House of the Dragon season 2 leaks have been relentless ever since it was confirmed to be returning next summer. Fans of the Game of Thrones spin-off already know how the premiere episode will begin, and now, it’s been rumored that an important character from the books will not be on-screen.
As we know, the Game of Thrones prequel is based on George R.R. Martin’s ‘Fire & Blood’ novel, so keen readers already have a vague idea of what the future has in store for their favorite House of the Dragon character. But fans are taken aback by rumors that a popular character from the book might not make a live-action debut.
Daeron Targaryen is the fourth child of Alicent Hightower and King Viserys Targaryen, making him Rhaenyra Targaryen‘s half-brother and a pretty instrumental member of Team Black. The reason he’s so instrumental is because, while he isn’t Viserys and Alicent’s firstborn son, Rhaenyra still sees him as a huge threat to the Throne and to her rule. While he technically existed in season 1, he was never really mentioned and, canonically, grew up in Oldtown instead of King’s Landing.
But just because Daeron isn’t in season 2, that doesn’t mean he never will be. It really just depends on the pacing of season 2. If Twitter and Reddit leaks about season 2 are to be believed, Daeron might not be the only character left out. Nettles might also get the chop. Unlike Daeron, Nettles isn’t part of the Targaryen family tree and isn’t really related to any other House.
She comes to be known as a ‘dragonseed’ because she is a lowborn with the proven ability to tame the Targaryen’s dragons. Nettles and the other dragonseed were permitted to ride the Game of Thrones dragons because Rhaenyra challenged that anyone who could tame the dragons and fight for her will be given land. Nettles was one of four people who survived this challenge, which is known in the novel as ‘the sowing.’
The Reddit leaks suggest the sowing will indeed happen in season 2, but only in the penultimate episode. Will that be enough for Nettles to be introduced? That much is unclear, but personally, contrary to what a lot of fans believe, I actually don’t think House of the Dragon would work as a four or five-season show. If it gets too bloated and drags the story out for longer than it’s needed to, audiences would get bored. The best TV series never overstay their welcome, and it’s much better if we, as an audience, are left wanting more.
Either way, Daeron, at least, is on George R.R. Martin’s mind, as he mentioned the character in a blog post where he explained why we didn’t see him in season 1. “Do I wish we’d had more time to explore the relationship between Rhaenyra and Ser Harwin, the marriage of Daemon and Laena and their time in Pentos, and birth of various and sundry children,”
“(And YES, Alicent gave Viserys four children, three sons and a daughter, their youngest son Daeron is down in Oldtown, we just did not have the time to work him in this season), and everything else we had to skip? Sure,” he wrote.
For more on the fantasy series epic, check out our guides to the Game of Thrones cast, Game of Thrones characters, and the House of the Dragon cast.