Paddy Considine played the well-meaning, prophecy-obsessed, decaying king Viserys Targaryen in the first season of House of the Dragon, HBO's Game of Thrones prequel show. His character died towards the end of that season, leaving his squabbling family members to go to war with each other over his empty throne. Since then, things have gotten pretty crazy, but Considine himself hasn't been keeping tabs on the series.
“I haven’t [been watching], no," Considine told the New York Post. "But I saw bits of Season 2, because my wife and daughter are still massive fans of the show. I just don’t get time. When I get to watch things, it’s usually like at bedtime and I fall asleep watching them.”
Considine made clear that he isn't abstaining out of disinterest; anyone who watched him on season 1 knew how committed he was to the character. For the record, he didn't watch much of that first season, either. "I didn’t even watch all of Season 1 of House of the Dragon, because I don’t like watching myself," he said. “I loved my time on it, and I wish him all the best. I’ll catch up with it one day, because I watched all of Game of Thrones.”
Paddy Considine gets a preview of House of the Dragon season 3
Filming for season 3 of House of the Dragon is ongoing as we speak. And while Considine may not be tuning into the show, he's still in the loop. “I got sent a photograph actually, from [showrunner] Ryan Condal," the actor revealed. "They started shooting yesterday on Season 3, and he sent me a photograph of this new sculpture of this statue with Viserys Targaryen.”
"He’s still looming there in the background somewhere, and it was great. I’ve got a lot of affection for that show and that character"
The statue of King Viserys was actually added to the Iron Throne room in the Red Keep in season 2; he may be dead, but he's still looking on at his surviving family members disapprovingly:
King Viserys Targaryen gets a statue in House of the Dragon season 2 pic.twitter.com/xWcIcNM09u
— Winter is Coming (@WiCnet) June 6, 2024
But of course, if Considine didn't watch the second season, he wouldn't know that.
Considine is currently starring in the crime drama MobLand on Paramount+, where he is doubtlessly tearing it up. A lot of fans, me included, think he should won an Emmy for playing King Viserys on House of the Dragon, but he didn't even get a nomination. Considine is outraged along with us, as he should be. “Yeah, I didn’t even get a sniff,” he said. “Very disappointing!”
The third season of House of the Dragon will air on HBO and Max sometime in 2026. Paddy Considine won't be in it, but King Viserys will still be hanging around in spirit. In the meanwhile, a new Game of Thrones prequel show called A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms will premiere later this year.
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