A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Unleashes a Targaryen Teen Who Makes Joffrey Look Tame
Westeros is getting another royal you’ll love to hate. Finn Bennett steps into A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms as Aerion Targaryen, a vain, vicious prince primed to make trouble.
Westeros never met a cruel prince it didn’t put front and center, and the next one on deck is in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. Yes, we’re getting another Targaryen problem child. Buckle up.
Meet Prince Aerion Targaryen
British actor Finn Bennett is playing Prince Aerion Targaryen in HBO’s upcoming spinoff. He’s not selling the guy as misunderstood, either. Bennett’s own description is pretty blunt and kind of perfect:
"Aerion is vain and cruel. I wanted to give him an angsty, teenager feel so I listened to a lot of Rage Against The Machine."
On paper, that puts Aerion in the same nasty neighborhood as Joffrey Baratheon from Game of Thrones and Aegon Targaryen from House of the Dragon. The fun part will be seeing how Bennett makes him feel like his own special brand of awful.
Who is Aerion Brightflame, exactly?
In George R.R. Martin’s lore, Aerion goes by a few cheery nicknames like Aerion Brightflame and Aerion the Monstrous. He’s the second son of Prince Maekar Targaryen and Lady Dyanna Dayne, and he’s notorious for being violent, arrogant, and a full-time headache for his own family. Think walking red flag with a Valyrian wig.
In the books, Aerion’s behavior reads like an early warning siren for the Targaryen slide into madness and eventual collapse. His dragon obsession gets so unhinged he drinks wildfire because he believes it will turn him into a dragon. Yes, wildfire. Because why not escalate from bad ideas to historically bad ideas.
Everything about the way this series has been framed suggests a pretty faithful take on the Dunk and Egg stories, so don’t be shocked if Bennett’s Aerion lines up closely with the text. If so, we’re looking at a villain who’s not just cruel for sport, but genuinely dangerous in a way that ripples through the family tree.
Big shoes, bigger expectations
Game of Thrones is stacked with hall-of-fame monsters like Joffrey, Ramsay Bolton, Cersei Lannister, and Walder Frey, while House of the Dragon has its own rogues gallery with Aegon, Aemond, and Criston Cole. Bennett is stepping into that tradition and will need to make Aerion stick in your memory for all the worst reasons. Given the Rage Against the Machine prep, he’s clearly not aiming for subtle.
Temper your dragon expectations
George R.R. Martin has already waved the flag on this: A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is smaller and more intimate than Thrones or HotD. No dragons screaming across the sky, no massive aerial battles. It’s much more about one knight’s personal journey, so expect character-driven scenes about courage and chivalry. That’s not a downgrade, just a different lane - and honestly, the grounded, boots-on-the-road approach fits Dunk and Egg.
- Showrunner: Ira Parker
- Episodes: 6
- Premiere: January 2026 on HBO in the US
- Scope: No dragons or big sky battles - more straightforward, less convoluted, and featuring Targaryens we haven’t met on TV yet
Short version: keep your expectations locked on character and tone, then let Aerion Brightflame do the rest. If the show sticks the landing, we might be talking about a new top-tier Westeros villain by the time those six episodes are done.