. Obviously that making daemon the other faction would be making a completly diferent story.

But starting the dance several years before the king dies also doesn't make sence unless they will divide the story in 2 and have several seasons about the events pre dance.

In light of the fact we haven't gotten any casting information so far about Alicent's or Rhaenyra's children - not child actors nor adult versions (which they would need at least for Aegon II and Aemond) - I don't think the first season is going to end with the death of Viserys I.

If that's correct, then the Dance would either start at some point in season 2 - or only at the very end of season 2, depending how far the story advances in season 1.

If you wanted to rush things - there was no reason to bother with the Velaryons and Daemon and Criston Cole only joining the KG.

They could have just jumped into the story, say, in the year 120 AC with an already tense situation - like we get it in AGoT before the war starts - quickly escalating.

Instead, everything we know so far implies they do not rush things at all.

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8 minutes ago, Lord Varys said:

In light of the fact we haven't gotten any casting information so far about Alicent's or Rhaenyra's children - not child actors nor adult versions (which they would need at least for Aegon II and Aemond) - I don't think the first season is going to end with the death of Viserys I.

If that's correct, then the Dance would either start at some point in season 2 - or only at the very end of season 2, depending how far the story advances in season 1.

If you wanted to rush things - there was no reason to bother with the Velaryons and Daemon and Criston Cole only joining the KG.

They could have just jumped into the story, say, in the year 120 AC with an already tense situation - like we get it in AGoT before the war starts - quickly escalating.

Instead, everything we know so far implies they do not rush things at all.

But whenever they start, as alicent looks like a grown woman then daemon should not be the heir anymore.

That is pretty weird...

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