HOTD And Queer Pop Culture

Though the Rhaenicent ship isn’t real in the show (at least, not yet), it speaks to a wider change in LGBTQ+ representation in film and television. Depictions of queerness are no longer being forced to be “perfect” or saccharine, and instead are becoming more and more unhinged. Alicent, in particular, displays a jealous, self-loathing side to female queerness that is particularly captivating — whether it’s grabbing a Valyrian dagger to attack Rhaenyra in Season 1, or asking the small council whether Rhaenyra has answered her letters sending condolences after her son Aemond killed Rhaenyra’s. Outside of HOTD, chaotic queerness is breaking through to the mainstream, from Margaret Qualley’s performance of “fuckboy” Jamie in Drive-Away Dolls to Kristen Stewart in just about everything. We have Nicholas Galitzine’s George in Mary & George, where a love for violence and a lust for one another morph into a compelling gay pairing which isn’t all that healthy. Similarly, Season 2 of AMC’s Interview with the Vampire is full of messy, manipulative queer pining over the ages that wouldn’t be out of place in a House Of The Dragon episode (we can see Aemond as a vampire, to be honest).