Paddy Considine says his father’s death inspired House of the Dragon’s tragic scene

Paddy Considine noted that his father’s death was his inspiration behind filming for House of the Dragon character’s deathbed scene.

In a new interview with Variety, Paddy, who depicted King Viserys I Targaryen in the Game of Thrones prequel, was shown sick throughout the first season.

Reflecting on his father’s death from cancer, Paddy told the publication, “My father was really fighting.”

“The nurses came around, they said he has 24 hours. Then it was three days later, and they’re looking at you going, ‘I don’t know what’s keeping him going.’”

Paddy mentioned, “I remember one day looking into his eyes, and I just said to him, ‘Dad…’ – this is very difficult. But I said, ‘Dad, just let go. Just let go, Dad’.”

“And he couldn’t. He didn’t want to let go,” stated the 49-year-old.

Paddy explained, “You know, this is big stuff, but times in his life, he’d attempted to take his own life. And then when I see him dying, I wasn’t sure if he finally was like, ‘Actually, I really want to live,’ or ‘I am terrified of dying.’”

While discussing about his character’s final moments, the actor confessed, “Sometimes when people pass, I feel like they know. It’s like when a dog goes away to die on its own. And I felt that very much with Viserys.”

Paddy remembered being “taken off set and given regular fresh air, because I was nearly passing out,” while playing someone whose dying “especially a prolonged death”.

“My oxygen level started to go down. It’s almost like, your brain starts to tell your body that you are sick. It’s really quite weird,” he added.