The 1 Souvenir Milly Alcock & Emily Carey Took From ‘House of the Dragon’
In a recent interview, House of the Dragon stars Milly Alcock and Emily Carey reveal the one souvenir they kept from the set — one of the most significant in Game of Thrones history. Both Alcock and Carey now own a leaf from the weirwood tree seen in King’s Landing. The set piece is as inexplicable as it is important.
The significance of weirwood trees in ‘Game of Thrones’ and ‘House of the Dragon’
The history of the Godswood in Game of Thrones lore is huge. The Godswoods are large forests that stretch for acres from a single heart tree — a gorgeous pale-trunked, flame-leaved weirwood tree. The Godswoods are sacred places to those who follow the Old Gods.
In Game of Thrones, the Godswood is where Bran Stark, eventual king of the Seven Kingdoms, goes for solace. A weirwood tree also marks the cave of the Three-Eyed Raven beyond the wall. Sansa Stark weds the vile Ramsay Bolton in front of a weirwood tree. The Night King was created while bound to a wierwood tree; he is killed before one as well. So we cannot understate the significance of wierwoods.
But, centuries before the events of House of the Dragon, the Godswoods were all cut down by the Andals — an event in Westeros history explained in Game of Thrones. This makes the presence of the weirwood tree in King’s Landing all the more mysterious and thought-provoking.
Emily Carey and Milly Alcock share the same ‘House of the Dragon’ souvenir
In the interview with Hey You Guys, Carey and Alcock were asked if they kept any mementos from their time on the set of House of the Dragon. It turns out they did. Both Carey and Alcock kept one leaf of the weirwood tree that mystifies Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon fans.
Carey says, “I didn’t steal it … They used to have buckets and buckets of them after they scattered them on the floors.” However, the actor quickly clarifies, “It wasn’t taken from the tree. I didn’t do anything I wasn’t supposed to do.” The leaf was offered to Carey after she mused that she would love to keep one. She snagged two of the fabled tree’s leaves, giving one to Alcock.
Why is a weirwood tree in King’s Landing in ‘House of the Dragon?’
The tree’s presence has not gone unnoticed. Fan theories abound as to why the weirwood tree is in King’s Landing in House of the Dragon. It seems to go against the history of Game of Thrones and also seems rather out of place considering the Targaryens are not worshippers of the Old Gods.
Some speculate that the tree will be cut down during the forthcoming Targaryen civil war (the Dance of the Dragons). Others suspect that dragon fire will burn down the sacred tree.
What we do know: The tree is not there when Game of Thrones takes place, thus the tree is felled by something or someone in the 200 years between the two stories.
Regardless of why the tree is present in King’s Landing now, plenty of evidence supports the idea that, whatever brings the tree down, it’ll be epic. Nice pick, Emily Carey.
