Betty Gilpin and Ethan Hawke in ‘The Lowdown’ (Photo Credit: FX)
FX has set an October premiere for season two of The Lowdown. Starring Ethan Hawke, the upcoming eight-episode season debuts on October 14, 2026 at 6pm PT/9pm ET, with new episodes arriving on Wednesdays.
FX also revealed two new big-name additions to the season two cast. Oscar winner Tommy Lee Jones (The Fugitive) and Emmy nominee Betty Gilpin (Widow’s Bay) have joined the critically acclaimed series. Season two also stars Keith David, Rafael Casal, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, and Kaniehtiio Horn.
FX released a lengthy description of the new season:
“Lee lives and works in a rare books store tucked in the heart of Tulsa – a local refuge and unofficial community hub. While Lee’s no idealist, he’s fiercely committed to exposing corruption and unearthing the city’s hidden rot, even when it puts him at risk. As the season begins, Lee’s recent story on the life and untimely death of Dale Washberg (as seen in season one) earns him a local citizen journalist award.
Unable to process things going well for a change, Lee self-medicates and, unsurprisingly, makes a less than stellar showing at the ceremony. But his wildly unfiltered speech grabs the attention of beautiful and brash public defender Ginger (Gilpin), herself a crusader for truth.
Though uncommonly immune to his charms, Ginger does accept Lee’s help on a case. One of her clients has gone MIA from the state penitentiary – but how can a man go missing in prison? The situation turns out to have all of Lee’s favorite ingredients: power, corruption, and malfeasance among the wealthy elite. It’s a perfect next story for The Heartland Press, where Marty (David) is now Managing Editor, much to Lee’s chagrin.
Bumbling his way through the investigation with Ginger, Lee reluctantly enlists the assistance of Johnny (Casal), a jujitsu-trained dentist with a heart of gold, who is also new husband to Lee’s ex, Samantha (Horn), and co-parent to Lee’s teenage daughter, Francis (Armstrong), who longs for more time with her ever-busy father. Lee loves Francis more than anything in the world, but the urgency of this new case pulls him away from her more often than either of them would like. Things on the homefront get even more complicated when Lee’s estranged grifter father, Lee Raybon Senior (Jones), unexpectedly arrives in town – especially awkward since Lee has always told Francis that her grandfather was dead.”
Reservation Dogs’ Sterlin Harjo created the series and serves as writer, director, and executive producer. Additional executive producers include Ethan Hawke, Garrett Basch, Ryan Hawke, Duffy Boudreau, and Scott Teems.
A two-time World Cup champion and a former women’s professional football player team up to take on competitors in season 39 of CBS’s Emmy-winning The Amazing Race. CBS just announced this season’s racers, which include a forensic scientist, a pilot, a retired fire chief, and a marine officer.
Season 39 premieres on Wednesday, September 30, 2026 and Thursday, October 1, at 9:30pm ET/PT. Phil Keoghan returns to host the competition.
“Amazing Race fans continue to make it clear what they love most is seeing everyday Americans stepping outside their comfort zones to race around the world and complete extraordinary challenges in extraordinary places – a chance to vicariously experience our amazing planet through the eyes of compelling, relatable contestants,” said Keoghan. “This season’s twists, including a new, unexpected reveal at the start line, as well as the return of some tried and tested classics, ramp up the importance of strategy. All this, along with a first-time visit to Albania, make for another thrilling race for $1 million.”
CBS released the following tease of what’s in store for season 39’s racers:
“Host Phil Keoghan kicks off the Race from Vancouver, Canada, where he immediately surprises the teams with the first twist of the season: for the first time in The Amazing Race history there are 13 Express Passes in play. Each team receives one pass, forcing them to think strategically as they must play it by the end of leg six. Along the route, Racers will travel to five continents, nine countries, 13 cities, and more than 25,000 miles, where they jump 200 feet off the catwalk of BC Stadium in Vancouver, walk with camels in Morocco, and fly a paramotor through the skies of Laos.”
Ali Krieger (42, pro athlete) and Joanna Lohman (44, pro athlete)
Pro athletes and moms from Montclair, N.J., and Silver Spring, Md.
• Ali is a two-time World Cup champion (US Women’s National Team, 2015 and 2019), Olympian (2016, Rio), Champions League winner (1. FFC Frankfurt, 2008) and NWSL Champion (Gotham FC, 2023).
