How the ‘House of the Dragon’ Cast Keeps the Onset Mood Light Between Super Dark Scenes
After filming some dark scenes on House of the Dragon the cast always tries to make the onset mood a little lighter.
“We all had a real bond and we all got on really, really well,” Jamie Kenna exclusively told Us Weekly on Monday, June 3, at the New York City premiere for season 2 at the Hammerstein Ballroom. “So as soon as they yell cut, you have to lighten the situation, take the mickey out of each other, you know, we're all melting.”
Kenna, who plays Alfred Broome on the Game of Thrones prequel series, explained that since all the actors are dressed up in “massive medieval costumes” it can get uncomfortable to wear. However, to make it through the scenes the cast tries to have “some fun” to get rid of that “miserable” feeling.
“House of the Dragon is not a comedy, there's a lot of darkness, there's a lot of misery, right?” he shared. “So as soon as we stop rolling, there’s a lot of fun. This was such a good group of people to work with at this time of my life.”
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Steve Toussaint, who stars as Lord Corlys Velaryon, echoed similar sentiments noting that the cast crew takes the extra effort to keep things upbeat because the fantasy series has the “most monstrous things happening.”
“Some of the funniest things and the funniest people are involved in this show,” Toussaint, 59, told Us. “Rhys Ifans should get much more praise than he gets because the character that he plays as Otto Hightower is so dark and he is such a light, wonderful presence.”
Like Ifans’ good-humored nature, Harry Collett, who portrays Jacaerys Velaryon, also tries to bring the good vibes to work. And his go-to method to keep things upbeat is with his music playlist.
“I play house music on set, and if anyone gets annoyed, they tell me to turn it off — but nobody gets annoyed,” Collett, 20, told Us. “So it's great. In between takes, I'll just play some music normally on a Friday and everyone gets up and dances.”
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Collett teased he has some behind-the-scenes videos of him jamming while decked out in his character. Bethany Antonia shared that one of her favorite memories on set is getting to goof around with Collett.
“There was one day that me and Harry, we got so delirious because we'd been filming the same scene for like six days,” Antonia, 26, recalled. “And we just were like, ‘OK, let's just go and do something really, really funny.’ And the first thing he did was see a trash bin and he just dove into the bin to make me laugh.”
Antonia, who plays Lady Baela Targaryen, added that she also finds humor in seeing her friends on set in their character’s extravagant costumes.
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“We're all wearing wigs and really cool costumes and we're in these massive sets,” she told Us. “You have to find the humor in it.”
While the others look to each other for humor, Ewan Mitchell is all about finding a “middle ground” between himself and his character Prince Aemond Targaryen.
“I think it's my job as an actor to embrace that,” Mitchell, 27, told Us. “I try to stay in that space a little bit even if the cameras aren’t rolling.”
With reporting by Andrew Nodell
