Jon’s Snow’s Parents On Game Of Thrones Confirmed By HBO

If there was any doubt left about who Jon Snow’s parents are after the Game of Thrones Season 6 finale, HBO just did away with it. The Making Game of Thrones blog, HBO’s official production blog for the hit fantasy series, has released a new infographic detailing all of the character connections involved in Ned Stark’s promise to his dying sister, Lyanna.

If you didn’t catch what Lyanna whispered, the gist of it was that she wanted her brother to protect her newborn son. The show implied without saying it outright that the child was Jon Snow. Most took that as confirmation of the “R+L=J” fan theory, but some continued to insist that the “R” in that equation could be Lyanna’s betrothed, Robert Baratheon.

The infographic draws clear lines indicating that Jon’s parents are officially Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark. See for yourself below.

Some may question just how canonical this extra-textual infographic is, but the Making Game of Thrones blog has revealed official materials from the show before, including “the bastard letter.” This infographic, taken into consideration with the hints Siri is offering to fans who ask, make it clear that Jon is of Targaryen blood.

One sticking point is the line drawn between Lyanna and Rhaegar, which indicates that Rhaegar abducted Lyanna. This has been the narrative most often told about the two in Westeros, but many fans believe that the couple had actually run away together because they were in love. If this infographic is official cannon, then some could take it as confirming that Rhaegar did actually take Lyanna against her will. Another explanation is that this infographic represents the story as viewers are supposed to understand it at this point in the Game of Thrones. In other words, Game of Thrones has officially revealed Rhaegar and Lyanna are Jon’s parents but has not yet officially done anything to undercut the abduction narrative…at least not yet.