“Game of Thrones” has always been full of twists and turns, but perhaps the biggest is that Jon Snow (Kit Harington) is actually a Targaryen named Aegon. The son of Rhaegar and Lyanna Stark, some fans wondered if he would end up taking the throne from Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) in later seasons. Despite his right to be king, Jon shows no interest in the crown and constantly swears fealty to Dany.
However, a fan theory suggests that even if Jon wanted the Iron Throne, his dark hair would symbolize his inevitable downfall as a royal figure. Redditors u/iwprugby and u/FrOski both believe this to be true. “Jon, following the path of all dark haired Targaryens, will never ascend to the throne,” the latter said, while u/iwprugby shared the fates of Targaryens — all in direct succession for the Iron Throne — who did not have the “Valyrian” look. Because of this, it doesn’t seem possible for Jon, who has the dark features of the Starks, to ever become king, and thus, he will always be a victim, whether he likes it or not, to the curse that Targaryens like him possess.
Other fans agree with this theory
Several fans agreed with the theory and praised the interesting take on the character. Others pointed out that with the name “Aegon,” the throne is the least of Jon worries. “Considering how he is both a dark-haired Targaryen and an Aegon (who tend to suffer tragic fates, Aegon I aside) I would say he got off pretty lightly,” u/4DeCopas said. However, this can also be a foreshadowing to Jon’s future, especially with a spin-off that some believe HBO needs to leave behind. Though he has been able to avoid the tragedy of the Aegons up until now — u/4DeCopas comments can make one wonder if a devastating ending is in Jon’s future.
Furthermore, events in the series add credibility to this “curse” theory. Another reddit user reminded everyone that things ended badly for Robert Baratheon (Mark Addy), “who had dark hair, sat on the throne, and had some dragonblood in him.”
Though Robert wasn’t in the line of succession, this comment is incredibly interesting. In a world where prophecies are constantly being thrown around, it’s not too outrageous to believe Robert’s minor Targaryen heritage hindered him. He beat the odds for a while. He takes the throne while the other dark-haired Targaryens do not — but, in the end, he dies fighting a pig. No matter what kind of Targaryen a character is, if they have dark hair, the Iron Throne seemingly turns against them.
