House of the Dragon Confirms the Starks Are Coming In Season 2

It's been over a year since the first season of House of the Dragon came to an end, and fans of the Game of Thrones spinoff have been eager to see the return of Princess Rhaenrya Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy), Lady Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke), and the rest of show's main players. It was recently revealed that the second season is aiming for a summer release in 2024, and yesterday saw the debut of new character posters. Now, the first trailer for House of the Dragon's second season is here, and it comes with some exciting news: the show is about to feature its first member of the Stark family. 

It's been revealed that Tom Taylor (The Dark Tower) has been cast as Lord Cregan Stark, the current Lord of Winterfell (via Entertainment Weekly). The finale of House of the Dragon teased the return of the Starks, and Cregan is an important player in George R.R. Martin's book series. During her fight for the throne, Rhaenrya sent her son Jaecerys (Harry Collett) north to seek support from Winterfell. In Martin's books, it's never specifically said what happens between Jaecerys and Cregan, so it will be interesting to see how the series handles their meeting.

Who Is Joining House of the Dragon Season 2?

In addition to Tom Taylor as Lord Cregan Stark, the second season of House of the Dragon will include franchise newcomers Gayle Rankin as Alys Rivers, Freddie Fox as Ser Gwayne Hightower, Simon Russell Beale as Ser Simon Strong, Clinton Liberty as Addam of Hull, Jamie Kenna as Ser Alfred Broome, Kieran Bew as Hugh, Tom Bennett as Ulf, and Vincent Regan as Ser Rickard Thorne.

What Is House of the Dragon Season 2 About?

At the end of the first season, Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D'Arcy) was supposed to become the rightful ruler of the Seven Kingdoms, having been appointed by her late father, King Viserys (Paddy Constantine). Unfortunately, things go awry when Queen Alicent (Olivia Cooke) crowns her son, Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney) as the new king instead. The season ends with one of Alicent's sons killing one of Rhaenyra's sons, essentially igniting a war that is expected to bloom in the second season. While speaking about House of the Dragon Season 2, showrunner Ryan Condal addressed the work being done on the new episodes...

"I'm excited to pick up where we left off," Condal said (per Deadline). "Now we get to fall into the more traditional rhythms of storytelling and Game of Thrones. We've always talked about this particular tale, George [R.R. Martin] has too, of being a Shakespearean or Greek tragedy. This series is very much about a house tearing itself apart from within. Now that all those pieces have been set on the board, I'm really excited to tell the next chapter, to see what happens now that Viserys is gone and no longer keeping a lid on things."

Stay tuned for more updates about House of the Dragon.