This story includes spoilers for “House of the Dragon” Season 2 . Geeta Vasant Patel spent most of the 10-month shoot for Season 2 of “ House of the Dragon ” trying to figure out the final shot of the season. “I kept trying to come up with what the images would be for the end of this episode and nothing felt right,” said Patel, who directed the finale, during a recent video call.
“It had to end leaving you with a great punch of emotion. It had to somehow lift us even from Episode 7, which was fantastic and so action-oriented that this had to make you feel even more.” The final moments of Sunday’s finale, titled “The Queen Who Ever Was,” featured a montage that teases the upcoming action in HBO’s epic fantasy series — including a couple of new dragons — before concluding with shots of Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) alone in her library and her childhood friend Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke) along the cliffs gazing toward a setting sun.
Patel, who also served as a co-executive producer for Season 2, said she finally landed on the imagery while sitting on set in the library and remembering what showrunner Ryan Condal had previously told her about the conversation between Rhaenyra and Alicent and their relationship. “Ryan had told me that it’s as if Alicent has been carrying this burden her whole life and in that scene with Rhaenyra, she picks up the burden and gives it to [her],” Patel said. “Now Rhaenyra is holding this burden of having.
