Targaryen Prince's Shocking Kiss Stuns Mother

The House of the Dragon season 3 premiere featured a disturbing incident where Prince Aemond Targaryen kissed his mother, Dowager-Queen Alicent.

This unexpected act occurred as Alicent was persuading Aemond to join Ser Criston Cole at Harrenhal to face Daemon.

Actor Ewan Mitchell, who plays Aemond, noted the scene's complexity and how he and Olivia Cooke explored variations during filming. He interprets Aemond's action as an assertion of familial control, asking, "What is the relationship gonna be with Alicent going forward?"

Showrunner Ryan Condal explained the roots of this behavior, tracing it back to a childhood trauma involving a brothel. Condal suggested Aemond's actions stem from a complex manifestation of this trauma and an inability to separate feelings for his mother from other male affections.

Mitchell invoked an African proverb, "The child who is not embraced by the village will burn it down to feel its warmth," to illustrate Aemond's need for unconditional love and his struggle to express affection.

Condal further elaborated that Aemond's past experiences, including bullying and losing an eye, contribute to his behavior. He also noted that this moment reflects on Alicent's own challenges as a mother, given her upbringing and early marriage.

Condal acknowledged the kiss as shocking but emphasized it underscores Aemond's traumatized nature and lack of well-adjusted social underpinnings in a society that understands age-appropriate exposure to sensitive topics.