HBO Just Unveiled Game of Thrones’ 6th Targaryen Villain

With the introduction of a new Targaryen villain in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, every book in the A Song of Ice and Fire series now features at least one antagonist from the Targaryen family. While the main Game of Thrones series had numerous villains, the Targaryens have consistently been positioned as the primary antagonists throughout the entire franchise.

The new series A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms introduced several new members of the Targaryen family. Notably, this installment featured a majority of Targaryens who were portrayed as genuinely good people – a first for any Game of Thrones story. Characters like Baelor “Breakspear” Targaryen and Aegon Targaryen (known as Egg) were presented as clearly moral individuals.

Like any group, there’s usually someone who causes trouble, and in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, that role fell to Aerion Targaryen. He became the primary villain, marking the sixth time a Targaryen character had been portrayed as the antagonist in the overall story. His actions directly led to the central conflict of this part of the tale: the Trial of Seven at Ashford Meadow.

George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series includes many cruel and villainous Targaryen characters, though the HBO television adaptations have only featured six of them.

Every Targaryen Villain in the Game of Thrones Universe

Aerys II Targaryen

In the world of Game of Thrones, Aerys II Targaryen, nicknamed The Mad King, is widely considered the most villainous and morally flawed Targaryen. He was the king of Westeros before the events of the series began, and his reign ended when Robert Baratheon successfully rebelled against him and took the Iron Throne.

In Game of Thrones, Jaime Lannister recounts how King Aerys, driven insane, believed everyone was plotting against him. This delusion extended to the belief he could be reborn as a dragon through a massive fire, leading him to attempt to burn down the entire city of King’s Landing. Had he succeeded, around half a million innocent people would have died, but Jaime stopped him by killing the Mad King.

Aerys was the father of Daenerys Targaryen, played by Emilia Clarke, and her brothers, Viserys and Rhaegar.

Viserys Targaryen

Viserys Targaryen, son of the Mad King, was believed to be cursed with a predisposition to darkness. A common saying in the world of Game of Thrones suggests that with every Targaryen birth, the gods randomly decide if the child will be blessed or cursed, and Viserys unfortunately landed on the wrong side of that coin.

Although Viserys only appeared in the first season of Game of Thrones, his interactions with his sister, Daenerys, were deeply problematic. He subjected her to physical, verbal, emotional, and sexual abuse, and consistently displayed an inflated sense of self-importance – a god complex – that was more pronounced than any other character’s in the show.

Viserys Targaryen was responsible for terrible acts, including forcing his sister, Daenerys, into a marriage with Khal Drogo and threatening her child. However, many viewers found his death particularly satisfying. After repeatedly proclaiming himself king, Khal Drogo punished him by pouring molten gold over his head, effectively turning it into a permanent, fatal crown.

Daenerys Targaryen

Daenerys Targaryen’s sudden shift to villainy is a major point of contention for many Game of Thrones viewers. While some might have accepted this change if it had unfolded gradually over several seasons, the final season received significant criticism for showing Daenerys transform from a reasonable and compassionate leader to someone who kills thousands of innocent people in a very short time.

In the end, Daenerys turned into the show’s main antagonist, continuing to descend into madness even after destroying King’s Landing. Jon Snow ultimately killed her to prevent her from ruling with an iron fist, and her dragon, Drogon, then flew her body away across the sea to an unknown place.

Aegon II Targaryen

As a huge fan of House of the Dragon, I have to say Aegon II Targaryen is a seriously complex and disturbing character. He’s one of the main villains, and throughout the later parts of Season 1 and all of Season 2, he’s actually the king. He’s constantly at odds with Rhaenyra, and honestly, he’s a brutal ruler. Beyond the political conflict, the show doesn’t shy away from showing his awful behavior – he’s responsible for a lot of deaths, and it’s deeply upsetting to see his history of sexual assault and the way he abandoned any children he had outside of marriage, leaving them to struggle. It makes him a truly reprehensible figure.

If the show stays true to the books, Aegon is sure to do even worse things in Season 3.

Aemond Targaryen

Aegon II Targaryen is a major antagonist in House of the Dragon, but his brother, Aemond, is equally villainous. Aemond is fundamentally self-absorbed and a cruel ruler. Similar to Aegon, he’s responsible for the deaths of countless people – likely numbering in the thousands.

In the first season finale, Aemond killed his nephew Lucerys while they were both riding dragons over Storm’s End. He also killed his cousin, Rhaenys Targaryen, during the Battle at Rook’s Rest in the second season. During that same battle, Aemond appeared to attempt to kill his own brother, Aegon.

Like Aegon, Aemond is set to continue his monstrous acts in Season 3.

Aerion Targaryen

Aerion Targaryen served as the primary antagonist in the first season of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. He was portrayed as deeply self-absorbed and treated ordinary people with cruelty. Similar to Viserys and many other members of his family, Aerion believed he was superior to everyone else, even seeing himself as a dragon in human form.

Aerion attacked a girl named Tanselle, prompting Duncan the Tall to step in and fight him. Aerion then threatened Duncan with serious harm – promising to cut off his hand and foot and knock out his teeth – but his brother, Egg, arrived and prevented him from carrying out the threats.

It’s also important to note that when Duncan challenged him to a duel, Aerion refused to fight alone. Instead, he proposed a Trial of Seven, where seven of his champions would battle seven of Duncan’s.

These events directly caused the death of Prince Baelor Targaryen, ultimately leading to the end of the Targaryen dynasty.

BONUS: Rhaegar Targaryen

Rhaegar Targaryen, unlike his brother Viserys, wasn’t a cruel person. He was known for being peaceful and preferred creative pursuits like writing and singing to warfare. He was also Jon Snow’s father.

The death of Ned Stark’s brother and father at the hands of the Mad King created significant unrest in Westeros. Around the same time, Rhaegar Targaryen took Lyanna Stark, who was promised to Robert Baratheon, as his own. These two events sparked Robert’s Rebellion, which ended with Robert killing Rhaegar at the Battle of the Trident.

As a huge fan of the story, I always felt Rhaegar got a bad rap. Everyone thinks he was this villain, but it turns out the war with Robert wasn’t about him being evil at all! Robert basically stole his future wife, and there was a lot of history with their families too. But the biggest surprise? Rhaegar didn’t take Lyanna Stark. She actually went with him because they were deeply in love. It completely changes how you see everything, honestly.

Although Rhaegar is often seen as a villain in Game of Thrones because he opposed Ned Stark and Robert Baratheon, he wasn’t actually a bad person and stands apart from the other characters on this list.

2026-03-09 08:37