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House of the Dragon is best when it's "a bloodbath," according to Matt Smith - and season 3 is its bloodbathiest

House of the Dragon season 3 is a "big bloodbath, really," says Matt Smith AKA Daemon Targaryen, "Which is absolutely where it’s needed to go."

News by Grant DeArmitt, Staff Writer

Published on Tue Jun 09 2026

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The bloodiest battles of the Targaryen Civil War are just ahead, and all of Westeros trembles in their path. Not so nervous, though, are the cast of House of the Dragon, whose anticipation of season 3’s large-scale clashes has been resoundingly positive. Take Matt Smith, for example - or as you may know him, Daemon Targaryen - who doesn’t just think that the hellish conflicts described in George R.R. Martin’s Fire and Blood are good for the series, but thinks that the Game of Thrones spinoff is “at its best” when the battles are at their height.

Smith made his opinions clear during a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, published just a few scant days before House of the Dragon’s latest chapter airs on HBO and HBO Max.

"I think they’ve aimed for scale, blood," said the Doctor Who icon, "It’s a big bloodbath, really, this season [...] which is absolutely where it’s needed to go. I think that’s when the show is actually operating at its best in many ways — particularly for Daemon."

As the actor whose character is responsible for that Blood and Cheese incident (no spoilers here, Popverse reader), you might not be surprised to hear Smith offer such an opinion. But he's not alone in teasing the absolute destruction coming to House of the Dragon season 3. You may recall Corlys Velaryon actor Steve Toussaint just recently going into the hotly anticipated Battle of the Gullet as well. And we have to point out, with a similar level of excitement.

Maybe more excitement than is entirely appropriate? Ah hell, they're playing Targaryens anyway - might as well spend a little bit of time thinking like them.

House of the Dragon season 3 scorches its way onto HBO Max June 21.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms season 1 may have wrapped on HBO Max, but with House of the Dragon season 3 coming just around the corner, it's always a great time to read up on all things Game of Thrones. Fortunately, Popverse has everything you need to journey through the George R.R. Martin-created Westeros, including:

Plus much more coming as it gets announced!

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Grant DeArmitt: Grant DeArmitt (he/him) likes horror, comics, and the unholy union of the two. In the past, and despite their better judgment, he has written for Nightmare on Film Street and Newsarama. He lives in Brooklyn with his partner, Kingsley, and corgi, Legs.