House of the Dragon‘s second season might not have been everything everyone wanted. But no matter its flaws, it still featured some truly amazing performances. Which ones stood out in a (Narrow) sea of great acting how? And how do they compare to the very best the Realm has offered before? To find out we put together a list of the best acted scenes from both Game of Thrones and its dragon-filled prequel.
NOTE: We limited every character/actor to a single entry so we could share the wealth. Also, we forced ourselves to shorten our own massive list in half. So if someone didn’t make the cut just know we’re mad at ourselves for not including them.
GAME OF THRONES
Pedro Pascal as Oberyn Martell – “I Will Be Your Champion”
Pedro Pascal only appeared in season four, but that was enough to deliver one of the show’s most iconic characters. We could choose literally any of his scenes for this list. Since we’re limiting ourselves to one we’re giving it to his jailhouse visit with Tyrion Lannister. That’s where the vengeful Oberyn told the story of meeting Tyrion as a child. It was a quiet yet wholly powerful monologue. And that before it ended with one of the greatest lines in show history: “I will be your champion.” Just thinking about it gives us chills. Thinking about how that battle with the Mountain ended does not.
Michelle Fairley as Catelyn Stark – The Red Wedding
The Red Wedding is the most infamous moment in Game of Thrones history, but it wouldn’t be if not for Michelle Fairley’s all-time great performance during the massacre. As Catelyn’s Stark’s unease turned into anger, fear, and ultimately horror, Fairley captured all of the terrible emotions a mother would experience in that unimaginable moment.
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Jaime Lannister – Hot Tub Confession
In a single scene of raw vulnerability and honesty, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau turned one of the show’s most detestable characters into one we wanted to root for. The arrogant, incestuous King-Slayer who once threw Bran Stark from a tower was secretly one of the Realm’s greatest heroes, and Coster-Waldau’s hot tub confession to Brienne was a powerhouse performance that was both big and nuanced.
Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister – Walk of Shame
You could make a lengthy list of just Lena Headey’s best scenes as Cersei Lannister and it would still be incomplete, but since we’re limiting ourselves to just one we’re going with her iconic performance during the Queen’s “Walk of Shame.” She’s both strong and weak, vulnerable but determined. It’s truly an incredible moment that highlighted just how special the acting on the show really was.
Kit Harington as Jon Snow – Hardhome Attack
Kit Harington always excelled during battle scenes, and the old gods and the new know he had plenty of those on Game of Thrones. What makes his performance during the White Walker attack on Hardhome is what he did when the fighting stopped. As the Lord Commander’s boat pulled away as he watched the Night King raise the dead, with just a quiet look of resigned awe and terror, Harington conveyed the true darkness that was coming for the living. The Night King might have emerged victorious during that scene, but it’s Harington’s fantastic performance that makes that all-time memorable moment so effective.
Emilia Clarke as Daenerys Targaryen – “A Dragon Is Not a Slave”
Some actors are on this list for giving great monologues or for memorable interactions, but it’s only fitting Emilia Clarke’s best scene stands as the opposite side of the ice and fire coin of Kit Harington’s. Her performance during the “exchange” of a dragon for the Unsullied army in Astapor was an acting tour de force. Clarke’s captured the anger, rage, and cunning of the Mother of Dragons with nothing more than a presence that said more than any words ever could.
Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister – Courtroom Confession
Peter Dinklage earned an Emmy nomination for all eight seasons of Game of Thones and he’s the only member of the cast to actually win, so picking his best scene is no easy task. But the one moment that will always stand out is his “confession” during his trial for Joffrey’s murder. In one powerful, enthralling monologue, Dinklage conveyed the pain and anger Tyrion had always lived with and the defiance he has turned into armor against a hateful, spiteful world that would never forgive him for being born a dwarf.
Diana Rigg as Olenna Tyrell – “Tell Cersei. I Want Her To Know It Was Me.”
Olenna Tyrell was no warrior. She fought no battles. But thanks to the great Diana Rigg she wielded a tongue sharper than any sword in the Realm. The Lady of House Tyrell was always a powerhouse on the show, but she saved her greatest performance for her last one on the show, when she used her final breathes to tell Jaime Lannister she had been the one to poison Joffrey. In doing so she turned, “Tell Cersei. I want her to know it was me,” into an all-time iconic line.
