‘House of the Dragon’s Gayle Rankin Teases Alys’ Ultimate Endgame After That “Weird and Freaky” Dinner Scene

Editor’s note: The below interview contains spoilers for House of the Dragon Season 3 Episode 7.

As much as House of the Dragon has been a show about war, with members of the same family on opposing sides trading brutal blows, it’s also occasionally dipped into the more magical aspects of Westeros — and we’re not necessarily just talking about the majestic and fearsome dragons who are capable of leaving plenty of destruction in their wake. Season 2 introduced Harrenhal, which is revealed to have its own twisted history and eerily affects anyone who stays there for an extended period of time (looking at you, Daemon Targaryen), as well as Alys Rivers (Gayle Rankin), a mysteriously witchy woman who becomes the haunted castle’s de facto caretaker.

When Aemond Targaryen (Ewan Mitchell) literally faints at Alys’ feet after slaying Harrenhal’s castellan, Simon Strong (Simon Russell Beale), and his sons, it sparks the beginning of an unexpectedly twisted connection, one that has grown to involve a surprise clutch of dragon eggs — but what are Alys’ true intentions in all of this, especially in the wake of Alicent’s (Olivia Cooke) attempt to poison her son? Ahead of Episode 7’s premiere, Collider spoke with Rankin about how much her character knows about what’s really going on in Aemond’s head, why she enjoyed playing that “weird and freaky” dinner scene, whether Alys has actually bought into Aemond’s “line of unsullied kings” dream, and more.

COLLIDER: At the beginning of the episode, Aemond has that freaky vision/dream about Alicent. Alys has been playing a certain role with him so far and really, in many ways, leaning into very maternal gestures with him — but how much awareness do you think she has of what he sees before Alicent shows up at Harrenhal?

GAYLE RANKIN: I was just talking to someone about the interchange between Alys and Alicent in the intimacy scene and whether they thought Alys was controlling that. It’s so interesting how people perceive that. Daemon also had an Oedipal dream about his mother. I think it opens something up about Alys, about how much she knows, actually, and how much she’s just reacting like a normal person who cares about someone in a non-manipulative way. I think it’s just an interesting commentary on women in general. We’re so ready to presume. Add the layer of witchcraft, which is just such a rich metaphor for power, and it goes nuts.

To your credit, I didn’t read it as her manipulating Aemond into having the dream, but I always wonder how much she is attuned to because it’s happening in Harrenhal, and how much of it is her having a sort of extrasensory perception.

RANKIN: Yeah, I think she definitely is.

The dinner scene is something that you expect is going to be awkward, and there are really great moments of comedy. The moment when Aemond reaches for Alys’s and then Alicent’s hand — was that in the script, or was that something that Ewan just decided to do?

RANKIN: Ewan just pulled that on the day. [Laughs] Which, we were just like, “You sick, you sick, sick, sick boy.” It was so fun. We all just really wanted it to feel really weird and freaky. In some ways, there was something kind of meta about that because I’m always alone. It’s like me and beautiful Matt Smith or amazing Ewan or beautiful Simon Russell Beale. I never get to have any scenes with any girls. To work with Liv, who’s a dear friend of mine, I was like, “Ooh, this is crazy.” We were giddy about it.

‘House of the Dragon’s Gayle Rankin Explains the State of Aemond and Alys’ Relationship

“They’ve been alone, and I think it’s become a real trauma bonding.”

Time in Harrenhal already feels a little unpredictable and untrustworthy, so it’s hard to know how long they’ve really been alone together, and it feels like Alicent showing up is really harshing the vibes, but there’s also that line reading you have where Alys tells Aemond to get more firewood without explicitly telling him, and he throws down his cutlery. It makes the relationship feel more lived in because they’re having those little moments of snipping at each other.

RANKIN: Yeah. They’ve been alone, and I think it’s become a real trauma bonding. Did you ever see that intense documentary on Netflix [Longest Third Date], about this couple that got stranded together during COVID in Costa Rica after a first date? That’s what it is. It’s really that.

As we see, though, Alys is using the firewood as a pretense to get Aemond alone so that she can talk to him about his mother, and about what she senses around Alicent in terms of her true intentions. Where does that suspicion primarily stem from, for Alys? Is it natural intuition, or her power and what she can pick up that non-magic people can’t, or a bit of both?

RANKIN: I think it’s a bit of both — intentionally, because it does start to blur into that comedic, kind of relatable thing of just like, “I don’t like your mother. Something’s up with your mom.” That’s a very funny trope and stereotype of monster-in-law vibes, which is funny, but there’s also a profundity to it because it’s about her intuiting something much bigger and really sad actually about their dynamic, which is just so fucked, you know?

I really loved the callback to Aemond and Alys’s first meeting when he stumbles in after being poisoned by Alicent and just faceplants on the ground, and she just calls him an idiot under her breath. What did the two of you really enjoy about playing that moment? At this point, Alys has seen Aemond at his lowest moments more than anyone else.

RANKIN: Totally. That response is actually really endearing and really loving because… it feels like marriage. I’m not married, but it feels like a long-term… like they could be 80. Time starts to blur, and it makes you love them. That was one of the first scenes that we shot, actually, and so it was difficult, because it’s such a short moment that you have to capture a lot in. Those are sometimes the hardest to do, but I love that little scene.

‘House of the Dragon’s Gayle Rankin Explains Alys’ Real Plan With Those Dragon Eggs

“I think she’s ready to use them in a really untraditional way because she’s an untraditional girl.”

Image via HBO

I have to ask about the dragon eggs. Other characters, like Ormund, especially, really have this deep-seated hatred for dragons and Targaryens. In contrast, Alys is presenting these eggs to Aemond and playing up the idea of a line of unsullied kings and bringing purity back to the Targaryen line. Do you feel like Alys has fully bought into that whole line of thinking, or is she just using this as a stepping stone to get to where she really wants to be?

RANKIN: Yeah. She’s like, “Look at what I have. What do you think we could do with these?” I don’t think she’s going to be following any traditional path, and that’s really cool to explore. Not to get too girly, weird, deep on it, but I do think it’s a bit of a container, or metaphor, for how women can choose different ways of being maternal or not, or using their body in a certain way to have a life. These eggs are eggs for a reason, and they’re representative of fertility, and that is power. I think she’s ready to use them in a really untraditional way because she’s an untraditional girl.

What can you tease about how Alicent’s actions in this episode will impact Aemond and Alys’s relationship? Is this betrayal going to push Aemond even further toward Alys?

RANKIN: I do think they’re going to hit a new level of intimacy, if you can imagine it. Something has been brewing inside of Alys, and I think she’s feeling a bit out of control, and something’s got to give.

New episodes of House of the Dragon Season 3 premiere Sundays on HBO and HBO Max.