Spoiler alert: this is the year of major characters dying on HBO drama series. And if you haven’t heard of these yet, well, the statute of limitations has expired. Jennifer Coolidge bit the dust on the second season of “The White Lotus.” Brian Cox said goodbye on the final episodes of “Succession” and, in no surprise, Paddy Considine‘s reign as King Viserys Targaryen lasted just one season on the breakout hit, “House of the Dragon.”
READ MORE: “House Of The Dragon”: HBO orders shortened Season 2 but is already close to green lighting Season 3
The acclaimed British actor appeared in just eight of the 10 episodes, but was a focal point as he tried to fight off lords and relatives who disagreed with his decision to annoit his daughter, Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy and Milly Alcock), as the heir to the Iron Throne and, therefore, ruler of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros. The program featured a number of time jumps (one reason why D’Arcy and Alcock play the same role) and saw Viserys get increasingly sick at the series progressed.
At one point in episode eight, Viserys makes his way to the throne room. He’s frail, walking with a cane and can barely keep his head up. As he makes his way to the Iron Throne, his crown falls off his head. His power-hungry younger brother Daemon (Matt Smith), picks it up, helps him to the throne and puts the crown on his head. It’s a poignant moment considering the rivalry between the two. But it wasn’t in the script. In fact, in a new interview with The Playlist, Considine reveals it was an accident.
“I was climbing the stairs and it fell off my head and crashed to the floor. And Matt picked it up and carried me and we went on the throne,” Considine reveals. “And then, there was just this moment where I looked at Matt and he looked at me. And then, I bowed my head and he put the crown on my head. It says everything about their relationship, it says everything. But it was an accident.”
Considine, who has directed films including the well received 2011 drama, “Tyrannosaur,” thought to himself, “‘That’s the moment. And if we’re not careful, we’re going to lose that.’ And I said to [episode director Geeta Patel], ‘We’ve got to keep that in. We’ve got to keep that moment in.’ So many times on so many other jobs, that would’ve been a blooper, ‘His crown fell off, isn’t that funny?’ And I went, ‘This isn’t a blooper, this is gold.’ And so, I just made sure that every time I climbed the steps the crown fell off so they had to keep it in. So, that was my only thing, was to make sure, as I’m climbing, that it falls. So, there was no way that they couldn’t not use it. I went, ‘I’m just going to make sure that that happens every time.’ And it became a beautiful moment. And credit to Geeta for keeping that in it.”
Over the course of our conversation last week, Considine reflects on the unconventional shooting structure for “Dragon,” how the rumor he turned down the chance to be in the original “Game of Thrones” isn’t quite true, on whether Viserys is a “woke” King and much, much more.
____
The Playlist: I know it’s been many months since the show ended, but now that you have time to reflect back on your experience with it, what are the thoughts that come to mind? What was it like?
Paddy Considine: What was it like? It was a tough shoot at times if I’m honest. We were the first big production to go after the COVID thing, just coming out of those lockdowns. And all those protocols were in place, all the testing and the masks and things like that. You’re working with people and you don’t really know what they look like. So it was strange, added another layer to it. And it was quite disruptive schedule-wise. If somebody went down with it, the schedule would have to change. It was a tough experience, but it was a really rewarding one. I had a really great time making it. To me, I just thought it was a really great part.
I’ve read that you had been offered or asked to participate in the original “Game of Thrones” series and you had said no because you didn’t like fantasy material. If that is true, what made you decide to come on board for this?
That’s not true. Well, it is true. But what isn’t true is that I was offered it. I was never offered the original series. I was just sent the first episode, I think, of the first one. And I just couldn’t get my head around it. I don’t have an aversion to fantasy. I really loved Peter Jackson’s “Lord of the Rings” trilogy. And I went to watch that with trepidation with my mate who’d read all the books. I thought that I was going to go and have a good kip for an hour, but I didn’t. I was blown away by it. And then, I read “The Lord of the Rings.” So, there wasn’t this aversion, it just wasn’t an awful lot of interest in it. And I’d never got around to watching the original series, but I was sent the original script and it was one of those general things that go in. If someone sends me a script with a part in mind for me, then I’m pretty good at reading it. I’ll read it with that in mind. But it was more or less, “Have a read, see what you think, see which character takes your interest.” And I tried to read this script and I couldn’t really figure out who was who, what was going on. And then, my agents explained, “It’s about this throne and they’re fighting over it in these kingdoms and dragons.” And I just went, “I don’t know. I don’t think that’s for me.” But it wasn’t meant to be because if I had done it, I could’ve been in “Game of Thrones” and I could’ve been carrying a spear around and saying hardly anything. But years later, I get “House of the Dragon” and I get to play King Viserys. So, it all worked out in the end anyway.
