‘Game Of Thrones’: Who Are The Contenders For The ‘Three-Headed Dragon’ Prophecy

With a new theory coming to light recently in relation to the three-headed dragon prophecy in Game of Thrones, let’s have a closer look at the theory to discover just which three characters could fulfill the prophecy.

WARNING: This article contains spoilers relating to both the book series by George R.R. Martin and the television series, Game of Thrones. If you have not watched all episodes available for Game of Thrones or do not want book spoilers, please proceed with caution.

So what is the prophecy exactly? According to Westeros.org, the prophecy is thus:

“‘He is the prince that was promised, and his is the song of ice and fire.’ He appears to look at Dany then, as if seeing her, and then he adds that ‘There must be one more,’ and ‘The dragon has three heads.'”

This Game of Thrones prophecy is usually used in conjunction with the Targaryens and it is likely — though not set in stone — that the three heads of the dragon comprise of three separate Targaryens. For the sake of this article, this is the stance that will be taken from this point forward. Quite often these Targaryens are referred to as three riders atop a dragon. This is not the first time the prophecy occurred, with both Maester Aemon suggesting to Samwell Tarly that the prophecy is 1,000 years old and Melisandre suggesting the prophecy was 5,000 years old. Over time many Targaryens have been suggested as being part of the three-headed dragon, but it is now likely Daenerys is the first head of the dragon — even though the Game of Thrones prophecy indicates a prince rather than a princess. As Maester Aemon also pointed out, the Valyrians term used that had been translated to mean “prince” was actually gender fluid, so it could just as likely mean princess.

So, if Daenerys is the first head of the dragon, who are the other two?

Until the season 5 finale, many Game of Thrones fans had drawn the conclusion that Jon Snow (played by Kit Harrington) was the second head of the dragon, citing the ever popular R+L=J theory. Now, with Jon Snow laying dead in the snow and all the important people involved with Game of Thrones claiming Jon is really dead, it is likely his position as one of the three heads has been given up. Although, many fans hold to the fact that there are still many factors involved that could bring Jon Snow back from the dead and still uphold his end of the prophecy. These include the fact Melisandre arrived on the scene just in time to resurrect Jon and the fact that, if he is a true Targaryen, he could rise from the flames of his funeral pyre to claim his destiny.

If this is the case, and Jon Snow is the second head of the dragon, who else is left in Game of Thrones that could claim the Targaryen name? The latest theory to come out of Reddit is that Meera Reed, the character who led Bran Stark to the Three-Eyed Raven, is a Targaryen. While this doesn’t make a lot of sense, and io9 suggests the theory is too closely related to the Luke Skywalker story line in Star Wars, there is actually some evidence to back this theory up. As Huffington Post points out, Meera’s “father,” Howland Reed, was at the same battle at the Tower of Joy as Ned Stark was when it is suggested he claims the bastard child, Jon Snow. If the R+L=J theory is correct and Lyanna did give birth to a Targaryen child, could she have actually given birth to twin Targaryens? If twins were born and Lyanna made Ned swear to secrecy, could it just as likely be that she also made Howland swear Meera was his to keep another Targaryen safe and hidden? If so, Meera could actually make up the third head of the dragon in the Game of Thrones prophecy.

But if Jon is really dead, who else could fill the prophecy? According to another theory, Jaime and Cersei Lannister might actually be secret Targaryens and could, therefore, fill the Game of Thrones prophecy. The Targaryens were known for marrying siblings in order to get a pure bloodline, something Jaime and Cersei also seem fond of. As a Quora user noted, there might be some evidence to suggest Jaime and Cersei might not be Lannisters at all. At the wedding of their parents, Tywin and Joanna, it appears there may have been the suggestion that Prince Aerys was besotted with Joanna and may, or may not have, had sex with her on her wedding night. If he did have his way with Joanna, then there is the potential for Jaime and Cersei to be Targaryens instead of Lannisters.

Unfortunately though, until either George R.R. Martin finishes his book series, or HBO concludes Game of Thrones, no one will truly know who makes up the three heads of the dragon — if indeed the prophecy turns out to even be true. After all, even Daenerys herself states that prophecies “were made of words, and words were wind.”

What do you think? Is this Game of Thrones prophecy true? If so, who do you think will make up the three heads of the dragon? Let us know by commenting below!

[Image credit: HBO Inc. via Fanpop]