Dragon House: “Someone came up to me and told me they hated me!”

In the world imagined by George AR Martin, he was nicknamed “The Maker of Kings”. A seemingly worthy knight, but with murky motives and actions, Ser Christon Cole is one of the most divisive characters among dragon fans.

Love him or hate him, he leaves no one indifferent, starting with Rhaenyra Targaryen, his first love, whom he betrays next to (and in bed with) Alycent Hightower.

While in Paris to promote Season 2 of the series, which is currently available on the Max platform, its translator Fabien Frankel answered our questions with all simplicity and sincerity, in French please!

AlloCiné: As part of the “Dragon House” promotion, journalists were specifically asked to conduct spoiler-free interviews. So how do we talk about the series and the new season without spoiling it?

Fabien Frankel: I’m usually not alone. They put me with someone and then I wait for others to respond… I never respond yet because I have a spoiler problem. I keep messing things up… I wait for him to answer, then I copy what he says! (laughs)

The idea is not to become the Tom Holland of Westeros!

Does it spoil a lot? Mark Ruffalo does a lot. I am working with him at the moment, he told me that he had a problem! He doesn’t know how to stop screwing up all the Marvel stuff. He even once told me something about a huge Marvel franchise. I told : “I don’t think you have the right to do that, tell me, friend!”

So without spoiling it, what can we say about your character and his evolution in Dragon House season 2?

In the first season, Kristen Cole was part of Renira’s narrative, then Alicent’s narrative. Now I have a chance to have a bit of my own narrative, which he dictates based on his motivations. It changes slightly because it is more central. It is more at the heart of the story.

He is a character that has a special evolution. At first we tell ourselves that he is almost Prince Charming. Then he gets really pretty dark, I believe he was one of the most hated characters by fans in the first season. It means you are doing your job well!

Yes, I hope so! But after reading it was like that. When you play a role, you kind of try to get into it mentally, to understand why people do what they do. I didn’t know it would be so controversial. I was surprised at first. I remember I was at the movies and someone came up to me to hate me! But that’s the nature of this series, right? Characters are loved, then hated, then loved, then hated. I am sure it will continue.

Speaking of reactions, do you keep track of what’s going on on social media after each episode airs?

No, I’m getting away with it. Every time you watch it, you immediately regret it, because someone always finds what you did, what you said… and you say it yourself “F***!” So no, I don’t watch it. And I’m not watching this season, I guess.

There is an interesting element in your character, beyond its evolution, which is its “body language”, its body language. And all that armor brings. How did you work on it?

It was very interesting for me, because naturally I am a person who moves a lot. I am very active, I like to always do something. As long as Kristen Cole is completely still. And it took me a while to get comfortable with the immobility of the character. But once I got used to it, it helped because it gave me the structure of the character. It’s like someone gives you a boxing ring and you’re only allowed to run in that ring. Outside the ring, he’s not a character. And I found it very interesting in terms of development.

This season’s marketing pits #TeamGreen and #TeamBlack against each other. You were both on Team and now #TeamGreen. Do we sometimes say to ourselves that the opposite camp might be right? Or what his character is doing might not be acceptable?

We have no choice. We are hiring a producer, screenwriter and story writer. I remember this story with Tarantino: the actor comes to him and says “My character wouldn’t say that.” ; And Tarantino responds “If he says so, it’s because that’s what I wrote”. You don’t really have a choice in what your character does or says. But you have a choice in how he does it and how he says it. That’s what I find interesting about being an actor.

Acting in several languages ​​is also interesting for the actor. you are bilingual (The interview took place in the recording of the French editor)Also interested in playing in French? Do you have any suggestions?

Not at the moment. I shot the TV series Gveli with a lot of French actors, including Tahar Rahi, who became a very good friend. We talked a lot about working in France and he gave me a lot of advice. But my career was mostly in America and Europe outside of France before that. And I really want to work in France. I grew up with French cinema, the films of Louis de Funes and Belmondo. I have a relationship with French cinema through my mother and grandmother. I know that for my poor grandmother who doesn’t speak a word of English, she will be very happy to watch a series that she understands.

Can you offer me the voice of your character “Dragon House” in the French version?

I was just talking about it with Tom Glynn-Carney (Egon) yesterday. I will ask my agents. I’d love to do it to see what it’s like. After that it may last a long time! Let’s let a French actor who speaks French better than me do it because they’ll do it better than me.

The comments were collected in Paris on Friday, June 7, 2024

House of the Dragon season 2 episodes can be seen every Monday exclusively on the new streaming platform Max