Season 2 finale director Geeta Vasant Patel explains how that shocking reveal came to life on set.
Warning: This article contains spoilers from theHouse of the Dragonseason 2 finale.
What was your reaction when you learned that was coming in your episode?
Matt Smith in ‘House of the Dragon’.MAX
Did you shoot any new footage for that vision montage?
All of that was footage that I shot.
That vision was important in that it actually had to make an argument without words.
Ewan Mitchell and Phia Saban on ‘House of the Dragon’.Ollie Upton/HBO
And the other thing that Ryan really wanted for that vision was he wanted it to be fragmented.
I found it to be an incredible challenge.
I was so thrilled to be trusted with it.
Lady Rhaena Targaryen (Phoebe Campbell) on ‘House of the Dragon’ season 2.HBO
How exactly did you pull that off?
I don’t know about some of those things, because they were above my pay grade.
I thought production did such a great job of organizing how we were going to shoot everything very quickly.
This was one of those moments where you really feel the beauty of cinema.
All the different areas of filmmaking came together for that vision, and it truly was a vision.
This was one of the most rewarding and challenging moments of my career in television.
I loved every minute of it.
The finale ends with another big montage, setting the table for what’s to come in season 3.
What was it like filming all those ending scenes?
I was concerned that it would feel boring if executed incorrectly.
We just need to work on the pacing and the connection of all the pieces.
It’s an exciting thing to be working with the troops marching.
It’s easy for me to get lost in that.
You’ve never sacrificed anything," and that’s the theme of this season, in my mind.
In this moment, Rhaenyra challenges Alicent to do just that: Make her sacrifice.
She gives up her son.
So now we think, “These two women are friends.
They’re going to collaborate.
We’re going to stop the war.”
And then the montage culminates with Aegon having left.
What was it like adding in that shocking reveal?
I am a fan in that moment, because first of all, I love working with Rhys.
He’s such a brilliant actor.
What was it like directing that moment?
We shot it in Wales and in the U.K.
I remember it took a long time to find a location that was exactly right.
There’s something beautiful about everyone just letting go and being in this pouring rain.
I mean, we had so many technical issues.
Cameras weren’t working.
I thought we were going to be up on a mountain, so it was quite romantic to me.
When Phoebe ran up that hill and saw the dragon, it was perfect.
It felt exactly right.
I also found myself putting myself into Rhaena’s shoes quite a bit.
I’d worked so hard to work on this show.
So when Rhaena was running, that’s exactly the story that I shared with the crew.
You run with everything you have, and it happens."
What did you think of his clarification?
I don’t really know.
I think it’s just fun to speculate that.
What if they are?
What if they’re not?
I have no idea.
That’s all in Ryan’s head.
Only Ryan holds the keys to that.
House of the Dragonwillreturn for season 3.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
