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‘House of the Dragon’ Star Paddy Considine Breaks Down King Viserys’ Iconic Throne Room Scene (Interview)

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paddy INTERVIEW

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While the Game of Thrones prequel series House of the Dragon has received mixed reviews since it premiered in 2022, particularly the recent second season, there’s no denying that King Visyers’ walk through the throne room in the eighth episode of season one is one of the most iconic, spine-tingling, goosebump-raising moments in the entire Thrones franchise.

A King Lear-level of a tragic figure, veteran actor Paddy Considine, who expertly brought Viserys to life on House of the Dragon, told BroBible during a recent interview that playing the character, whom he had “genuine affection for”, was a gift.

Speaking to BroBible about the release of his new Paramount+ series MobLand, Considine recalled bringing that scene to life, saying that he put personal elements of his mother and father in the performance, while also revealing that producers were suspect of how he executed Viserys’ slow, defiant walk across the throne room.

“It was interesting, because I knew that he didn’t make it past episode eight, but I knew that there was a really great arc there, and I’d sort of mapped out his demise and where he was going to get to. We started shooting first with scenes from episode seven, so he was already in a state of of sickness,” Considine recalls.

“I love that character. I thought he was a gift. I really did. I was so grateful for him because I got a chance to really put my heart and soul into it. There was the elements of him that were based on my mother, and elements that were based on my father. So it was one of those rare occasions where I was able to bring that and put it into that character. So by the time I did that episode eight and walked into that throne room, I knew what stage he was in. But even when I did it, you know, producer-wise, people were questioning my choice when I was making that walk through the throne room. So, there was a bit of that going, like, ‘What’s he doing? Why is he doing it like that?’ But it couldn’t be any other way, really,” he continued.

“He’s one of the few characters I’ve had genuine affection for. It was one of those rare things where it didn’t matter — I was looking for a role like Viserys. It didn’t matter what form it came in. If it was a fantasy show about dragons, it didn’t matter. I thought he was a gift, and it was one of the best things I’ve ever done in my career.”

You can check out our full interview with Paddy Considine and MobLand co-star Tom Hardy — in which we discuss kissing Helen Mirren, their favorite Guy Ritchie projects, King Viserys’ iconic throne room scene in House of the Dragon, and more — below. MobLand is now streaming on Paramount+.