4 House of the Dragon stars who should have gotten Emmy nominations

Paddy Considine as King Viserys I Targaryen

If I had to choose just one House of the Dragon cast member to get an Emmy nomination — nay, an Emmy win — for the first season, it would be Paddy Considine. Although he had a long career before House of the Dragon, his performance as the beleaguered King Viserys I Targaryen should rightly make him a household name, because he’s just that good.

The first season of House of the Dragon takes place over a period of several years. Characters like Rhaenyra grow up to the point where the show must switch actors. That isn’t necessary for Viserys, but he still changes drastically. At the start of the show, he’s a middle-aged man in the prime of health. He falls victim to a wasting disease, and in his last appearance is a broken man who must use all of his strength just to hobble across a room.

Considine takes us on this journey every step of the way, portraying the advancing illness without getting hyperbolic or hammy. And although Viserys is known to waffle about important decisions, Considine finds what he really cares about, and makes us believe that he will fight to defend it.

King Viserys is a character who could come off unlikable, but Considine finds a throughline, a core of decency that earns our affection even as he’s unable to keep his family from tearing itself apart. He dies by the end of the season, but I have confidence that his shadow will hang over the rest of the series in the same way that Ned Stark’s hung over Game of Thrones. It’s a shame he won’t be honored for his efforts at the Emmys.