House of the Dragon deleted scene reveals top-secret Kingsguard ceremony

A deleted scene from HBO's House of the Dragon would have seen the prequel drama adding to the lore of Game of Thrones with a never-before-rendered moment.

EW can provide an exclusive sneak peek at House of the Dragon: Inside the Creation of a Targaryen Dynasty, the officially licensed making-of book written by author Gina McIntyre for publisher Insight Editions. Two pages showcase images from a scene that was filmed for the series but later scrapped: the top-secret Kingsguard induction ceremony.

House of the Dragon sees Ser Harold Westerling (Graham McTavish) promoted to Lord Commander of the Kingsguard after the death of Ser Ryan Redwyne (Garry Cooper). King Viserys Targaryen (Paddy Considine) then tasks his daughter and chosen heir, Rhaenyra Targaryen (Milly Alcock), with choosing the new inductee to fill the ranks.

The script for episode 2, "The Rogue Prince," included the now-deleted scene, which would have visualized the induction ceremony of Rhaenyra's pick, Ser Criston Cole (Fabien Frankel).

"Choosing your Kingsguard, your bodyguard, is very important, but it's indicative of this time period — where they haven't seen a war in over half a century — that Viserys just fobs off this really important choice to his daughter to try to give her something to do to make her feel like she has weight and significance," showrunner Ryan Condal says in EW's exclusive book excerpt. "It's a story of small choices that lead to big things. She picks Criston Cole, who later becomes the reason she nearly gets disinherited, and becomes one of her worst enemies."

Insight Editions An exclusive excerpt from the upcoming book 'House of the Dragon: Inside the Creation of a Targaryen Dynasty.'

The induction ceremony was originally meant to unfold with crowds of people watching, but scheduling and budgetary pressures prevented that.

"We were like, 'What if we make it like a secret society? It's done under the cover of night,'" says episode 2 director Greg Yaitanes. "It's almost like he's joining a secret order, is how we approached it."

The sequence was shot on the Red Keep throne room set over three hours with Considine, Alcock, Frankel, McTavish, and the actors portraying the other knights of the Kingsguard. Viserys officiates the ceremony as Ser Criston, surrounded by his soon-to-be brethren, vows to hold no titles, nor lands, nor father any children. Rhaenyra is also present, looking on proudly.

Photos of this moment from the making-of book show first assistant director Charlie Watson demonstrating how Viserys uses his sword to knight Ser Criston.

"We got a more emotional scene than we would have if we would have spent more time shooting this other version," Yaitanes says. "It's a father-daughter bonding moment where Viserys and Rhaenyra are engaged in an activity together, and it's a beautiful scene for Cole."

"That's the moment really when Cole is initiated into the Targaryen family," Frankel adds.

Ollie Upton/HBO Fabien Frankel stars as Ser Criston Cole in HBO's 'House of the Dragon' season 1.

The scene was ultimately cut because, as Condal explains, "It felt tonally wrong to include a 'win' for Rhaenyra before Dragonstone." That win in the show is Rhaenyra flying on the back of Syrax to quell her uncle Daemon (Matt Smith) after he stole a dragon egg, claimed the ancestral castle of Targaryen power, and announced Mysaria (Sonoya Mizuno) as his bride.

House of the Dragon: Inside the Creation of a Targaryen Dynasty, which retails for $60 and hits shelves Jan. 31, features more behind-the-scenes insights like this that delve into the making of the first Game of Thrones successor series.

The book highlights interviews with Condal and season 1 co-showrunner Miguel Sapochnik, series co-creator and A Song of Ice and Fire author George R.R. Martin, and cast members, including Smith, Considine, Alcock, Emma D'Arcy, Olivia Cooke, Emily Carey, and more.

The book is distributed by Simon & Schuster. Pre-orders are available now.

Subscribe to EW's West of Westeros podcast, which goes behind the making of House of the Dragon and the growing Game of Thrones universe.

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