Published June 22, 2026, 2:00 p.m. ET

Last night, HBO and House of the Dragon finally introduced us to Lord Ormund Hightower (James Norton), a key character in George R.R. Martin‘s Fire & Blood. Ormund Hightower just so happens to be Alicent Hightower’s (Olivia Cooke) first cousin and the current head of House Hightower, ruling over the important port city of Oldtown. He is currently leading the Hightower’s massive army east, towards King’s Landing and rest of Team Green’s forces.

However, according to House of the Dragon star Freddie Fox, who plays Alicent’s chivalrous brother Ser Gwayne Hightower, there’s a certain source of friction between Gwayne and Ormund. Not about whose side they’re on in the civil war, but what to do with a certain “new character coming into this season” who sounds an awful lot like the mysterious Prince Daeron Targaryen.

“There is a sort of certain familial loyalty and respect for Ormund’s, albeit, slightly Machiavellian intelligence,” Fox told DECIDER. He then teased “a new character coming into this season, who both Ormund and Gwayne feel like they can influence and exert their influence over, and they both have very different world views on how that person should be influenced. And it’s a source of great pride and importance to them both.”

In the books, Prince Daeron Targaryen — the youngest son of Viserys Targaryen (Paddy Considine) and Alicent Hightower — is Ormund Hightower’s squire. That means he should be somewhere in the Hightower army camp with his blue dragon Tessarion (whom we saw soaring over the troops at the very end of Season 2).

We also know from House of the Dragon Season 2 Episode 6 “Smallfolk” that Ser Gwayne is fond of his nephew. He speaks highly of him to Alicent, describing the 16-year-old as “stalwart,” “clever,” and “as adept with his lute as he is with his sword.” Ser Gwayne paints a portrait of perfect chivalry, which fits in with his character’s personality.

“If you’re a person of integrity — and training and I guess in his case — he’s been bred to to respect these values,” Fox said. “There is always a right decision to be made, however difficult. I think he represents a sort of a backbone. Yeah, a moral backbone.”

So if the new character Fox is teasing is the long-awaited Daeron, it seems that the “Machiavellian” Ormund and chivalrous Gwayne might be something like a devil and angel sitting on the teenager’s shoulders.

But who is Ormund Hightower? And what do we know about Prince Daeron? Here’s what we know for sure after watching House of the Dragon Season 3 Episode 1…

Who is Ormund Hightower in House of the Dragon?

Lord Ormund Hightower is the current head of House Hightower, leading its army to support his cousin Alicent’s cause to keep her children ahead of Rhaenyra in the line of succession for the Iron Throne.

In George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood, we’re told that he wields the Valyrian steel sword Vigilance. He uses this sword to knight his squire, Prince Daeron, after the teenager saved the Hightower host from ruin during the Battle of the Honeywine by riding his dragon Tessarion into the fray. That’s what happens in the books; we don’t know yet what will happen with Ormund and Daeron in the show.

If you’re already a fan of Lord Ormund, House of the Dragon has already introduced another new character whose fate is intertwined with the Hightower lord in the books. Ser Rodderick Dustin, aka Roddy the Ruin (Tommy Flanagan), joined up with Daemon Targaryen’s (Matt Smith) forces in the Riverlands. Eventually, Roddy the Ruin and Ormund will come to blows at the Battle of Tumbleton (if the show follows the books!).

Ormund Hightower is played by English actor James Norton in House of the Dragon. The 40-year-old actor originally broke out in two very different British TV roles: the kind-hearted, mystery-solving vicar Sidney Chambers in PBS’s Grantchester and the villainous Tommy Lee Royce in Netflix’s Happy Valley. Over the years, he’s appeared in a wide range of films and television shows, playing John Brooke (aka Emma Watson’s love interest) in Greta Gerwig’s Little Women, Chris Blackwell in the biopic, Bob Marley: One Love, and the incorrigible Sean Rafferty in Netflix’s House of Guinness.

Who Plays Daeron Targaryen in House of the Dragon?

We don’t know yet who plays Daeron Targaryen in House of the Dragon, but we know he’s coming. His dragon is there! We’ve seen Tessarion! DAERON IS THERE!!!

House of the Dragon returns this Sunday, June 28 at 9 PM ET on HBO and HBO Max.