The actor discusses making a scene on the “Game of Thrones” prequel and on the internet.

House of the Dragon’s James Norton on the extremes of Ormund: From ‘dark as f---’ villain to the best colorist in Westeros

The actor discusses making a scene on the “Game of Thrones” prequel and on the internet.

By Nick Romano

Nick Romano

Nick Romano is a senior editor at ** with 15 years of journalism experience covering entertainment. His work previously appeared in Vanity Fair, Vulture, IGN, and more.

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July 14, 2026 10:00 p.m. ET

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James Norton as Ormund Hightower on ‘House of the Dragon’. Credit:

- James Norton shares his favorite *House of the Dragon* meme after flaunting Ormund’s hair-dying skills.

- “He’s both playful and dark as f---,” the actor describes his character.

- Norton recalls the scene where he nearly fainted on set.

**This article contains spoilers from *House of the Dragon* season 3, episode 4, “Tumbleton.”**

Within James Norton reside two wolves: one is the Lord of House Hightower on *House of the Dragon*, the other is the best colorist in all of Westeros.

“This has been a real baptism of fire for me,” the actor comments of the latter to **. “I’ve never experienced anything like it in terms of how many memes I’m in.”

Norton’s Ormund Hightower, Alicent’s cousin leading the Hightower host in support of Aegon and the Greens, has been a figurehead since the start of the *Game of Thrones* prequel’s third season. But after episode 4, his machinations and power plays have come to light, setting him up as the next formidable adversary to the new queen — and the latest focus of the fandom’s memes.

After viewers observed how Ormund dyed the hair of a merchant boy blonde to pass him off as Prince Daeron Targaryen, the reactions swiftly commenced online.

Ormund Hightower (James Norton) on ‘House of the Dragon’ season 3.

“The amount of comments on Ormund’s proficiency around hair coloring is kind of amazing,” the actor, also known internationally for *House of Guinness* on Netflix and Greta Gerwig’s *Little Women*, reacts. “It’s a whole spinoff series about Ormund, the colorist, setting up a salon up in Oldtown.”

Despite the jovial memes, Ormund is an active threat to Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) and her hold on the Iron Throne. He bears a disdain for the Targaryen line and has done all he can to purge the Targaryen-ness from his charge, Daeron (Benjamin Evan Ainsworth), whom he mentored and fathered since he was sent to ward as a child. He now plots to put the young prince on the throne, even over his brothers.

The real Daeron speaks: ‘House of the Dragon’ star unpacks the Ormund relationship

'House of the Dragon' star Emma D'Arcy on Rhaenyra's ascent, the scene they 'dreaded'

The actor, who wasn’t able to participate in press or attend the show’s season 3 premiere due to a shoot in Spain, calls Ormund “the significant thorn in Rhaenyra’s side.” He hopes the role will “grab people’s attention because he’s both playful and dark as f---.”

From the jump, Norton knew showrunner Ryan Condal and the writers wanted to be bold with the character, described to the actor as one of the significant engines of the third season.

“They wanted to take a big swing, be delicious, be villainous, imbue him with all the complexities that all the characters have,” he says. “It was music to my ears because I was able to go dark with his relationship with Daeron, the fanaticism, the conviction he has around the Hightower claim to the throne, but also the playfulness and pomander and the smells and the big swings. It’s got everything, and it’s f---ing lovely for me as an actor to play all that.”

James Norton’s Ormund Hightower on ‘House of the Dragon’ season 3.

A student of history and avid collector of tapestries, Ormund sees himself as a scholar, as Alicent (Olivia Cooke) describes to Rhaenyra in the fourth episode. Almost as much as the Targaryens, he despises the ignorant and, as Norton alluded to, harsh odors. He carries incense with him at all times to cleanse the nostrils should any offensive smells invade his airway.

A common question on set became, *How far can we push it?* There was Ormund’s personalized saunter. Norton recalls “many, many versions” left on the cutting room floor that he describes as “much straighter, much more militaristic, and less playful.” But the team used his take with more of a hip cock.

The same went for the bathtub scene, when Ormund emerges butt-naked in front of the lord and lady of Tumbleton, now under Hightower occupation. Norton asked himself, “How long can he stand there completely bullock naked in front of these strangers, in front of the people of Tumbleton?” Again, “We pushed it,” he says, “and the towel was delayed and delayed and delayed.”

There is, of course, the less playful side of Ormund. His relationship to Daeron suggests a traumatic and painful past between the two. In one segment, Daeron quietly whispers for a young cupbearer to exit the room before violence erupts from the lord. Sure enough, an unwelcome raven from Harrenhal causes Ormund to hack at the table with his sword.

“Ormond is possessed in that moment. I actually nearly fainted a couple of times in that scene because I was smashing it so hard and the adrenaline was so high,” Norton reflects.

Ormund Hightower (James Norton), Daeron Targaryen (Benjamin Evan Ainsworth) on ‘House of the Dragon’ season 3.

Theo Whiteman/HBO

During another moment, Daeron coerces the prince to execute a local man of Tumbleton in the Sept. Ormund chastises the boy’s initial display of mercy as a Targaryen trait.

“There’s deep, twisted, abusive, psychologically abusive relationships that are going on there,” Norton explains. “It’s almost like Stockholm Syndrome where there are moments with real love between them, like the end of episode 4 where Ormund is so proud of him that he’s able to murder that man in cold blood. And what I was able to see in Daeron is a young boy who’s just desperate to be loved and held and that his eyes were welling up with tears. It was so moving...So that’s why the relationship was so interesting to excavate.”

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The fan attention around Ormund, but generally *House of the Dragon*, can feel “terrifying to an actor,” he admits. No matter how deep he goes into the character and the source material, he says there will always be someone out there who goes deeper. “You have to just tell the human story,” he says. “All of the lore, it’s just so vast.”

“That said,” Norton adds, “I have enjoyed a little bit of the hair-dying thing.”

His favorite meme? The moment Rhaenyra checks the fake Daeron’s roots for traces of dye and finds nothing. “I watch that, and I’m like, ‘Yeah! Fairfax,’” he says. “Ormund knows how to dye some f---ing hair.”

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