‘House of the Dragon’: George R.R. Martin Believes Paddy Considine’s Viserys Is ‘More Powerful’ Than His
TL;DR:
- House of the Dragon Episode 8 bid farewell to Paddy Considine as King Viserys.
- George R.R. Martin praised the actor’s character as “more powerful” than his version.
- Considine says he “unlocked” Viserys thanks to one of his co-stars.
House of the Dragon Episode 8 proved an emotional affair, bidding farewell to King Viserys Targaryen and the actor who plays him. Paddy Considine has brought Viserys to life with an impressive amount of depth since House of the Dragon premiered. Even author George R.R. Martin is impressed by Considine’s performance — so much so that he called the actor’s take on the character “more powerful” than his own.
[Warning: Spoilers ahead for House of the Dragon Episode 8, “The Lord of the Tides.”]
Paddy Considine takes his final bow as King Viserys in ‘House of the Dragon’ Episode 8
House of the Dragon Episode 8 sees King Viserys succumbing to his illness at long last, and the character’s final moments have garnered quite a bit of praise for Paddy Considine. Viewers applauded the actor’s depiction of a man desperate to reunite his family before departing from the world. And in general, Considine has added depth and nuance to the king, whose characterization isn’t as layered in George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood.
Martin himself even admitted as much during a recent blog post, where he praised Considine’s iteration of King Viserys. The author had great things to say about the actor’s performance. Above all else, it seems to have shown Martin a new side of the character he created.
George R.R. Martin praised Paddy Considine’s take on the character as ‘more powerful’ than his own
In a post shared to his Not a Blog, author George R.R. Martin offered high praise for Paddy Considine and his interpretation of King Viserys.
Martin admitted that Considine brought something to the role that wasn’t present in Fire & Blood, making Viserys more sympathetic to the audience:
“The character he created (with Ryan and Sara and Ti and the rest of our writers) for the show is so much more powerful and tragic and fully-fleshed than my own version in FIRE & BLOOD that I am half tempted to go back and rip up those chapters and rewrite the whole history of his reign. Paddy deserves an Emmy for this episode alone. If he doesn’t get one, hey, there’s no justice.”
Considine certainly does deserve recognition for his work on House of the Dragon, though we’ll have to wait and see if he receives it. Of course, audiences are already honoring his portrayal of King Viserys. And the actor took to social media to thank them, pointing specifically to one of his co-stars as the reason he was able to “unlock” Viserys fully.
The ‘House of the Dragon’ star reveals what ‘unlocked’ King Viserys for him
That’s right, Paddy Considine opened up about Viserys after his final episode of House of the Dragon. In an Instagram post, the actor revealed that his co-star, Sian Brooke, who plays Aemma Arryn in House of the Dragon‘s premiere, helped unlock his character’s full potential.
“I have never loved a character so much,” Considine said of Viserys. “I want to give massive love and respect to @brooke.sian who came in for only a few days, but changed the course of my character with her brilliant performance and commitment to the work.”
He went on to explain that Viserys’ guilt over his wife’s last moments defined his character for him, making sense of his actions and motivations:
“She unlocked the missing piece of the puzzle for me, and allowed my story to come full circle. From the moment she dies, so does Viserys. It was a love story. That’s the secret I carried with me. As sick as he gets, he never, himself, demands any cure. He quietly accepts his suffering, never forgiving himself for putting his beloved wife through such torture in her final moments.”
It’s a fascinating view of the character and one that evokes sympathy from the very beginning. We’re glad we got to spend eight episodes with Considine as Viserys. He’ll certainly be missed as House of the Dragon continues.
