Paddy Considine has revealed he turned down Game of Thrones without even reading the script.
The actor now stars in the show’s prequel series House of the Dragon as King Viserys I Targaryen alongside Matt Smith and Emma D’Arcy as his siblings.
In an interview with The Sunday Times, Considine spoke about receiving the script for Thrones from his agent.
“He said, ‘It’s about dragons,’” Considine recalled. “I went, ‘No thanks.’ I didn’t even read it.”
Despite the show going on to become a global phenomenon, Considine said he had no regrets, adding: “If I couldn’t be arsed to get myself down to an audition, that’s my lookout.”
The actor ended up watching the show with his family during the Covid-19 lockdown, which, serendipitously, was when he got the call to star in the prequel series.
According to HBO’s official description of the character, King Viserys was “chosen by the lords of Westeros to succeed the Old King, Jaehaerys Targaryen, at the Great Council at Harrenhal. A warm, kind, and decent man, Viserys only wishes to carry forward his grandfather’s legacy, but as we’ve learned from Game of Thrones, good men do not necessarily make for great kings.”
In a recent appearance with Considine on The Official Game of Thrones Podcast: House of the Dragon, Smith said he sought to make his character, Daemon Targaryen, more “delicate”.
“I wanted to make it slightly more delicate, fragile. I think he’s quite a fragile creature,” Smith said.
House of the Dragon will debut in the US on HBO Max on 21 August and on Sky Atlantic and NOW on 22 August in the UK.