• Joanna played professional football for the US Women’s National Team (USWNT), Washington Freedom, Philadelphia Independence, Boston Breakers, and the Washington Spirit.
Ann-Marie Tejcek (56, healthcare executive) and Riley Tejcek (29, marine officer)
Mother and daughter from Carmel, Ind., and San Diego, Calif.
Anuar Tager (58, developer) and Andrea Tager Ballesca (25, medical student)
Father and daughter from Houston, Texas
Cody Langlois (35, civil engineer) and Jaime Tribo (33, dietitian)
Siblings from Los Angeles, Calif. and Tinley Park, Ill.
Conner Wilson (27, media producer) and Garrett McGuire (27, engineer)
Childhood friends from Loomis, Calif. and Rocklin, Calif.
Dafina (52, bond analyst and DJ) and Saran (51, personal trainer/founder of Kids Leading Kids) Dunmore
Sisters/best friends from Chicago, Ill.
Daisha Wilks (28, videographer) and Dalton Hamby (27, videographer)
Dating from Flat Rock, Ala., and Jacksonville, Ala.
Doug (73, retired fire chief) and Dylan (19, college student) Matter
Grandfather and grandson from San Diego, Calif.
Erin Taylor (28, head of human resources) and Javi Vintimilla (30, pilot)
Married from Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Jody Rebhun (44, history teacher) and Jenn Naso (44, forensic scientist)
Best friends and moms from Branford, Conn., and Larchmont, N.Y.
Katie (26, esthetician) and Charlotte (20, esthetician) Schultz
Sisters from Murray, Ky.
Michelle (31, auto body shop owner and real estate agent) and Matthew (36, business operations director) Patterson
Married parents from Rutherford, N.J.
Zach (30, car salesman and co-founder of Pipley) and Nate (27, director of sales) Johnson
Brothers from Dallas, Texas
EWAN McGREGOR, CHRISTIAN CONVERY, MAISY STELLA, and ANNE HATHAWAY in ‘The End Of Oak Street’ (Photo Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures)
It Follows filmmaker David Robert Mitchell once wondered what might happen if dinosaurs suddenly ended up in a residential neighborhood, rummaging through trash cans and transforming peaceful streets into hunting grounds. With The End of Oak Street, Mitchell answers his own question, delivering a pulse-pounding summer sci-fi thriller where ravenous prehistoric beasts try to devour characters you actually care about.
It’s 1982. There are no cell phones. The internet isn’t yet a time-sucking monster. Back then, families went outside and actually connected with their neighbors.
On Oak Street, neighbors gather for a block party – munching on hot dogs and potato salad, competing in potato sack races, and enjoying each other’s company. What none of them realize is that their safe suburban haven is about to become a gruesome battleground. Who would ever expect dinosaurs to be a threat? It’s a decade before Jurassic Park made dino encounters seem remotely possible. No one on Oak Street expects to be running for their lives from massive, rampaging creatures.
Brilliant white lights, a raging storm, and a sudden loss of electricity and water signal that life on Oak Street is about to turn otherworldly. And there’s literally no escape from the neighborhood that seems to have been plucked straight out of ’82 and hurled into the age of dinosaurs.
At the heart of Mitchell’s throwback creature feature are the Platts, a family battling not just dinosaurs but also the fractures of a deteriorating marriage. Anne Hathaway and Ewan McGregor star as Denise and Greg, parents of teenagers, whose relationship has eroded under the weight of job worries and poor communication. Denise quietly nurtures her dream of being a writer, while Greg harbors secrets that, if confessed before the dinosaur invasion, might have ended their marriage for good. But once the dinosaurs attack, Denise goes full Killer Mama Bear, and Greg puts family above everything else.
Older sister Audrey (Maisy Stella) and her brother Brian (Christian Convery) feel the tension in their home but are powerless to fix their parents’ problems. As teenagers, they’re also dealing with their own issues. But when they’re thrust into a world where survival is the top priority, family drama is put on the back burner.
Hathaway, McGregor, Stella, and Convery are absolutely terrific as a family navigating a terrifying new world teeming with savage creatures. Their bond feels authentic, and Mitchell’s screenplay gives them dialogue that’s both familiar and lived-in. Every argument is believable, every reconciliation hard-won, making their determination to stick together to fight this new threat genuinely moving.
