Interview

House of the Dragon showrunner reveals he “warned” Matt Smith about Season 2

Condal revealed he warned Smith that he would push him to his limits.

Published

6 months ago

June 13, 2024

Ved Prabhudesai

Credits: Ollie Upton/HBO

Ryan Condal, the showrunner of House of the Dragon, spoke with Matt Smith before the actor returned to play Daemon Targaryen in season 2. Daemon will have some significant moments in Season 2, and Condal mentioned that Smith would be pushed to his limits as an actor.

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Ryan Condal challenged Smith to push his limits in portraying Daemon

Credits: Jeff Kravitz

Condal told RadioTimes.com that he enjoys working with Smith and appreciates his talent. He recalled telling Smith early on that since he did such a great job in season 1, they would push him even further in season 2. Condal stated:

“I warned him early on, ‘You did such a great job in season 1, now we’re gonna throw a lot at you and really challenge your range as an actor, and also what makes Daemon as a character.”

“I think Daemon is the character a lot of people hook into with this series, because it’s the sort of stereotypical heroic male lead. And we wanted to kind of turn that on its ear, beginning with episode 1 of season 1 and carrying all the way through the rest of his arc through the series.”

Ryan Condal speaks about Daemon’s journey in Season 2

Condal went on to say:

“And we really want[ed] to put Daemon through a character challenge this season – challenge expectations for him and for the way people see Daemon, for all the complexities that went through in season 1.

So I mean, without saying anything about the story, because I think people should experience it live on television for the first time as pure a way as possible, it’s the thing that I think we’re most proud of this season, because it’s very unexpected.

And it’s very challenging to Daemon. I think it puts Daemon through paces that we have not seen before and challenges him as a character and you’re thus going to see different sides of him. And where it brings him to in the end, I think is a really interesting place.”

We have already seen from trailers that there is conflict brewing among the Blacks and Daemon may go his own route. House of the Dragon Season 2 releases on June 16th on HBO and Max.

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Related Topics:Daemon Targaryen Matt Smith Ryan Condal

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Ved Prabhudesai

Ved Prabhudesai is an avid enthusiast of all things pop culture. He has a special interest in the field of animation and art, with a background in Fine Arts and Digital Media Arts. He has begun his first into the field of Entertainment Journalism with Wiki of Thrones, and has been writing for them since 2023. He also has experience working as a screenplay writer, animator and comic book artist. His hobbies include holding discussions and organising events focused around pop culture, dissecting the importance of media in today's world. He began reading A Song Of Ice And Fire shortly before Game of Thrones debuted on HBO. He has followed the series religiously and has spent hours reading Wikis learning about Targaryen history and possible plot points we will see in the Winds of Winter.