Paddy Considine has revealed that he based his performance in the Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon on his mother.
In the forthcoming series, Considine plays King Viserys Targaryen, the compassionate ruler of the Seven Kingdoms and ancestor to Emilia Clarke’s character Daenarys Targaryen.
In an interview with The Independent – which can be read here – the actor explained that he was “flattered” to have been cast in the show, and described his mindset going into the role.
“The last thing you do when you play a king is go, ‘I’m the king,’” he said.
“All you’ve got to do is be you, a human, and be compassionate. Lose the crown, lose the pomp, lose the bulls***, just play the person. And when I played Viserys Targaryen, I just played my mum, you know. That’s what I played – my mother.”
When asked to elaborate on this comparison, Considine said that his mother was a source of strength for him while her own health suffered.
He said: “She was just an anchor for me. I loved her very much. But she was a woman who became very, very sick.
Paddy Considine in ‘Macbeth’
(See Saw/Studio Canal/Kobal/Shutterstock)
“She had diabetes. She lost sight in both of her eyes. And she lost both of her legs. She was in a terrible, terrible state. But I think she hid inside her illness, and that made it worse for her.”
The Macbeth star then went on to link his mother’s handling of her illness to King Viserys’ storyline on the series: “It was a lot for us and everyone around to care for her, whereas she needed to care for herself, too.
“And that’s what this character does, eventually, you know… he becomes very sick and hides in his illness.”
House of the Dragon is scheduled to premiere in August. You can read The Independent’s full interview with Paddy Considine here.
