House of the Dragon Built Full-Scale Ships on Gimbals for Gullet Battle
Get the Culture newsletter
Daily culture — film, music, books, the trends and ideas worth your attention. Free.
- Ryan Condal told a SXSW London audience that Season 3's opening Battle of the Gullet sequence is "unlike anything that's ever been done in television before," calling it the biggest season by a "huge margin" in shoot days, locations, and construction.
- Production designer Jim Clay and his team built full-scale versions of ships "The Queen That Never Was" and "The Bitchfist" and placed them in a dry tank on a gimbal, then moved part of the set to a wet tank on another gimbal to simulate naval combat, with actors describing a "dangerous environment" of slippery floors and water.
- Condal framed the battle as the series' Battle of Helm's Deep moment, saying the team had to dramatize the Gullet because it "stands out" even within the bloody history of the Dance of the Dragons, citing "Master and Commander" as a visual inspiration.
- Steve Toussaint (Lord Corlys Velaryon) said his character begins Season 3 still grieving Rhaenys and trying to connect with illegitimate son Alyn, while Abubakar Salim (Alyn) said his character enters with "vulnerability and rawness" and matures through the season after gaining 22-33 pounds of muscle for the role.
- Abigail Thorn (Admiral Sharako Lohar) said she read "Moby-Dick" and watched every adaptation to prepare, casting her character as "Captain Ahab" on a quest to bring down Corlys as her "white whale."
- Harry Collett (Prince Jacaerys) described his character as "a grumpy teenager" who believes he's "the best man in the room" while clashing with his mother Queen Rhaenyra's authority.
- The stunt team training the cast for the battle sequence included people who had previously doubled for Captain America, Thor, Deadpool, and Wonder Woman, while Condal described the season's tone as one of "relentlessness" and "inexorability" once events set in motion at the end of Season 2 begin rolling.
Why it matters: House of the Dragon is committing its most expensive and logistically ambitious season to a single opening battle sequence — building full-scale ships on gimbals rather than relying on visual effects shortcuts — directly raising the production-cost stakes for HBO and setting a benchmark for prestige TV action that competitors will be measured against. For cast members like Thorn and Toussaint, the season is also a character-defining showcase, with Thorn's Moby-Dick-inspired Ahab arc and Corlys's personal grief doing the dramatic heavy lifting alongside the spectacle.
Ask SkimNews
