Game of Throneshas been over for a while. However, the lasting impact of HBO’s biggest series is still felt in many ways, even inHouse of the Dragon, with the latter changing the showrunners' approach to sex in Westeros, much to the satisfaction of former GOT star Ciarán Hinds, a.k.a. Mance Rayder.
Hinds played the leader of the free folk, commonly known as wildlings inGame of Throneslingo, during three of the series' eight seasons, with his part taking place in seasons 3, 4, and 5, arguably some of the show’s best according to many fans. Although Mance eventually meets his maker at the hands of Stannis Baratheon, it turns out the Irish actor was quite comfortable being burned alive on TV, as opposed to his stance on the show’s numerous sexual acts.
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During an interview withThe Independent, Hands opened up about the acting opportunities hisGame of Thronesrole gave him. However, that doesn’t mean he was completely on board with every decision, as he “was rather put off by the amount of sexuality that was going on in it” because he felt it detracted from the rest of the plot. In the actor’s opinion,Game of Thrones' core strength was the “political storytelling” that could be retrieved from George R.R. Martin’s books. At the same time, he conceded that the proclivity to feature sexual content is just business.
Hands was also asked about his experience working with intimacy coordinators. His latest anecdote comes from the Irish comedyThe Dry, where he was forced to take direction for a scene with his wife Hélène Patarot, of all people.SinceGame of Thronesended, several actors have complained about the way the series handled sex scenes and the lack of intimacy coordinators.
The stars who have expressed their displeasure aboutfilming sex scenes inGame of Thronesinclude the likes of Emilia Clarke, Jason Momoa, and Gemma Whelan, among others. Nevertheless, HBO has changed its stance on the subject ever since. In that sense,House of the Dragonprovided a great opportunity to improve the shooting process, in addition to the prequel not having nearly as many sex scenes as the original series.
Perhaps the steamiest or mostawkward sex scene inHouse of the Dragonwas between Alicent and Viserys, played by Olivia Cooke and Paddy Considine, the latter 20 years older than the actress. However, specialists were present to help both performers get through the process this time.