Charles Dance as Tywin Lannister and Maisie Williams as Arya Stark – “My Lord”
Two of the show’s best characters, played by two of its best actors, got to match wits when Arya Stark secretly served as Tywin Lannister’s servant during his time at Harrenhal. Their interactions—nothing but loaded words, hidden agendas, and unspoken tension inside a single room—was everything we loved about the show. Game of Thrones excelled not because of magic and dragons, but because of the people at the heart of its story. And Charles and Dance and Maisie Williams were among the very best to call Westeros home.
Sean Bean as Ned Stark and Mark Addy as Robert Baratheon – “There’s a War Coming, Ned”
Neither Sean Bean nor Mark Addy made it one full season on Game of Thrones, but both made a lasting impression on the show as Ned Stark and Robert Baratheon. So it’s only fitting they share an entry, with a fantastic scene that established that while the series existed in a fantasy world it was full of very real people, people with pasts and secrets, people with meaningful friendships who could disagree even with those they loved. There private meal in the woods is a quieter scene that said so much thanks to their layered performances.
David Bradley as Fake Walder Frey – Winter Comes for House Frey
David Bradley helped make Walder Frey an all-time great villain, but his best performance on Game Of Thrones when he technically played someone else. The show tasked him with playing Arya Stark pretending to be Walder Frey when she used her Faceless Men skills to get revenge for the Red Wedding. Bradley’s truly incredible in the scene, in a completely believable performance where we as the viewer knows what’s really going on. It might be the most under appreciated acting in the Realm’s history.
HOUSE OF THE DRAGON
Emma D’Arcy as Rhaenyra Targaryen and Olivia Cooke as Alicent Hightower – An Eye for an Eye
The two figures at the center of the Dance of the Dragons are also responsible for two of the best performances in the history of Westeros. Emma D’Arcy and Olivia Cooke’s opposing frenemy Queens are both outstanding in all their scenes, but they’re even better when they shre the screen. And the best of their best moments came during their intense showdown after Rhaenyra’s young son took the eye of Alicent’s. In that moment years of frustration and anger boiled over in a truly amazing moment that showed just how good both D’Arcy and Cooke really are.
Eve Best as Princess Rhaenys – Battle of Rook’s Rest
House of the Dragon, like its predecessor, overflows with outstanding acting all across the Realm. But even amid all that greatness the appropriately named Eve Best managed to stand out every time she was onscreen. That was especially true during her final episode. She put on an acting clinic without even speaking during Princess Rhaenys’ fateful dragon fight above Rook’s Rest. Best’s emotional performance powerfully conveyed all of the many emotions she experienced during her final moments.
Rhys Ifans as Ser Otto Hightower – Aegon Fires Otto as Hand
It’s really hard to love Otto Hightower, but it’s really easy to love Rhys Ifans’ portrayal of the man who served three separate kings as Hand. But for all of his success, Otto’s greatest moment came when his own grandson stripped him of his position. That intense scene served the best performance in the single best acted episode of House of the Dragon. Ifans perfectly captured Otto’s exhaustion, disgust, regret, anger, and even his honor, with both humor and deep humanity, in an outstanding sequence.
Paddy Considine as King Viserys and Matt Smith as Daemon Targaryen – Two Brothers Defend Rhaenyra’s Honor
George R.R. Martin has constantly praised Paddy Considine for bringing a vastly superior version of King Viserys to life. It was easy to see why during the actor’s most memorable sequence. An ailing Viserys surprised his royal court when he showed up to defend his daughter’s honor. His emotional performance was only made stronger by his brother Daemon, played by the great Matt Smith. He got to show off both his Daemon’s gentler side as well as his rage. During the intense scene before the Iron Throne each Targaryen got a chance to blaze with fire and blood. Vaemond Velaryon’s insults of Rhaenyra turned an already great sequence into an all-time Westeros’ moment.
Tom Glynn-Carney as King Aegon II – The King Learns About His Son’s Murder
King Aegon II is an unworthy monarch, a monster. Only, during House of the Dragon‘s second season, Tom Glynn-Carney added layers to the character we didn’t even know he had. He made a wholly detestable villain into a complex, rounded figure. And no moment better captured Aegon’s depth—or in some ways his lack of it—than the King’s response to his son’s murder. The bess actors make a character’s emotions feel real. But Glynn-Carney’s performance during was so incredible because he perfectly captured how Aegon didn’t know how to feel real emotions. It was a truly remarkable scene from a remarkable actor.
Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. He’s so mad about some of the performances he had to leave off. You can follow him on Bluesky at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.
