Home of the Dragon stars clarify why their season 3 reunion is so nerve-wracking to look at

On the finish of season 2 of Home of the Dragon, Queen Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) minimize a cope with her childhood greatest friend-turned-political rival Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) that might permit Rhaenyra to take over King’s Touchdown however shield Alicent’s youngsters. The cut price shortly went incorrect as King Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney) secretly fled the town. Alicent and her daughter Helaena have been caught making an attempt to do the identical. Home of the Dragon season 3 episode 3 offers with the fallout from the failed escape, as Alicent finds herself a prisoner in her previous palace and tries to determine easy methods to work with Rhaenyra to guard her household and the Seven Kingdoms.

“They’re type of at reverse ends of a seesaw or scales,” Cooke informed Polygon in a digital interview. “Each of them cannot have energy on the identical time. However I believe when Rhaenyra sneezes, Alicent catches a chilly. Regardless of the place they’re, they cannot assist however really feel the ripple results of one another’s actions and in addition acknowledge and see what one another are going by means of as a result of they have been in these positions themselves.”

Alicent helped rule Westeros when her husband Viserys’ well being declined, and Rhaenyra will get a style of simply how exhausting that was throughout this episode as she has to grapple with meals and candle shortages and a rat infestation. The burden of management is particularly heavy given Rhaenyra remains to be reeling from the demise of her son Jace within the Battle of the Gullet.

“Her journey to the throne comes so within the shadow of her son’s demise that I really feel like she’s type of performing on his behalf,” D’Arcy mentioned. “It is a political household whose private relationships are so basically enmeshed with this political ambition. If Rhaenyra’s identify enters the historical past books, her son positive aspects a type of immortality.”

Unable to execute Aegon, Rhaenyra kills Alicent’s father Otto Hightower, who had conspired to rob her of her inheritance and put Aegon on the Iron Throne. Episode 2 ended with Alicent seeing his decapitated physique, a second Cooke says conjures up “white-hot anger” in her character.

“Alicent does not know if Otto has been Rhaenyra’s prisoner this complete time, and that is the very first thing that she’s achieved because the ruler of the Seven Kingdoms, this huge showy political act,” Cooke mentioned. “She doesn’t know if the discount she’s made with Rhaenyra has been fulfilled on her facet both. Has she simply been one other pawn in another person’s sport? I believe she’s similar to, OK, properly fuck you. It’s on.”

Regardless of that feeling of betrayal, Alicent has to attempt to come to a brand new understanding as she and Helaena are locked away within the Purple Maintain.

“There’s a component of her love for Rhaenyra that’s preserved from after they have been ladies and from their greatest friendship, however I believe there’s an excessive amount of water beneath the bridge and I believe [their relationship] is past saving,” Cooke mentioned. “They’ll by no means return to who they have been. They’ll by no means have a easy relationship once more. It is marred by betrayal and demise and an excessive amount of time having handed.”

Home of the Dragon season 3 episode 3 airs at 9 p.m. ET Sunday, July 5 on HBO.