And you can’t talk about the Platts without mentioning the fifth, furry member of the family: Starbuck (impressively played by Buzz and Brisket). It’s the ‘80s, so we can forgive the Platts for keeping their dog outside – and that arrangement for the family pooch is what sparks much of the action.
Writer-director David Robert Mitchell didn’t spare the gory deaths by dinosaur, and the body count is pretty steep. The characters are well-armed, but the dinosaurs are basically killing machines who fixate on a specific target and then hunt it down to its death. Visual effects supervisor Jay Cooper and ILM did a phenomenal job of bringing the dinosaurs to life. Once the dinosaurs arrive on the scene, they’re omnipresent – either front and center or lurking menacingly in the background. The dinosaurs’ movements and interactions with the actors are seamless and convincing.
The End of Oak Street is a near-perfect summer popcorn film, taking audiences on a wild emotional ride, serving up laughs, screams, and even a little heartbreak. Dinosaur movie fans will love it, maybe even better than any film of the Jurassic Park franchise. And for horror fans, there are plenty of jump scares, more than most recent horror films have managed to pull off.
GRADE: B+
Rating: PG-13
Release Date: August 14, 2026
Runtime: 1 hour 39 minutes
Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures
Oscar winner Anne Hathaway seems determined not to let more than a few months go by without a film opening this year. Hathaway began her 2026 run with Mother Mary, followed quickly by The Devil Wears Prada 2 and The Odyssey. Next up, Hathaway has The End of Oak Street, opening on August 14, and Verity, which just unveiled an incredibly creepy official trailer.
Hathaway stars opposite Dakota Johnson and Josh Hartnett in the adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel. The cast also includes Ismael Cruz Cordova and Brady Wagner.
“This seductive, psychological thriller follows renowned author Verity Crawford (Hathaway) and Lowen Ashleigh (Johnson), a struggling writer who relocates to the remote Crawford estate to ghostwrite for Verity,” reads Amazon MGM Studios’ synopsis. “After Lowen uncovers what appears to be Verity’s chilling autobiographical notes, she wrestles with the disturbing and twisted confessions about Verity’s husband, Jeremy (Hartnett), and finds it hard to separate fiction from reality, manipulation from attraction, and opportunity from obsession.”
Nick Antosca adapted Hoover’s novel and Michael Showalter directs. Antosca, Showalter, Hoover, Hathaway, Alex Hedlund, Stacey Sher, and Jordana Mollick serve as producers. Kerry Orent, Dakota Johnson, and Lauren Levine are executive producers.
Poster for ‘Verity’ (Photo Credit: Amazon MGM Studios)
Netflix’s Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story teaser delivers the classic rhyme and makes sure viewers realize this take on Lizzie’s story isn’t going to scrimp on blood or gore. The fourth installment in the Monster anthology series drops its eight episodes on September 17, 2026.
Ella Beatty stars as the woman behind the axe, Vicky Krieps plays Bridget Sullivan, Charlie Hunnam is Andrew Borden, Rebecca Hall is Abby Borden, Billie Lourd is Emma Borden, and Jessica Barden is Nance O’Neil. Joey Pollari and Sarah Paulson also star.
Netflix offers this synopsis: “When the repressed daughter of a wealthy New England family and her rebellious maid find themselves trapped in a house built on humiliation and cruelty, they escape into a fantasy of sex, power, and revenge. The gruesome unsolved murders that follow don’t just shock the world—they give birth to an icon who refuses to live imprisoned in a cage, choosing instead to forge her own legend: shocking, monstrous, and gloriously free.”
Ian Brennan created the series and serves as writer and executive producer. Additional executive producers include Ryan Murphy, Max Winkler, Eric Kovtun, Scott Robertson, Louise Shore, Nissa Diederich, Todd Kubrak, Carl Franklin, and Tanase Popa. Winkler and Sarah Adina Smith are the directors.
“I am so excited for viewers to experience our exploration of Lizzie Borden’s story and the questions that her life animates to this day,” stated Beatty in an interview with Netflix’s Tudum. “It has been a dream come true to investigate this complicated person’s psychology and to examine an American crime that feels almost mythic in proportion. This season gives us our first female Monster and delves into female rage and repression, which I’ve found to feel strikingly relevant. I cannot wait to share it with the world.”
