‘He’s a straight arrow’: House of the Dragon’s Graham McTavish on playing a ‘pure’ character rare in Game of Thrones spin-off
- A star of the Game of Thrones spin-off House of the Dragon, Graham McTavish plays Ser Harrold Westerling, a long-time Kingsguard, in the series
- McTavish, who also played Dwalin the dwarf in The Hobbit, says his character is not ambitious or corrupt; a rare thing in a story full of betrayal and brutality
Anticipation for the first Game of Thrones spin-off series has been hotter than dragon’s breath.
The opening episode of House of the Dragon, premiering August 21 on HBO, has everything Game of Thrones fans would expect from a sister show – love, betrayal, brutality, battles, sex, shock and, of course, dragons.
But amid the madness, a rare noble character, Ser Harrold Westerling, strives to uphold integrity in the fictional continent of Westeros.
“In a world of vipers, which is the world of anything to do with Game of Thrones or House of the Dragon, he’s a straight arrow,” says Graham McTavish, who plays Harrold. “He’s a moral centre in the story.
“He’s not corrupt. He’s not personally ambitious in the same way that other characters might be. He doesn’t have that kind of agenda. So he represents something quite pure in a world where that’s hard to come by.”