Devoted Fans Waited for Violet Eyes — But Never Got Them: Why Daenerys and Rhaenyra Were Stripped of the Targaryens’ Defining Trait

If you’ve read A Song of Ice and Fire, you’ll likely remember: Targaryens are described not only as having silver-blond hair, but also unusually colored eyes — from lilac to deep violet. That’s how Daenerys is portrayed, and so too should be Jon Snow, if we accept his parentage. Rhaenyra and Daemon in House of the Dragon all the more so. But in the HBO series, we never saw it. Why? It wasn’t about creative freedom — it came down to budget and contact lenses.

Lenses interfere with acting

Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D. B. Weiss once admitted: they initially tried violet lenses on Emilia Clarke, but quickly abandoned the idea. The lenses made it hard for her to convey emotion, irritated her eyes, and made her gaze feel “flat.” And eyes, after all, are the actor’s most powerful tool.

CGI is expensive — and nearly unnoticeable

Technically, the violet eyes could’ve been added digitally, just like the dragons. But according to the showrunners, the effect wouldn’t have been noticeable enough to justify the effort — or the expense. They decided platinum hair would be symbolic enough for the audience to recognize a Targaryen.

House of the Dragon didn’t want to break the illusion

By the time the prequel arrived, the choice had already been made. Suddenly adding lilac eyes would have looked strange next to Game of Thrones — especially for viewers who hadn’t read the books. So even Rhaenyra and Daemon, whose looks in the novels are nearly the embodiment of ancient Valyrian blood, kept their ordinary eyes.

Book fans may grumble, but oddly enough, the decision makes sense: in terms of screen presence and emotional resonance, Clarke’s or Smith’s eyes in motion matter more than exact color matching. The creators chose not literal accuracy, but something deeper — to make these characters memorable not for the color of their eyes, but for what they held behind them.