Jon Hamm stars in and executive produces MGM+’s American Hostage, a new anthology series premiering on September 20, 2026. The trailer shows Hamm playing a radio reporter who’s shocked to find himself in the middle of a hostage story.
Shawn Ryan and Eileen Myers co-created the series, which is based on the popular podcast. The eight-episode season also stars Emmy nominee Giovanni Ribisi, Kristoffer Polaha, Emmy Award nominee William Jackson Harper, Emmy nominee Mireille Enos, Jonathan Tucker, and Kat Cunning.
New episodes will stream on Sundays, with the finale set for November 1.
MGM+’s synopsis reads, “Based on the acclaimed first season of the scripted podcast of the same name, American Hostage is a psychological thriller set in the 1970s that tells the harrowing true story of Fred Heckman, a beloved Indianapolis radio reporter who is thrust into the middle of a life-or-death crisis when hostage-taker Tony Kiritsis demands to be interviewed on his popular radio news program.”
Additional executive producers include Shawn Ryan, Eileen Myers, Sharon Hoffman, Connie Tavel, Marney Hochman, Shawn Christensen, Gabriel Mason, and Jen Roskind. Adam Arkin and Nina Lopez Corrado direct and executive produce.
Fred Heckman’s story was also the subject of the 2025 feature film Dead Man’s Wire starring Bill Skarsgard, Dacre Montgomery, Al Pacino, and Colman Domingo.
Hugh Laurie as Neville and Amy Poehler as Elise in ‘Dig’ (Photo by: Colleen Hayes/Peacock)
Amy Poehler’s new comedy, Dig, just unveiled the first batch of photos. The series, announced in May 2025, has a November 23, 2026 premiere date on Peacock for the 10-episode first season.
The comedy’s based on Kate Myers’ bestseller Excavations and stars Amy Poehler, Hugh Laurie, Geraldine Viswanathan, Antonia Thomas, and Fina Strazza. Kayvan Novak, Jon Pointing, and Bonita Friedericy are season one guest stars. Poehler and Michael Schur co-wrote the pilot, and Schur and J.J. Philbin guide the series as showrunners.
Executive producers include Poehler, Schur, Philbin, Morgan Sackett, Ocean Avenue’s Sharon Jackson, Paper Kite’s Dean Holland, Kate Arend, and Jordan Grief, and 3 Arts’ Dave Becky and David Miner. Author Kate Myers is a co-executive producer.
The series marks the first time Parks & Recreation‘s Poehler and Schur have teamed up since 2015.
“Dig follows a team of dedicated archaeologists (and less-dedicated college students) who spend their summer working on a dig site in Greece,” reads Peacock’s synopsis. “Their discovery of a rare artifact sends them on the adventure of a lifetime.”
Geraldine Viswanathan as Dylan, Antonia Thomas as Clare, and Jon Pointing as Gary (Photo by: Colleen Hayes/Peacock)Amy Poehler as Elise (Photo by: Colleen Hayes/Peacock)Fina Strazza as Patty, Antonia Thomas as Clare, and Geraldine Viswanathan as Dylan (Photo by: Colleen Hayes/Peacock)
James Gray describes his new film Paper Tiger as a love letter to his mother and father. The teaser trailer introduces the key players, led by two-time Oscar nominee Adam Driver (Ferrari) and Miles Teller (Eternity) as brothers whose bond is tested when they get involved with the Russian mafiya. Two-time Oscar nominee Scarlett Johansson (Jurassic World Rebirth) stars as Miles Teller’s wife.
“In James Gray’s deeply felt and intense drama, two brothers become entangled in a scheme that turns out to be too good to be true,” reads Neon’s synopsis. “As they try to navigate their way through the dangerous world of the Russian mafiya, family bonds begin to fray with life-altering consequences.”
Paper Tiger currently sits at 84% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes following its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. Neon’s set a November 13, 2026 theatrical release date.
James Gray’s filmography includes Armageddon Time, Ad Astra, The Lost City of Z, Two Lovers, We Own the Night, and Little Odessa.
Miles Teller, Adam Driver, Roman Engel, Gavi Goudey, and Scarlett Johansson in ‘PAPER TIGER’ (Photo Courtesy of Neon)
Netflix’s hockey project has an official title and additional cast members. The streamer’s confirmed the series is now titled The Sticks, and Scott Bakula, Logan Marshall-Green, and Alex MacIsaac have joined in series regular roles.