What made you say yes this time around?
Well, I was about three seasons into watching “Game of Thrones” because we started in the lockdown. And we were really enjoying it by that point. So we were quite hooked on it, to be honest. So, there’s this weird synchronicity that happened that my agent rang, and he said, “You’re a fan of Game of Thrones?” I said, “Well, that’s weird.” I said, “We’re watching it now and we’re really enjoying it.” I had a box set for years, I’ve never taken it out [of the packaging] because I do stuff like that, I go on these big shopping sprees and don’t watch the DVD. But we really got into it and he says, “Well, they’re making a prequel to it and they want you to be the king.” Look, I was interested, I was really enjoying the show. And I spoke to [executive producers] Miguel [Sapochnik] and Ryan [Condal] and they explained the character. But then, I don’t really think anything because I’m one of these actors that people offer stuff and say they really want to work with me and how excited they are. And then, I get the script and I’m in about three or four scenes. That happens to me a lot. And I kind of go, “Well, that’s great. I’m glad you’re a fan and you really like me, but can you give me something really decent to get my teeth into?” And I was half expecting that, really. And I just thought, “O.K. It’s this boring king. Let’s see what gives.” But it was a massive journey that he went on in the first episode alone. And I had the first three eps and thought they were really good. And the biggest thing for me was I saw a character there, I thought there was a really great character there. It was a great opportunity for me. I’ve been waiting for years for something like this to come along, really.
When Miguel and Ryan spoke to you for the first time, did they tell you it was a one-season commitment?
Yeah. And the thing that made me happy about that, was that there was always this thing around “Game of Thrones” where you never knew who was going to go next. You didn’t know who was going to bite the dust, right? So, I very much read it and I knew that he wasn’t going to make it past the first season. But when I eventually read all the scripts and stories, the entire story, I thought it was such a great arc. And I thought, “This is perfect.” But there was this sense when Sean Bean played Ned’s Stark, that Ned’s shadow hung over that series for a very, very long time. And I felt that that might be the same with Viserys in some way. People joke that he’s the Ned Stark of season one, but I felt it was such a fantastic arc, and he was such a beautiful, tragic character, and such a different character for that world, really. I was more excited than anything else. I felt like his story was told. People have spoken about it moving along too quickly, and it could have been spread out a little bit. But I think it would’ve got really boring for me. And I don’t think Viserys would’ve made the impact he did if it was still drawing the story out. So, there was a chance to just go in, smash it and leave. And I feel that that’s kind of what I did. I felt a little bit of envy when season two started up. There was a bit of like, “I’m not a part of it anymore.” But my job was done. I was just there to do my job and that’s what I did.
Hey, there are always flashback opportunities. I almost thought, watching it again, that Viserys is almost very modern for this “time period.” This might be the totally wrong word to use, but did you see him as more of a progressive king in a way? Is he someone who’s trying to make things different? Or is he just trying to get through his reign?
No, I don’t think he’s progressive. He’s not some kind of woke king or progressive king. I think he’s just a good person. That’s all I played, he was a good person. And that was the real challenge, was to take someone that wasn’t villainous and reactive. To take somebody that did have standards and to make that person interesting. Because it could easily be a very, very boring character. And even reading it, he stood out to me because he wasn’t somebody that was corrupted by power. He wasn’t somebody seduced by privilege or abused any kind of privilege. He was just a decent person that was carrying on the tradition that the king before him, Jaehaerys had done before him. He’d been a peaceful king in a peaceful time. And I think he felt that it was his duty to continue that and to be a good king and serve the realm. So, his problems came from the people around him, really. But those were the things that I found really interesting. How’d you make a character like that memorable? How’d you make him count in that world when he’s not your typical source of character who was always fighting for power? In a way, Viserys was incorruptible. And the only thing that got destroyed, really, was his conscience and his soul with the guilt over the death of his wife. So, those things, to me, were far more interesting and far more challenging than swinging a sword or being this evil sort of dictator.