Matt Smith Had A Very Specific Reason For Joining House Of The Dragon
Makes sense to us!
Game of Thrones fans were wary ever since the prequel series was announced. After getting burned in the final seasons of Game of Thrones with a rushed, underdeveloped story that disappointed many, it was understandable to be hesitant about jumping back into George R.R. Martin’s fantasy world. Fortunately, the series has been hitting all of the right notes so far. In no small part thanks to dynamic performances like Matt Smith as House of the Dragon‘s Daemon Targaryen. Though there have only been a couple of episodes of the series released, Smith has already made a strong impression as one of the best characters.
We’re definitely fortunate that Matt Smith agreed to sign up for House of the Dragon in the first place, as he apparently had his reservations. In a new interview, Smith revealed that he initially thought it might be tough to revisit the world of Game of Thrones, but he changed his tune when the offer didn’t go away and when he heard that Paddy Considine, who played King Viserys, would be on board. Smith said “I was in a car park and my agent said, ‘There’s this part in this new show that is a prequel to Game of Thrones.’ And I was like, ‘Ohhh. I don’t know. It’s a tough one, isn’t it? It’s a tough one to follow. Haven’t we seen this before?” He then added “I became aware that Paddy Considine was doing the show as well. He’d already been offered the role of King Viserys, and I was such a huge admirer of Paddy’s and I’d always wanted to work with him. So that was a real draw.”
Game of Thrones was such a massive hit that ran into some major criticism near the end that it’s understandable that Matt Smith didn’t jump right at the chance to join House of the Dragon. It seems it all turned out for the best though, as the cast has been pretty perfect. The story takes place nearly two centuries before the events of Game of Thrones, so the events of the series can be largely separate from the tale spun in the Westeros we’re familiar with. Although the show is based on the George R.R. Martin novel Fire and Blood, there is plenty of room for creativity. Fire and Blood is more of a history book than a detailed account of character thoughts and motivations. This means that even those who have read the book will have room to be surprised by the show.
The series is currently two episodes in, with new episodes hitting HBO Max every Sunday. So far, they’ve set up a very interesting conflict between Matt Smith’s House of the Dragon character and the rest of his family. There is also some brewing conflict with Steve Touissant’s Lord Corlys Velaryon. It’ll be especially interesting to see where the time jumps in the series will take place. At the beginning of the second episode, we learn that six months have passed since the events of the first. A huge time jump should happen later in the season, as the characters of Rhaenyra and Alicent, played by Milly Alcock and Emily Carey respectively, will be played by Emma D’Arcy and Olivia Cooke at some point. One thing’s for sure: if House of the Dragon can keep up with the level of quality it’s been delivering so far, fans shouldn’t have any problems following along with the time jumps and hanging on every scene. If you want to catch up on the first two episodes, you can head to HBO Max and stream them both. The next episode will be out this Sunday.