Nick Naveda created the series and serves as executive producer of the hockey drama. “The Sticks is about a lot of things. Hockey, family, love, loss, class, and coming of all ages. But above all, it’s a story about community and the importance of taking care of one another,” said Naveda, describing the series to Tudum. “Seeing this terrific cast of actors bring their characters to life with such curiosity, empathy, and tenderness has been incredibly moving to watch, and I can’t wait for the world to meet the people of South Dorothy.”
Netflix is targeting a 2027 premiere. Bridget Bedard is the showrunner and executive produces along with Shawn Levy, Dan Levine, and Robert Atwood. Trey Edward Shults will direct the first two episodes and executive produce.
Netflix offers this synopsis: “After tragedy shatters a small Minnesota hockey town, a grieving wife steps behind the bench of the team her husband built, guiding a found family of wounded young athletes through a season of loss, love, and rivalry that will decide whether South Dorothy has anything left to believe in and who will lead it into its next chapter.”
Emma D’Arcy in ‘House of the Dragon’ season 3 finale (Photograph by Ollie Upton/HBO)
Grand Maester Orwyle (Kurt Egyiawan) rushes to the queen’s bedchamber and informs Queen Rhaenyra (Emma D’Arcy) that Aegon and Sunfyre have risen from the dead as HBO’s House of the Dragon season three’s finale begins. Rhaenyra hurries to Daemon’s chamber, angry that Aegon’s alive and the people will believe it’s a sign from their gods that he is the rightful king. They will turn against her and support Aegon.
Daemon (Matt Smith) believes this is her test and the moment she must rise. She needs to use their dragons to win the war.
(The following is a recap of season three, episode eight – the finale – and there are spoilers.)
Rhaenyra orders a watch set for Aegon’s dragon and wants Hugh to fly to Tumbleton. She orders Daemon to go to Tumbleton and root out every Hightower and Hightower supporter but begs him not to make a monster out of her. Once Ormund and Daeron are dead, she will kill Aegon herself.
Baela (Bethany Antonia) asks to be sent to Tumbleton to search for Lord Corlys, but Rhaenyra refuses. She believes it was his fault he was taken. Baela believes that Rhaenyra always treats her people like pawns, abandoning them when something doesn’t go her way. Rhaenyra calls her insolent and says it runs in her blood.
Alyn (Abubakar Salim) speaks to the Velaryon men and orders them to go to King’s Landing and serve Rhaenyra, but they insist they need to help Lord Corlys. Alyn reveals he’s the named successor and they will do as he says.
Lord Ormund Hightower’s army musters in Tumbleton as they prepare for a battle. Before the fight begins, Ormund (James Norton) knights Daeron (Benjamin Evan Ainsworth), dubbing him Ser Daeron the Daring. Outside, the people of Tumbleton hide as the army sets up its defenses inside the city’s walls.
Ulf (Tom Bennett) drinks with his friends and slanders Daemon Targaryen. Ulf insists Rhaenyra won’t let Daemon use his dragon in Tumbleton and that he’ll quake before the mighty and terrible Lord Ulf the White.
Rhaenyra’s told that Helaena isn’t eating and the maesters are worried. She orders her maid, Elinda, to summon Ser Alyn to accompany her to the Grand Sept to be blessed by the High Septon. She wants to make sure everyone knows she’s the queen.
Rhaenyra also has Mysaria (Sonoya Mizuno) packed up and sent to Pentos before dusk. Mysaria’s told she’ll receive enough gold so that she’ll be financially set, and Elinda admits she doesn’t understand why Rhaenyra’s doing this either.
Helaena (Phia Saban) is instructed to head back inside her quarters after her short time outside, and she sees the horse from her vision. Mysaria passes Helaena and tells her everything that’s going on and that Rhaenyra will never release her. Aegon’s returned and Helaena’s unborn baby will be kept hostage.
