Paddy Considine, the actor who plays Viserys I Targaryen on HBO’s House of the Dragon, spoke to GQ about taking on the character in the TV adaptation, revealing that Game of Thrones author George RR Martin had told him that he preferred his interpretation to the one he wrote in the books.
In the interview, Considine talked about how he played Viserys as less passive than portrayed in the books, and that he wanted the character to be more driven as a leader who desired peace.
“What I found really interesting about him was that he wasn’t corrupted by power,” Considine told GQ. “He just wanted peace. He wanted people to be happy at the end of the day, but that makes him weak. So what would have made him more relatable, if he were a dictator? If he were a tyrant? Would that be more satisfying?” It’s not what it is.”
According to Considine, other members of the production of the series were slow to accept his interpretation, but he also says that Martin was so pleased with the result of the live-action iteration of Viserys that told the actor that in the end he represented the character in a superior way.
“I got a text message that just said, ‘Your Viserys is better than my Viserys,'” Considine said. “It was from George RR Martin. And I thought: that’s it. Thank you for trusting me.”
Just this week we learned that the most emotional scene in House of the Dragon so far was actually improvised.
