Everything You Need To Know About House Of The Dragon Season 2's Cregan Stark

This post contains spoilers for "House of the Dragon" season 2.

The shadow of grief looms large over the season 2 premiere of "House of the Dragon," where fledgling war strategies go hand in hand with covert machinations across Westeros. The show's season 1 finale ended on a rather shocking note: Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) and his massive dragon Vhagar taunt Lucerys (Elliot Grihault) and his dragon Arrax, leading to the latter duo being unexpectedly chomped alive by the chonkier beast during an airborne chase. The news devastates Rhaenyra (Emma D'Arcy), who is still mourning the loss of her child at the start of season 2 — much to the frustration of a scheming Daemon (Matt Smith), who surreptitiously hatches a devious plan for swift retribution.

After the tensions between Team Black and Team Green had reached a boiling point in season 1, Rhaenyra instructed her sons Lucerys and Jacaerys (Harry Collett) to travel across the realm to garner allies for the impending war. While Luke's attempts to win over Borros Baratheon eventually ended in tragedy, Jace's journey to the North to appeal to Lady Jeyne Arryn and Lord Cregan Stark (Tom Taylor) was somewhat of a success. Season 2 opens with Cregan's voiceover, setting the scene for the cold, desolate landscape of Winterfell, which paints a vivid picture of the Stark code of honor in the face of a war that will soon upend order across the Seven Kingdoms.

As Jace is closer to Cregan's age, the conversation between the two feels more honest and straightforward than the usual guarded politicking we are used to. We also get a glimpse into Cregan's character, along with the role he might end up playing after the war breaks out. Here's what we know about Cregan from George R.R. Martin's "Fire & Blood."

Spoilers for "Fire & Blood" to follow.

"Duty is sacrifice," Cregan states in the episode, acknowledging the price to be paid for being honorable in such a ruthless, unpredictable world. Cregan takes Jace to The Wall, making him understand that the 700-foot tall barrier wasn't built to keep out invaders or beasts but to keep death at bay. As guardians against the cold and the dark, the Night's Watch have a duty to protect their people from the unforgivable winter, along with the fallout of war that does not directly concern them. Jace convinces Cregan that this war will affect the North without question, and after they receive a raven bearing news of Lucerys' death, Cregan promises 2,000 of his men to Rhaenyra's cause. Meanwhile, Lady Arryn also pledges her support in exchange for a dragon to guard The Vale.

"Fire & Blood" details that Cregan maintained his position as the head of House Stark through the reigns of four kings: Viserys I, Aegon II, Aegon III, and Daeron I. Cregan played a crucial role during the Dance of the Dragons, aiding Rhaenyra's cause and fighting several battles against Aegon II's forces while facilitating the coronation of Aegon III, Rhaenyra and Daemon's firstborn. He also served as Aegon's Hand during a brief period known as The Hour of the Wolf. Although Cregan is prone to hostilities in the name of war, he is known to be a formidable swordsman and military commander who reigned over House Stark with an iron will.

The Cregan we meet in "House of the Dragon" might be considerably young. However, he already seems hardened by the trials of inhabiting Winterfell and fortifying the cause of the Night's Watch (which he perceives as an honor, as opposed to a sentence).

Tom Taylor's Cregan was first glimpsed in the "House of the Dragon" season 2 trailer. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the actor talked about embodying his ancestor Ned Stark (Sean Bean) while slipping into the shoes of a character with such an unprecedented legacy:

"I did use Sean Bean a lot. For some reason, I felt like I needed to because he's Sean Bean's great, great, great, great, great-granddad. I wanted him to have the same presence because the voice tells so much. When they speak, you can hear the weight on all their shoulders. [...] I think they were quite surprised with my accent.  I think maybe if I couldn't do the accent, it wouldn't be happening. It was such an important thing to get the tone of Cregan right, so when he is speaking, it's not like a cringey speech because a lot of the wording is almost Shakespearean."

This "almost Shakespearean" manner of speaking is reflected right off the bat, as Cregan feels like a youth doomed to shoulder the heavy burden of honor — as both the head of House Stark and the Warden of the North — which explains why every word he utters feels painfully pensive yet measured.

You might recognize Taylor from Nikolaj Arcel's adaptation of Stephen King's "The Dark Tower," where he played Jake Chambers, whose journey takes on complex layers within the "Dark Tower" universe. Taylor also played a young Uthred Ragnarsson in the television adaptation of Bernard Cornwell's "The Last Kingdom."

New episodes of "House of the Dragon" season 2 drop Sundays on HBO and Max at 9 pm EST.