Corlys Velaryon is “all about legacy” on House of the Dragon

We didn’t get a ton of time with Corlys Velaryon in the series premiere of House of the Dragon, but he’s an important character: a famed mariner, owner of the larger navy in Westeros, and the richest man in the Seven Kingdoms. We’ll spending a lot of time with him over the course of this season, so best get to know him.

“He’s all about legacy and about getting as close as possible to the throne,” actor Steve Toussaint told Men’s Health. “This season is a lot about interpersonal relationships, political maneuvering, and is slightly more intimate than Thrones at its height. Whoever survives, we have a grounding with them. If you get to know who they are now, then the stakes are that much higher. But by the time I’d read the final scene, there were some things in it that had me like, ‘oh, you can’t do that!'”

Ah, so there will be shocking moments in this Game of Thrones show. I think we all saw that coming…not that we won’t be blindsided when they happen, like always. “[T]here’s a scene with Matt [Smith] playing Daemon, where I basically say, ‘We’re the second sons; all of these other people, they had their wealth given to them. You and I, we had to go out and make it.’” Toussaint continued. “That’s another bone of contention for him. Corlys had to go out and be a self-made man. He feels that very sharply.”

"[U]ltimately, for me, what his engine is, is the fact that he’s trying to elevate his family, elevate his name. When his wife was passed over for the crown, he seems to take it that much more personally than she does. Ambition is his driving force for most of the season."

“[T]hey are happy with a dragon flying…but a rich Black guy? That’s beyond the pale.”

Toussaint has made some waves because he is a Black actor playing a character most likely written as white in George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood. Naturally, that’s come with its share of internet cry babies whining at Toussaint that he’s the wrong color or whatever. This has become a pretty standard and very boring event whenever a person who’s less than lily white dares to be on a popular TV show, but at least actors have developed strategies to deal with it by this point.

“What has been wonderful is for every toxic person that has somehow found their way into my timeline, there have been so many others who have been so supportive and been like, ‘Oh my god, I can’t wait, this is going to be great!'” Toussaint said. “Even when we were doing certain scenes, there would be supporting artists who would come up and go, ‘It’s great to have this representation.'”

"So many people are basing their idea of the history of this country on a few films and stuff that were made in the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s, which don’t bear any resemblance to the truth. Historically, people of my hue and your hue, we didn’t just turn up here in the ’70s or the ’60s. There was a point when the ruler of his country, “the Caesar”, was an African man. There are street names that tell you there were people who looked like us in this country even then, but for some reason, it seems to be very hard for people to swallow. And as you said, they are happy with a dragon flying. They’re happy with white hair and violet-colored eyes, but a rich Black guy? That’s beyond the pale."

Steve Toussaint hasn’t read Fire & Blood

Speaking of Fire & Blood, Toussaint revealed that George R.R. Martin sent all the actors signed copies. Toussaint’s still remains unopened, though:

"I was going to read it, then I thought, no. What I have to represent is what they’ve written in the script, and they’re going to take liberties with it for dramatic purposes. So I didn’t want to read his interpretation or know what happened to my character."

Y’know, a lot of actors seem to give variations on this response when asked if they’ve read the book, and while it’s a reasonable enough answer, I have to wonder if at least a few of them just didn’t feel like reading. You can tell me, Steve, it’s okay; DM me.

Of course, it’s true that there are things on the show Toussaint wouldn’t find in Fire & Blood. For example, apparently we’ll see Corlys Velaryon mix it up in battle in this series. “My character doesn’t carry a sword, he carries a huge, heavy staff,” Toussaint said. “One end is a double-edged blade, and the other is a heavy ball for crushing skulls.”

"[In training,] I’d swing it in my shorts but then they put you in your costume and suddenly, it’s on a sand dune. There’s smoke everywhere, the stunt guys aren’t coming at you one-on-one, like in practice, they’re coming in from all over the place–you just hope they make it look good!"

The crabfeeder had best beware.

How House of the Dragon is different from Game of Thrones

Overall, I’m pretty psyched to see what Toussaint and the rest of the cast and crew do with this new era of Game of Thrones. House of the Dragon is still living in the shadow of its mother show, but the differences are already becoming clear, and there are more to come.

“A TV show or film, wherever it’s set, it reflects the time that it was made,” Toussaint said. “One of the criticisms of Thrones, particularly the early seasons, was that there was a feeling of exploitativeness, particularly for the women. I’ve never met Emilia Clarke, but I’ve read stuff that she said and how she was able to assert herself more as the seasons went on. At the beginning, you just see all sorts of things happening to her.”

"I hope in [House of the Dragon] the importance of having other voices in the room comes across. The fact that we have women directors and women writers, there’s less of the exploitative thing. There is violence and sex, but the crux of this is the conflict between two ladies [Princess Rhaenyra and her friend Alicent Hightower]. Whether that reflects the growing status and power of women in our society, I don’t know. It’s still about relationships. It’s still about people trying to maneuver. It’s still about whose eyes you’re looking into when you’re speaking. I guess I’ll have to watch all of it and then come back to you."

New episodes of House of the Dragon drop on Sundays on HBO and HBO Max.

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