WARNING! This post contains SPOILERS for Fire & Blood and House of the Dragon season 1, episode 8!House of the Dragon’s multiple recasts may be tiring, but they have all been building up to the satisfying arrival of the civil war’s most compelling younger generation character: Adult Aemond “One-Eye” Targaryen. Following the recasting of Rhaenyra and Alicent in House of the Dragon episode 6, the younger generation of Targaryens received their own adult recastings in episode 8. Taking over from Leo Ashton, actor Ewan Mitchell will now play Aemond Targaryen for the rest of the series, with “The Lord of the Tides” demonstrating how perfectly he was cast as Alicent and Viserys’ bold and unforgiving second son.
Of House of the Dragon episode 8’s actor changes, the most incredible recasting was that of Prince Aemond “One-Eye” Targaryen. Aemond was arguably the most difficult character to recast of the Targaryen children, as he sees the most significant shift in personality, demeanor, and terror after House of the Dragon episode 8's six-year time jump. However, Ewan Mitchell’s chilling performance and domineering attitude perfectly exude Aemond's tyrannical nature from George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood book. Similar to young Alicent being completely different from her adult counterpart, adult Aemond must hardly reflect the youthful boy teased for not having a dragon. The recasting successfully ramps up the antagonistic young Aemond seen in House of the Dragon episode 7’s ending, which immediately establishes him as both a villain and one of the show’s most highly compelling characters.
Aemond Targaryen Is House Of The Dragon's Best Recasting
After a drastic transformation from a somewhat sympathetic child to a cruel man, Aemond needs to come off as a realistic, formidable foe to Viserys' rogue brother Daemon Targaryen, with Ewan Mitchell’s performance effectively exhibiting these changes. Before Mitchell, Leo Ashton was incredible as the young Aemond that needed to be sympathetic until the moment he claims his dragon. Ashton also successfully pulled off Aemond’s personality shift during his fight with Rhaenyra and Daemon’s children, which is only a glimpse of the menacing, hot-headed, war crime-committing warrior in the Dance of the Dragons.
However, young Aemond still wouldn’t have been a threat to House of the Dragon’s fan-favorite anti-hero Daemon Targaryen. Aemond’s recasting is what finally achieves this, proving House of the Dragon required an entirely new figure to effectively portray the sadistic yet charismatic member of the green party. House of the Dragon's Aemond Targaryen may be a villain, but Ewan Mitchell is already demonstrating how captivating he’ll be as a character audiences love to hate, which increases the anticipation for his final showdown with Daemon.
Where Else You Can Watch Aemond Actor Ewan Mitchell
Many of House of the Dragon’s younger cast members are fairly new to the acting scene, but Aemond Targaryen actor Ewan Mitchell has already established himself with a sizable TV role. Mitchell is best known for playing Osferth on The Last Kingdom, a role that also tested his sword-fighting abilities. Aemond’s actor can also be seen in High Life (2018) as Ettore, The Halcyon as Billy Taylor, World on Fire as Tom Bennett, and Trigger Point as Billy Washington. Following House of the Dragon season 1, Ewan Mitchell is set to appear in the upcoming Amazon movie Saltburn (via Independent Talent).
New episodes of House of the Dragon release Sundays on HBO/HBO Max.