Here's Why House Of The Dragon's Otto Hightower May Be Even More Dangerous After Episode 4

This major player in HBO's new hit series "House of the Dragon" may have just gotten even more dangerous.

Throughout the first four episodes of "House of the Dragon," which serves as both a spin-off and a prequel for HBO's fallen juggernaut "Game of Thrones," plenty of characters are vying for the Iron Throne, including Otto Hightower (played by Rhys Ifans). As Hand of the King to Viserys I (Paddy Considine) as well as two other kings before him, Otto knows what it's like to be in close proximity to ultimate power. Much like Tywin Lannister — a fan-favorite character on "Game of Thrones" played by Charles Dance — Otto is a quiet yet skilled schemer, frequently holding his tongue until the right moment where he can play his cards accordingly. By Episode 4, this tactic has succeeded nicely for him, as his daughter Alicent Hightower (played in this timeline by Emily Carey) is now married to Viserys, producing two children — one of which is a boy. 

However, in Episode 4, Otto dons some wax wings and decides to go hang out by the sun... and though he's in hot water with Viserys, it could strengthen his plan anyway. Here's why Viserys and his allies should watch out for Otto Hightower after Episode 4 of "House of the Dragon."

In "King of the Narrow Sea," Otto doesn't do a whole lot throughout the episode, but he does make a crucial move just before it draws to a close. After Princess Rhaenyra (played in this timeline by Milly Alcock) and Prince Daemon Targaryen (Matt Smith) share a night in the brothels of King's Landing, a currently unidentified confidante referred to as the "White Worm" tells Otto that the uncle and niece (ew) were spotted in flagrante (ew again), Otto takes this information to Viserys, and is immediately shut down.

Though Viserys later makes it clear to Rhaenyra that he does believe Otto, he rebuffs Otto in the moment, telling him this information is nothing more than a transparent ploy to get Alicent's son Aegon II onto the throne instead of Rhaenyra. Otto is then immediately removed as Hand of the King, but he still has plenty of cards up his sleeve. His daughter Alicent is still the beloved second queen to Viserys, and at the rate she's going, she might end up producing another heir before long, and Aegon II is certainly a viable candidate for King. Otto may well have a stronger influence the further he gets from the throne, working from the shadows to achieve his goals. Beyond that, the show has frequently alluded to the fact that he has collaborators lurking in Oldtown; maybe we'll finally get to see what alliances he's formed there.

Throughout the series thus far, Otto has shown himself to be shrewd to, perhaps, a fault; in the aftermath of Viserys' wife's death, he wastes little to no time in sending Alicent to "comfort" the king, resulting in a betrothal between the teenage girl and much older, physically ailing king before too long. Beyond that, he even suggests to Viserys that Rhaenyra — for whom Viserys is desperately trying to find a suitable husband — marry her younger half-brother Aegon II, who's, uh, two years old. Viserys might fall for Alicent's nightly visits, but even he's disgusted by Otto's proposition for Rhaenyra and Aegon.

All in all, Otto's giving a little bit of Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish (Aidan Gillen), and he's giving a little bit of Tywin Lannister (Charles Dance), and he's definitely grossing audiences out. What he does next remains to be seen, but now that he's no longer Hand, he may have to return to Oldtown to rally the troops he apparently has there, meaning we may get to see a brand new location for "House of the Dragon" (Oldtown did briefly appear in "Game of Thrones") before long.

To see what Otto Hightower gets up to as the series goes on, you can catch "House of the Dragon" every Sunday at 9 PM on both HBO and HBO Max.