It turns out that Jimmy Fallon has a talent for learning languages from Westeros.
Matt Smith, star of House of the Dragon, visited The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on September 16, 2022, to discuss the first season of the Game of Thrones prequel series. During the show, Smith gave Fallon a lesson in High Valyrian, the fictional language he speaks on the HBO fantasy series.
Impressed by Smith’s performance in an epic battle scene without any dialogue, Fallon asked him about speaking High Valyrian. Smith then recited a few lines in Valyrian, wowing both Fallon and the audience.
“Now play that backwards and it says ‘Paul is dead,'” Fallon joked, referencing the Beatles conspiracy theory.
Explaining that the lines actually meant “Jimmy, you’ve got glorious eyes,” Smith proceeded to teach Fallon some High Valyrian, which Fallon picked up quite well.
“That was a good start,” remarked Smith. He continued to speak a few more lines, with Fallon repeating them back and eventually asking Smith, “What did I just say?”
“One day, this chair will be mine,” Smith revealed, referring to the Iron Throne, but reassuring Fallon that he has no intention of taking over his late-night hosting role.
“Although I’d butcher your job, to be honest,” Smith, who is also known for playing the eleventh Doctor Who, admitted. “I couldn’t do it. I’d be terrible.”
“You could do anything you want, you have your own dragon!” Fallon exclaimed.
Given Fallon’s proficiency in High Valyrian, perhaps he could make a cameo in House of the Dragon Season 3?
When Smith returned to The Tonight Show on June 4, 2024, Fallon asked him to settle an online debate about who would win in a fight between Daemon Targaryen and Jon Snow (Kit Harington).
“Come on, man. Jimmy… Mate, I’ve got a dragon. I’ve got a dragon,” Smith joked.
“Listen, I have a lot of respect for Jon Snow. Jon Snow is a bad boy, don’t get me wrong,” Smith added. “Kit Harington? Lovely man, lovely guy. I have a lot of respect. But don’t get it twisted: I’ve got a dragon.”
Hard to argue with!
