Daemon Is the Three-Eyed Raven Theory Gets a Boost From House of the Dragon Season 3 Changes

House of the Dragon Season 3 is already making some changes to the book, and it could confirm a theory with big ties to Game of Thrones lore. Season 2’s changes to Fire & Blood were rather divisive, with author George R.R. Martin even criticizing House of the Dragon in a since-deleted blog post. That was largely centered around Blood and Cheese and the “toxic” butterfly effect the deviations from the source material would have. Still, the HBO series is undeterred, with set videos and photos highlighting some surprising moves away from the text.

As revealed by the fan account @housethedragons on Twitter X, several of these center around Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith). The show appears to be involving him more in some major upcoming set pieces that he’s not present at in the book, and has him meeting with characters he doesn’t interact with either. Mild, unconfirmed spoilers follow.

This mostly involves various members of Team Green, including Ormund Hightower and Daeron Targaryen. He also appears in one video to be rallying troops, promising the beginning of the end for House Hightower. Those changes are surprising enough, but could be a sign of something bigger.

Daemon Being The Three-Eyed Raven Feels More Plausible Now

The Daemon reveals are interesting enough on their own, because they suggest some major deviations for several characters. That may, in part, be because House of the Dragon has seemingly cut the character Nettles, a dragonseed with whom Daemon spends a lot of time and develops a close relationship. But they’re even more intriguing when considering the bigger picture. Simply put, House of the Dragon is extremely willing to change the story, and Daemon’s more than most (his Harrenhal visions and even going against Rhaenyra Targaryen in Season 2 were a show invention). So where could that end up?

One possibility is the Three-Eyed Raven. This is a theory that has gained a lot of traction, with Smith himself even commenting on it, saying “I hope so,” and that he “like[s]” the idea. That itself doesn’t mean much, but there is some evidence for it in the show. That’s mostly based on Daemon seeing the Three-Eyed Raven in a vision in House of the Dragon Season 2’s finale. That character, specifically, was Brynden Rivers, who is Daemon’s great-grandson, wields the same Valyrian steel sword (Dark Sister), and somehow becomes the Raven (or Crow, in the books) after going missing beyond the Wall.

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There are some other connections too: Daemon’s story in Season 2 centered around his visions that were all, in some way, linked to Harrenhal’s weirwood tree. Bran Stark’s greensight, at least in the A Song of Ice and Fire books, is developed by weirwood paste, not dissimilar to what Daemon was given. And there is some precedent for another character having the title: not only do we see it pass to Bran in Game of Thrones but, when referencing what the Night King wants, Bran says: “He’ll come for me. He’s tried before, many times, with many Three-Eyed Ravens.”

Of course, some vague connections do not a raven make, and there’s plenty to work against the theory – not least that it’d be such a huge addition to Game of Thrones history. The changes in House of the Dragon Season 3, however, while not directly related, do support the idea. It further shows just how much they are altering Daemon’s story. If they’re continuing to do that, then it feels more plausible they might actually commit to something like this.

Daemon Being The Three-Eyed Raven Would Be A Mistake, But His Ending May Change

As much as it feels possible House of the Dragon could do this twist – as wild as it’d also be – it would be a mistake. The show has already done enough in terms of connections to Game of Thrones thanks to Aegon’s dream and, going further, Daemon’s visions of a White Walker and Daenerys Targaryen. Keeping those things more prophetic in nature would be better, rather than making the world a hell of a lot smaller. There’s no clear narrative reason for Daemon to become the Three-Eyed Raven, so it’d feel more like it exists to service Game of Thrones lore than the story or character arc at hand.

Even if it doesn’t do it, though, it’s easy to envisage a scenario where his ending does change. Again, this is partly because they’re changing his story quite a bit anyway, but it’s also because his fate in the book carries a slight degree of ambiguity. I think it’s pretty possible they choose to go all in on making his ending into something more concrete, one way or another. House of the Dragon has typically leaned into being a more “definitive” telling of the story, rather than the varying accounts of Fire & Blood, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if that included Daemon’s ending – Three-Eyed Raven or not.

House of the Dragon Seasons 1 and 2 are streaming on HBO Max. Season 3 is expected to release sometime in 2026.