Men's Health August 10, 2026 0 Comments

How Tommy Flanagan’s Ser Roderick Dustin Just Delivered House of the Dragon’s Most Shocking Kill — And Why It Changes Everything

So, here we are again—diving headfirst into the fiery chaos of House of the Dragon’s season 3 finale, “The Treasons at Tumbleton.” Now, I don’t know about you, but when a TV show throws a scene at me that’s so audacious I have to rewind it multiple times just to take it all in—that’s when you know it’s special. And this episode? It’s crammed with those unforgettable moments—from Rhaenyra’s dark spiral into ruthlessness to Aegon’s gripping rise from the ashes. But nothing quite hits like the spectacle of Ormund Hightower’s exit, delivered with a wild mix of fury, humor, and downright jaw-dropping brutality. Seriously, who knew a dragon-riding, drunken chaos agent and a grizzled warrior could team up for such an epic send-off? If you ever wondered how you combine fantasy drama with a fiery punch of “did that just happen?”, this finale has got you covered. Ready to unpack the craziest moments and see how the show’s twists stack up against the books? Let’s break it down. LEARN MORE

6 min read

The following story contains spoilers for House of the Dragon’s season 3 finale, “The Treasons at Tumbleton.”

THERE’S A LOT of stuff from House of the Dragon’s jam-packed season 3 finale, “The Treasons at Tumbleton,” that could stick with someone. There’s Rhaenyra’s (Emma D’Arcy) continued descent into cruelty, turning against a number of people who are ostensibly her allies. There’s Tom Glynn-Carney’s consistently fantastic performance as Aegon, the layered and increasingly charismatic scarred king rising from what seemed like rock bottom. Hell, there was even a moment where Alys Rivers (Gayle Rankin) revealed that she’s actually immortal and has been alive for hundreds of years! Look, folks, when House of the Dragon is cooking, it’s really cooking.

But there’s one moment in the House of the Dragon season 3 finale that has stuck with me more than any other, one I’ve watched multiple times due to the sheer audacity of its maximalism. And that scene is the one depicting the death of season 3’s primary antagonist, Ormund Hightower (James Norton), at the hands of both Ser Roderick Dustin (Tommy Flanagan) and everyone’s favorite drunk, dangerous dragon rider, Ulf White (Tom Bennett). And that moment is key to what House of the Dragon, and, for the most part, the entire Game of Thrones franchise does best: create scenes that just stick with you, whether it’s by way of sheer audacity or in the form of a moment that catches you completely off guard.

As the title hints, the majority of “The Treasons at Tumbleton” is built around a major battle at Tumbleton, as Daemon Targaryen’s (Matt Smith) forces finally come head-to-head with Ormund’s army. And that’s not even considering the fact that Ulf has decided to go full rogue, scorching everyone who he feels has wronged him.

But let’s first break down that scene that we just can’t get over. All season long, Ser Roderick Dustin—the leader of the Winter Wolves, sent to fight alongside Daemon by Lord Cregan Stark, also known as Roddy the Ruin—has been loud and proud about his hatred for his opponent, and his willingness to die on behalf of Queen Rhaenyra. In this ultimate moment, he set his sights on the prime target: Ormund Hightower.

HBO

And Roddy gets his chance. When his army breaches the walls of Tumbleton, he works his way through the city, declaring loudly that he’s targeting Ormund. And, finally, he finds him retreating. Roderick chases him down, and the two have it out for a few brief moments in a skirmish that results in Ormund’s face and teeth getting smashed in, and one of Roderick’s arms winding up severed and on the ground.

But it’s the final moments that really stick the landing. In their melee, Roderick takes his sword and shoves it right up an orifice of Ormund’s body where the sun doesn’t shine—and where nothing in the Thrones franchise has ever depicted a sword going before. “That’s a proper fucking,” Roderick says into Ormund’s ear. “… From the north.”

Not long after, it becomes clear to Ormund that things are about to get much, much worse, as Ulf is flying in on the back of his dragon, Silverwing. Ulf, who has proven to mostly be the loudmouthed coward that everyone could have predicted he was, was kind of half-assedly attempting to turn on Daemon and join Ormund (in order to take over Driftmark), but then got too drunk and didn’t join the battle at all, hiding out in the bathroom instead. Ormund found out and humiliated him, telling him to get on his dragon and start spreading fire.

