2 l August
21 - 27, 2022
Northwest Oregon Screen Scene
BY GEORGE DICKIE
HBO’s ‘House of the Dragon’
a story about family – with dragons
Eve Best and Steve Toussaint star
in “House of the Dragon,” premiering
Sunday on HBO and HBO Max.
Your
Adventure
Awaits!
Thousands of titles
The wait is over. More than three
years after the conclusion of “Game of
Thrones,” its prequel arrives with “House
of the Dragon.”
Based on George R.R. Martin’s
2018 novel “Fire & Blood,” the highly
anticipated 10-episode fantasy epic
premieres Sunday, Aug. 21, on HBO and
HBO Max. Set 200 years before the events
of GoT, it tells the story of the beginning
of House Targaryen’s fall, culminating
in a civil war that became known as the
“Dance of the Dragons.”
Sitting on the Iron Throne of Westeros
is King Viserys Targaryen (Paddy
Considine, “Dead Man’s Shoes”), a decent
man whose only wish is to continue his
grandfather’s legacy. First in the line of
succession is Prince Daemon (Matt Smith,
“Doctor Who”), Viserys’ brother and a
dragon rider but also a man of dubious
character. There is also Princess Rhaenyra
(Emma D’Arcy, “Truth Seekers”), the
king’s first born and a dragon rider who is
of pure Valyrian blood – but she was not
born a man.
And then there is Lord Corlys Velaryon
(Steve Toussaint, “Prince of Persia: The
Sands of Time”), the most famed nautical
adventurer in the history of Westeros and
builder of the largest navy in the world.
Also in the talented cast are Olivia
Cooke (“Bates Motel”), Eve Best (“The
King’s Speech”), Fabien Frankel (“The
Serpent”), Sonoya Mizuno (“Maniac”) and
Rhys Ifans (“The Amazing Spider-Man”).
The series was shot in the U.K., Spain
and Portugal from early 2021 to early
2022 and features a fair amount of
violence, sex and of course, CGI dragons.
For Toussaint, it represented the chance
to not only play in what he calls a “very
dark and conspiratorial and hopefully sexy
piece,” but portray a man who despite all
his power is at his core just a father.
“Obviously he’s a nautical man, an
explorer, and he can be in a battle; he’s
a bit of a warrior,” he explains. “But
ultimately when he’s out, when he’s at
home, when he’s with his family, like all
of us I guess that’s who he truly is. And
so that was the key to try to understand
his motivation for a lot of things he does.
Some things he doesn’t do very well. He’s
not always the best of fathers but his
underlying motivation is now this is for
the family, this is for our family name.”
Toussaint also gives high marks to his
castmates, who he calls an “absolute joy”
to work with.
“It’s a fantastic thing and it keeps you
on your toes ...,” he says. “So to basically
be sitting at a table and look up and see
Paddy Considine and Matt Smith and
Olivia Cooke, all these wonderful actors,
and of course the great Eve Best, who
plays my wife in it, was an absolute joy. It’s
a great place to go and play.”
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