Matt Smith: It’s “impossible” to re-create the success of Game of Thrones
By Dan Selcke
House of the Dragon star Matt Smith says the Game of Thrones prequel has “a similar scope and ambition to the previous show, in many respects.”
Matt Smith knows what it’s like to come into a popular series that already has an established fanbase. After all, he took over for David Tennant on Doctor Who back in 2010, meaning he was dealing with fans who had loved Tennant’s run and those who had been watching Doctor Who since the ’60s. Living up to those expectations was no joke.
And now it’s happening again, as Smith will be at the head of HBO’s new show House of the Dragon, a prequel to its phenomenally successful Game of Thrones. He plays Daemon Targaryen, the brother to the king and a key player in the civil war known as the Dance of the Dragons. And once again, he’ll have passionate fans watching closely to see if he does right by their favorite franchise.
How does Smith bring something new to a series that already has an established tone? “I suppose you bring yourself and your own spin on it,” the actor told CNET. “It’s like to a certain degree, what does anyone bring to a Shakespeare play or something that’s been done before? You have to bring your own emotional makeup and your own identity and your own spin and take on things and, you know… throw some paint at the wall and see what sticks.”
"We’re trying to make a show that’s entertaining on lots of different levels and has a similar scope and ambition to the previous show, in many respects. But obviously, you’re never going to be able to re-create the success of Game of Thrones, because that was a very particular point in time. It was its own unique entity."
He probably has a point about it being impossible to re-create the success of Game of Thrones; no one expected that series to become the cultural phenomenon it did. But if Smith and company bring the same level of passion and know-how to House of the Dragon as the original team brought to the mother show, it will at least find a fan base, and hopefully tell a tale worth hearing.
House of the Dragon will premiere on HBO and HBO Max sometime in 2022.
Next. Matt Smith rides “the angriest…dragon” in Game of Thrones prequel. dark
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