Vhagar’s appearance in House of the Dragon was inspired by Whales

Vhagar, the biggest dragon in House of the Dragon, made a grand entrance in the first season of the show. The majestic beast is quite old, over a hundred years, and isn’t in her prime. Vhagar’s skin is wrinkly and full of warts, covered with moss and parasitic birds, and she spends most of her time resting on the ground. The current version of Aemond’s mount was actually inspired by a real-life animal.

The dragons reflect their rider’s characters

The various multitude of dragons were the major attraction of House of the Dragon. The show’s visual effects supervisor Angus Bickerton told The Brunswick News, “We talked about trying to reflect their ages and characters in their animation, to reflect their riders. In the case of Vhagar, she’s so old, she’s had three riders; she’s no longer beholden to anybody.

She’s irascible and ill-tempered and can’t be necessarily controlled. It’s subtle, because you can’t anthropomorphize them too much. You can’t give them a squint or a mini-smile; it has to be animal in performance.”

Vhagar’s look was inspired by Whales

Bickerton also revealed what inspired the old dragon’s look, “So for Vhagar, we took references from whales. She has these parasitic birds that live on her, eating mites and bugs off her skin. The rigging and saddles are now cutting into her skin because she’s actually grown around it.”

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