Alys (Gayle Rankin) saves Aemond (Ewan Mitchell) after Alicent poisoned him, but Aemond insists that he’s damned because he slayed his brother and she should leave him. Alys delivers a bombshell, revealing she was a noblewoman married to King Harren the Black. When Aegon the Conqueror and his dragon Balerion burned down Harrenhal, one of Harren’s sons was badly burned but survived. Alys was desperate to help her son and turned to ancient blood magic to try and save him. It didn’t work and the pact she made resulted in her being cursed to live as an immortal woods witch trapped in Harrenhal forever.
Rhaenyra asks Helaena to eat and assures her she won’t harm her. Helaena reminds her Viserys would not have wanted the dragons to fight. “All the things you care about are ugly,” says Helaena. Rhaenyra admits that if Helaena doesn’t eat, it will force her hand. Helaena continues to refuse and food is forced down her throat.
Alyn informs his brother, Addam (Clinton Liberty), that he’s staying in King’s Landing to guard the queen. Addam thinks that’s because the queen is raising him up in Lord Corlys’ place. Alyn doesn’t care that Rhaenyra has grounded Baela.
Daemon’s assembled a massive army outside of Tumbleton, and Ormund orders the town’s children to line the walls as human shields. Daeron tells Ser Gwayne (Freddie Fox) that Ormund has a secret plot, but neither knows what it is. Daeron wants to use his dragon to fight so the young boys don’t die.
Caraxes soars overhead and above Ormund as people scurry for cover inside the town.
Daeron and Gwayne approach Corlys with an offer to switch sides. He refuses.
Mysaria escapes her guards and flees into Flea Bottom, where the smallfolk seem confused.
Rhaenyra rides with Joffrey and tells him the story Viserys passed on to her.
Tommy Flanagan, Freddie Fox, Steve Toussaint, and Matt Smith in ‘House of the Dragon’ season 3 episode 8 (Photograph by Theo Whiteman/HBO)
Daemon leaves Caraxes and rides with his men, finding joy in learning of Criston Cole’s death. Ser Gwayne asks to treat with Daemon and admits Ormund is crazy. He offers them Corlys and pleads with Daemon at the behest of Daeron Targaryen to make a deal. Daemon doesn’t want to listen, as Gwayne offers to divide the kingdom and have Daeron serve from Oldtown. Ser Roderick Dustin (Tommy Flanagan) is practically foaming at the mouth with his desire to kill Gwayne during the negotiations, but Corlys points out this division isn’t unheard of.
If Daeron gets Oldtown, he’ll never be king but can be warden of the south. Everyone’s surprised when Daemon reveals Aegon and Sunfyre are alive, and Daemon accuses Corlys of being a traitor. Corlys is firm in his belief that dividing the kingdom is the only reasonable solution. Daemon grabs Gwayne by the throat and says the deal will never be struck. He takes Corlys as his prisoner.
Aemond wakes as Sunfyre and Aegon (Tom Glynn-Carney) fly into Harrenhal. He drops to his knees before his brother, stunned that Aegon’s alive. Aegon slaps him and calls him an imbecile. Aemond begs for forgiveness, and Aegon laughs in his face. He taunts Aemond with the possibility of Sunfyre slowly burning him alive. But Aegon’s surprised when Aemond doesn’t argue; it takes the enjoyment out of this moment.
Aemond confesses he is everything Aegon thinks he is and killing him would be justified. Aegon wants Aemond to come with him to Tumbleton, and Aemond admits he doesn’t have a clue what’s happening outside Harrenhal. Aegon says they’ll find Vhagar, go to Tumbleton, and then ultimately fly to King’s Landing under his banner. Once he’s back on the throne, he might forgive Aemond.
Lord Oscar Tully (Archie Barnes) gives Daemon and his men a rundown of entry points into Tumbleton. Daemon says he’ll clear the way with Caraxes, and Ulf will watch from above as they go through the town killing Hightowers and their supporters. “Rhaenyra’s banners will fly above the holdfast by nightfall,” says Daemon. He asks his men to take care not to kill the townspeople.
Daemon and the leaders learn about the boys lining the walls, which changes his plan. Daemon asks if Roderick’s still willing to die for their queen, instructing him to take the Winter Wolves over the walls and open the gate from inside. Daemon can’t use Caraxes because of the children.
Oscar Eskinazi and Emma D’Arcy in the ‘House of the Dragon’ season 3 finale (Photograph by Ollie Upton/HBO)
Meanwhile, Rhaenyra barges into the High Sept with Alyn and his men, ordering the High Septon to anoint her. He continues to refuse since Aegon is alive. Rhaenyra won’t back down and the High Septon declares the seven-faced god is on his side. Alyn is ordered to kill him, and he does.
