Season 2 premiere of ‘House of the Dragon‘ has left fans reeling with its shocking ‘Blood and Cheese’ ending, making it worth all the long-standing anticipation. Though some of the fans may have been already prepared for the carnage because of the ample hints by actors and the showrunners, it still came as a shock for many others.
Besides, those familiar with George R.R. Martin’s books also knew what was coming. However, the show’s actors were also just as shocked and affected because of the episode’s grim ending. Here is what actress Phia Saban, who plays Queen Helaena, said about getting a heads-up about her character’s fate and how she felt about it.
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Phia Saban Reveals She Found About Her Character’s Fate From The Readers Of George R.R. Martin’s Books
In the premiere of highly-anticipated season 2 of ‘House of the Dragon‘, Matt Smith’s Daemon Targaryen hires assassins named Blood and Cheese to kill Prince Aemond played by Ewan Mitchell in a plot to avenge his son’s death. The duo, while on their mission, meet Queen Helaena played by Phia Saban and her young twins, Jaehaerys and Jaehaera.
The assassin duo then forces Helaena to identify Jaehaerys, and eventually murder one of the two twins. Aptly named ‘A son for a son,‘ the episode has left fans shocked and perhaps just the right amount ready for what will follow further on the show.
Speaking about how she felt about the grim plot, Saban opened up about how early she learned about the harrowing scene on the official ‘House of the Dragon‘ podcast. “If you give people a sniff that you’re in something like House of the Dragon, and then they know that world at all and you say, ‘Oh, I’m playing Helaena,’ they’re like, ‘You know what happens to you, right?’ I was being told by people on the train that I was sitting next to!” she said.
“But nothing prepares you for opening [the script] up and being like, ‘okay, they’re doing that episode one,’” Saban added, while also appreciating the script’s simplicity. She asserted how the script directly focused on the immediate moment without overcomplicating the scene with too much dialogue.
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Phia Saban Reflects On The Prophetic Abilities Of Her Character
The horrific incident involving Blood and Cheese comes straight from author George R.R. Martin’s ‘Fire and Blood‘, with the book’s version of Jaehaerys’ murder even more gruesome than the show’s depiction. Much like book fans who anticipated the Red Wedding, ‘House of the Dragon‘ viewers dreaded Helaena’s fate.
Besides, the prophetic abilities that Helaena possesses add more layers to the grim episode. Early on in the show, she tells her husband Aegon she fears “rats,” which is seemingly an implication of Cheese’s arrival. When she points at Jaehaerys’ crib, Cheese believes her, almost as if swayed by a divine power.
Saban also spoke about the unrecognized gifts her character possesses during the show. “What’s the world like where Helaena gets all the validation that her thoughts are interesting or important? How different would she be?” she said, noting the show’s portrayal of family dynamics.
The new episodes of ‘House of the Dragon‘ are released on Sundays at 9 p.m. on HBO and Max.
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