“He’s the Daddy Now” [Exclusive]

Editor’s note: The below contains spoilers for the House of the Dragon Season 3 premiere.

It’s been two years since viewers were last plunged into House of the Dragon‘s increasingly devastating Targaryen civil war, and given that the Dance of the Dragons is only just heating up, it’s beyond evident that only more loss and violence lie ahead. While Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) does intend to take King’s Landing as bloodlessly as possible, Alicent (Olivia Cooke) is in for a surprise when she gets back from their secret meeting at Dragonstone to find that Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney) has fled and Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) has now assumed control of the Iron Throne in his brother’s absence.

Not one to let her planning with Rhaenyra be ruined, though, Alicent decides to covertly make some moves of her own, including deliberately planting the idea in Aemond’s head to officially seize Harrenhal, effectively sending him away from King’s Landing and clearing the way for Rhaenyra’s peaceful takeover. Of course, the conversation between mother and son takes a very unexpected direction, culminating in a kiss that is far from welcome on Alicent’s side but certainly plays into the running theme of certain Targaryens preferring to keep it in the family.

Why Does Aemond Kiss Alicent in the ‘House of the Dragon’ Season 3 Premiere?

Naturally, when Collider had the opportunity to speak with House of the Dragon‘s cast in support of Season 3’s first two episodes, we had to ask Mitchell and Cooke about the surprising kiss between Aemond and Alicent and what’s really going through the characters’ minds at that moment. Mitchell confirms that Aemond is already thinking of himself as the new authority in the family, even if he has a pretty skewed perception of what everyone’s new role should be, especially his mother’s:

“For Aemond, it’s like he’s very much assumed — in Episode 1, at least — he’s very much assumed his dominance as the king of Team Green, and he wants to act accordingly. Alicent, maybe, is his queen, in a weird kind of way, in his mind. He wants to assume a kind of leadership role of this family, and really take them all under his wing. He’s now the father figure. He’s the daddy, he’s the daddy now. [Laughs] … Aemond, he has such a skewered perception of love — how to show it, show affection, and that’s because he never really had it when he was growing up. And I definitely think the kiss was probably a little too far.”

Watching the scene in question, Alicent’s discomfort is beyond evident, but she’s also in a difficult position where she realizes that she can’t anger or incite her son’s wrath in any way, so she has to tread lightly — even if that means making it seem as though Aemond’s action is being reciprocated. Cooke also clarified to Collider that Alicent’s reaction isn’t just general unease, but the realization that her son’s confused impulse is stemming from her own maternal failings:

“Alicent is… her reaction is somewhere, sort of projected. Her reaction sort of lies where the audience’s reaction is, except that she’s got to stay as neutral as possible because this is a very dangerous, powerful man. She’s not expecting it at all. I think that somewhere, unconsciously, there’s like, ‘OK, you know, another fail as a mother, because now my son wants to fuck me,’ but it’s shocking, and it’s really dangerous — and it’s also, I think, really heartbreaking for Alicent that this man who was once her little boy has turned into this very confused, very dangerous person.”

Of course, there’s no telling whether this moment will have any larger ripple effects on the season, especially with Aemond’s sights now set on taking Harrenhal as both a political and personal effort to establish himself as a bigger player. With Alys Rivers (Gayle Rankin) urging Rhaenyra’s dragonseeds to leave, rather than lie in wait for the Kinslayer, House of the Dragon Season 3 also seems positioned to set up another highly anticipated meeting for fans, but time will only tell what those two characters might make of each other if and when their paths ultimately cross.

New episodes of House of the Dragon Season 3 premiere Sundays on HBO and HBO Max.