Queen Rhaenyra and Joffrey step outside and she speaks to the smallfolk, reminding them that her father named her as his heir in a public ceremony. She explains her reign was prophesied before Viserys was born, describing the Song of Ice and Fire and the darkness that looms in the far north beyond the wall. “Only the might of dragons can stand against it,” says Rhaenyra. The Hightowers can’t fulfill the prophecy; only she can.
Ormund screams for Ulf, who’s still missing, as Daemon delivers a rousing speech to his army. He tells them to grant no mercy and give no quarter. He wants the worst of them, and they cheer.
Roderick also gets his men hyped up for battle, sounding the drums that everyone inside the walls can hear. He yells at the Hightower army to let their arrows loose and the war begins in earnest. Winter Wolves fall as the Hightower army showers the ground with arrows.
Ormund’s surprised to learn that Daeron and Gwayne attempted to make a deal with Daemon.
Oil is poured on the Winter Wolves who make it to the walls, and Daemon orders more of his army to advance to the south wall. Roderick and his men make it over the wall, but the Hightowers light the trenches outside on fire as Daemon’s informed that Ulf is missing.
Roderick and his Wolves engage the Hightowers as they make their way to the gate from inside. Hugh and his dragon fly over Daemon’s army and Daemon wants to learn why he’s there instead of guarding King’s Landing.
Roderick can’t get the gates open and Daemon calls for Caraxes. He orders Caraxes to light the wall and gate on fire just as the children are moved in front of it. Most get out of the way at the last minute and Caraxes busts through the gate. Daemon remounts his dragon and leads the army inside. He doesn’t make it far before his horse is slain and he’s forced to fight on foot.
Now that the gate’s open, Roderick sends his men to locate Daeron while he searches for Ormund. Ormund’s just found Ulf and slaps him around before demanding that he get on his dragon and do as he was told.
Daemon and the army make their way through the city, attacking the Hightowers. Hugh runs in with the army and screams his wife’s name. Daemon calls out for Ormund but is stopped in his pursuit by Ormund’s second in command, Ser Jon Roxton (Joplin Sibtain).
Daemon’s man is slain by the Hightowers as Ulf approaches his dragon.
Gwayne informs Daeron that the parlay is off, and Daeron wants to fly out on his dragon to help. Gwayne is adamant that he stays out of the battle, not wanting him to die for Ormund’s vanity. He refuses to allow Daeron past him.
Ulf circles above the Targaryen army and begins burning the men.
Gwayne and Daeron race to the top of the wall and watch as Ulf destroys the Targaryen army. It’s their only hope for surviving the day, and they realize this is the secret Ormund was keeping.
Daemon’s engaged in a vicious hand-to-hand fight with Roxton, and he’s on the losing end for a while.
Roderick pursues Ormund and takes him on, but Ormund manages to stab Roderik in the gut. Ormund slices off Roderick’s arm, but Roderick manages to stab Ormund in the rear and gain the upper hand. Ulf has his dragon aim its fire at Ormund, burning both Ormund and Roderick.
Ulf continues to turn his dragon on everyone, lighting up the city streets and killing whoever’s outside. Daemon’s buried under the rumble but emerges as the townsfolk carry their dead through the streets. Innocent men, women, and children were murdered by Ulf and the clashing armies during the battle for Tumbleton.
Daemon continues to fight until Corlys grabs him and says the town is lost. The battle is over and they need to leave.
Tumbleton’s streets are full of dead and dying soldiers. Gwayne survived the fight and crawls around, searching for Daeron.
Hugh finds Kat inside her home, but she’s been killed.
Rhaenyra’s maid Elinda calls out as Rhaenyra reenters the Red Keep. Helaena has leaped to her death.
Alicent (Olivia Cooke) walks through the woods and butterflies surround her.
Rhaenyra picks up Helaena’s tapestry, which includes a scene of her falling to her death. There’s also a scene of Rhaenyra on the throne surrounded by flames. There appears to be blood running down her face and body. Fire and dragons surround the Iron Throne. Rhaenyra realizes Helaena lied and did have a vision of her on the throne.
Season three ends with Rhaenyra closing the window.
