So far, much of the action in the "Game of Thrones" prequel series "House of the Dragon" has revolved around the Targaryen clan, as siblings Rhaenyra (Emma D'Arcy) and Aegon II (Tom Glynn-Carney) fight it out in a fiery battle over their late father's throne. (You can choose which side you're rooting for with these cool dueling trailers.)
But "House of the Dragon" season 2 will feature another Westeros family that will be familiar to anyone who watched the original HBO series: the Starks.
Led by Lord Eddard "Ned" Stark (played by Sean Bean), House Stark is a Great House of Westeros and the royal house of the Kingdom of the North, based out of Winterfell. Stark siblings Robb (Richard Madden), Sansa (Sophie Turner), Arya (Maisie Williams), Bran (Isaac Hempstead Wright) and their half-brother Jon Snow (Kit Harington) served as lead characters in "Game of Thrones." And now another member of the Stark family tree will be popping up in "House of the Dragon," which returns to HBO and Max this June.
Back in December 2023, Entertainment Weekly confirmed that "The Dark Tower" actor Tom Taylor will be taking on the role of Cregan Stark, who is the current Lord of Winterfell during the "House of the Dragon" timeline, which is set nearly 200 years before the events of the flagship show. That basically makes him the O.G. Ned Stark — he's the "GOT" character's great-great-great-great grandfather.
The introduction of Cregan Stark was actually teased back in that shocking "House of the Dragon" season 1 finale. When Rhaenyra strategically sent her son Lucerys Velaryon (Elliot Grihault) to Storm's End to gain support for her claim to the crown — we all know how that turned out — she also sent his brother Jacaerys (Harry Collett) up north to Winterfell for the same reason. Seeing as how the Targaryen succession war, known as Dance of the Dragons, is officially firing up in the prequel's second season, Cregan will likely be playing a bigger role in the new episodes.
Like Daeron Targaryen's character, TV fans might not be as familiar with Cregan Stark as readers of "Fire & Blood" are: in the George R. R. Martin book on which "House of the Dragon" is based, Cregan and the rest of the North will lend support to Rhaenyra's cause during Dance of the Dragons. However, as EW points out, Martin's book purposely leaves out exactly what transpired between Jacaerys, Cregan and the rest of the Winterfell folk, so that might be something delved into more deeply when season two comes around.
Speaking of, "House of the Dragon" season 2 is set to return on Sunday, June 16 on HBO and Max — thankfully, that's a lot earlier than we initially thought — with eight new hourlong episodes packed with plenty of family drama and fire-breathing dragons. While you wait to see exactly how Lord Cregan Stark plays into all of that Targaryen business, you can revisit all episodes of "HOTD" season 1 with a Max subscription. And make sure to bookmark Tom's Guide for all new intel and updates on the second season of "House of the Dragon."
