House of the Dragon actor on Daeron's assassination attempt
Benjamin Evan Ainsworth says Daeron Targaryen's Season 3 Episode 3 assassination attempt feels absurd amid Ormund's vomiting and chaos, marking a power shift as the prince takes more ownership. The 8216house the dragon8217 actor also weighs fan theories that Ormund is dyeing the kid's hair.
Key Takeaways
- Daeron faces his first assassination attempt in Tumbleton in House of the Dragon Season 3, Episode 3, now streaming on HBO Max.
- Ainsworth frames the scene as shock mixed with absurdity as Ormund projectile vomits beside him amid dead bodies.
- Daeron briefly holds back Ser Jon Roxton, a leadership beat that may reshape his dynamic with Ormund.
- On hair-dye theories, Ainsworth says it would not be far-fetched for Ormund, but he prefers Daeron sharing Alicent's hair as a mother-son link.
- After the attack, Daeron spars to prove he can protect himself if danger returns.
What happened in the Tumbleton assassination attempt?
While sharing a meal with cousin and keeper Ormund Hightower (James Norton) and uncle Gwayne Hightower (Freddie Fox) in Tumbleton, a group of Baratheons tried to kill young Daeron, seemingly on orders from his half-sister, Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy).
The attack failed after Gwayne jumped in to protect his nephew. Ainsworth told Variety the moment is an escalation Daeron never expected, with power dynamics between him and Ormund leveling out and clashing.
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Why does Ainsworth call the scene absurd?
Shock drives the sequence, Ainsworth says, as Daeron tries to take ownership over a bedrock of tension and frustration with Ormund, who is almost debilitated by his senses and throwing up right next to him.
"There's an absurdity to that scene, which Daeron is feeling just in the shock of it in itself. Let alone the dead bodies everywhere," he told Variety. Daeron also holds back Ser Jon Roxton (Joplin Sibtain) when Roxton tries to dive in—the first time Daeron tries to stop a man who has long followed Ormund's orders.
Gwayne's arrival after leaving Ser Criston Cole thrusts Daeron into wartime chaos. Ainsworth says the verb "thrust" feels correct: Daeron has had little time to process, which fuels tension and a desperate talk with Gwayne about what becoming king might mean—and whether that would create space between him and Ormund.
Is Daeron ready to fight if Tumbleton escalates?
With a Blacks-versus-Greens confrontation looming in Tumbleton, Ainsworth believes Daeron would join a fight, though readiness is something the prince questions in himself. That is why he spars after the assassination scene: to escape stress, focus on something he enjoys and is good at, and prove he can protect himself if it happens again—knowing Ormund and Gwayne are watching.
In George R.R. Martin's Fire & Blood, the character is known as "Daeron the Daring." Ainsworth has read from Aegon's Conquest through Season 3's plot to ground the Oldtown upbringing, while leaving room for the show's morally gray interpersonal drama with Norton and Fox.
Is Ormund dyeing Daeron's hair a Hightower color?
Asked about fan theories that Ormund dyed a fake Daeron blonde—and has been dyeing the real prince's hair for years because he hates Targaryens—Ainsworth said he has seen them and that it would not be too far-fetched for Ormund.
Nothing was said explicitly either way on set, so he leaves the door open. Still, he finds it "quite nice" that Daeron has his mother's hair: a connection to Alicent (Olivia Cooke), whom he has not seen in years, alongside green colors and nail-picking habits that link mother and son.
Ainsworth also says Daeron has a strong bond with dragon Tessarion, kept locked away by Ormund—a friendship that keeps him hopeful about his Targaryen side despite Ormund's anti-dragon rhetoric.