Ulf did… and didn’t forget. Not long after Ormund got his iron enema from Ser Roderick, he saw Ulf and Silverwing coming right for him. Both men knew exactly what was happening, as Ormund shouted in fear and Roderick cheered like an absolute maniac. It’s been kind of a quiet season of Roderick Dustin, and Tommy Flanagan—a recognizable character actor for decades—hasn’t had a ton to do. But his moment of facing off with Ormund and then cheering with no reserve as a dragon flew toward him makes the entire endeavor worth it. “Fuck you, too,” Ulf says, just before blasting them with flames, letting Ormund know that his lack of respect is what turned him into a well-done barbecue entrée.

It’s one of the most confident death scenes in a franchise that used to be famous for them. Remember how things went for Oberyn Martell (Pedro Pascal) back in Game of Thrones? Or Joffrey? Or Ramsay Bolton? Ormund’s dramatic demise is right up there with those.

Sometimes, you can tell that a television moment is going to stick with you for a long time, and, with Ormund’s demise, House of the Dragon has one of its very finest.

Watch House of the Dragon Here

Were Ser Roderick Dustin and Ormund Hightower’s deaths in House of the Dragon the same as in the Fire & Blood book?

roderick dustin tommy flanagan house of the dragon

HBO

HBO

Yes and no. In Fire & Blood, Roderick does lose his arm—although at the shoulder and not the elbow, and to Ormund’s cousin Ser Bryndon Hightower rather than Ormund himself. Fire & Blood also depicts him as ultimately responsible for slaying both of the aforementioned Hightower men.

The death scene did, however, evolve in the show as well. In an interview with Men’s Health, James Norton, who plays Ormund, credited the show’s stunt coordinator Rowley Irlam with the idea for the dagger into the behind. “At one point early on in those rehearsals with Rowley, I remember coming in and he was grinning like a Cheshire cat. ‘We’ve had an idea! What we want to do is thrust the dagger up your ass.’ At one point it was like 20 thrusts!” Norton said. “Then we were like, Wait, that’s too much. Then there were lots of conversations about the angle, will it penetrate, the length of the dagger…”

What House of the Dragon added to the equation, then, is Ulf’s role in things, which we’re inclined to say helped to ramp the drama of the whole situation up a few dozen notches. Sure, it’s fun to see a “good guy” take out a “bad guy,” but it’s even more fun to see both of them taken out by a huge fireball from a dragon ridden by a drunk guy on a revenge tour.

Since Fire & Blood is told through unreliable narrators and Westeros historians, House of the Dragon has the leeway to make these kinds of changes and adjustments and still be true to the original text; this was most notably in play for Laenor’s “death” back in season 1. It’s a very cool feature of the show that works completely in conjunction with the book.

Tommy Flanagan plays Ser Roderick Dustin

Euan Cherry/BAFTA//Getty Images

If Ser Roderick Dustin looked familiar during his run on House of the Dragon, it’s because you’ve almost certainly seen actor Tommy Flanagan in one thing or another at some point in the last 30 years. Many likely recognize Flanagan’s face or the distinct scarring on his cheeks, which he got from a knife attack when he was working as a DJ. It turns out the reason Flanagan is so good at playing a badass on screen is because he really is a badass. Talk about a guy who walks the walk!

Norton told MH about how cool Flanagan is. “He’s a cool motherfucker,” he said of his co-star. “He turns up every day in his full costume, armor, everything else—and he wears these gangster sunglasses and he just struts. He’s got this amazing aura.”

You most likely recognize the Scottish actor, 61, for his roles in movies like Braveheart and Gladiator, and shows like Sons of Anarchy. He’s truly one of the industry’s go-tos for a tough guy, and House of the Dragon played that up to perfection.

For a fun deeper cut from Flanagan’s catalog, you can consider checking out 2017’s The Ballad of Lefty Brown. The A24-produced Western film flew under the radar upon release, but Flanagan plays a key role in a story that follows a Montana frontiersman played by Bill Pullman heading out on a revenge tour after his close friend is murdered by outlaws. It’s worth your time.

Watch The Ballad of Lefty Brown Here

Evan is the culture editor for Men’s Health, with bylines in The New York Times, MTV News, Brooklyn Magazine, and VICE. He loves weird movies, watches too much TV, and listens to music more often than he doesn’t.