“Starting to wonder if they used AI”: Netizens frustrated over the Night King’s redesigned visuals in House of the Dragons leaks

House of the Dragon season two finale is set to release on August 4. However, some scenes of the much-awaited episode were recently leaked on TikTok first, and later on X, YouTube, and Reddit. In one of the leaks, fans saw Daemon putting his hand on the weirwood tree's face after which he got a vision of the Blood Raven and the Three-Eyed Raven.

In one of his visions, Daemon also saw a White Walker who was surrounded by the Army of the Dead. These visions convinced Daemon that 'winter is coming.' This made him aware about the long night and The Song of Ice and Fire.

Fans on X, who saw the House of the Dragon finale leaks, were disappointed with the visual of the White Walker that was shown in Daemon's visions.

A fan commented about the same and wrote on X,

"It's so bad I'm starting to wonder if they used AI."

Several other fans echoed the sentiment on X, saying,

"and i don't want to hear any excuse or anything bc the night king was pretty much just makeup omg where did the budget go on hotd?? at some point you won't be able to wave covid or the strike as excuses anymore, it's ridiculous. that's not prestige tv for sure."

Another netizen commented,

"Did HBO order that second Night King from Temu?."

Although Daemon's vision showed a White Walker, several fans on X speculated how it could be the Night King as we saw in Game of Thrones. Fans on X compared visuals of the Night King with the white figure they saw in Daemon's dream.

Several other House of the Dragon and Game of Thrones fans debated on X about how in the vision, Daemon saw a White Walker general and not the Night King himself. One user wrote,

"That’s one of the generals, it’s not the night king himself."

Another fan commented,

"Baby that’s not supposed to be the night king lol. That’s a white walker general."

"I THOUGHT IT WASNT THE KING?? LIKE HIS GENERAL OR SMTH." A user wrote.

Meanwhile, some fans had their share of fun by commenting their observations on the same thread. One user commented,

"He shaved his hair to hide the fact he is secretly a Targaryen (it's Daemon all along)."

"He's had a very bad summer." Another user wrote.

Some fans also argued that Daemon's dream was blurry, and therefore the White Walker image in the leaks was not clear. A fan reflected,

"it was a vision of Daemon I believe. Thats why it was a bit blurry."

Another netizen commented,

"Im guessing since its a Vision/Dream, sometimes things arnt as clear when you dream."

"I think because it’s in a dream so they deliberately make it look like that." A fan commented.

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What visions did Daemon have in House of the Dragon season 2?

In episode three of House of the Dragon, Daemon arrived at Harrenhall and met Alys Rivers after which he had a series of visions. In one of his visions, he saw a young Rhaenyra sitting and sewing on the head of Jaehaerys Targaryen who was killed by Blood and Cheese due to Daemon's orders.

In another vision, Daemon confronted Rhaenyra and cut off her head with his sword. However, even after that, the severed head talked to Daemon, blaming him.

Viewers speculated that his visions could be due to the cursed walls of Harrenhall, Daemon’s suppressed guilt, desires, and emotions, or even because of Alys Rivers, the witch.

In House of the Dragon season 2 episode five, Daemon was also seen having a disturbing hallucination where he was in bed with his mom Alyssa Targaryen who called him her favorite child and convinced him that he was meant to wear the crown; something that could be possible only if he was born first.

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House of the Dragon season 2 is now streaming on Max.