House of the Dragon’s Steve Toussaint Was as Unprepared for Corlys’ Infidelity as We Were (‘I Was Like, Excuse Me?!’)

Look, we know that House of the Dragon is fiction, dragons don’t exist, and actors are not responsible for the actions of the characters they portray. But we’re still mad about Rhaenys’ death and highly salty about the fact that her seemingly devoted husband had an ongoing affair for years. So we did what any totally well-adjusted person would: yelled at the person closest to the action.

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Sorry, Steve Toussaint.

In a chat with the man behind the Sea Snake, Toussaint tells TVLine he feels as betrayed by his character’s actions as we do. After you’ve checked out our Episode 6 recap and had a burning question answered , read on to hear his thoughts on Rhaenys’ death, Corlys’ illegitimate sons (one of whom was revealed Sunday to be a dragonrider) and what to expect from the final episodes of the HBO series’ season.

TVLINE | First of all, my condolences on the loss of your TV wife.
TOUSSAINT | [ Laughs ] Thank you. I appreciate the support in these trying times.

TVLINE | Corlys is a warrior. We saw him get almost fatally hurt last season. Do you think the possibility of her going before him ever occurred to him, really?
No, I don’t think so. Good question actually. I think that if Corlys ever foresaw his death, it was going to take place at sea in an eventual battle or something like that. But the idea that his beautiful, sweet, tranquil wife would go before him? No. I don’t think so.

When I think about how he feels with her gone… She’s the one person that he’s completely honest with, you know? He can be himself. I often say that there are two places where he’s most comfortable: at sea or in the arms of his wife. She’s now gone. He’s injured. His ship is still in a state of disrepair, so he can’t go and he can’t escape. He’s bereft. The one person who could help him through this crisis is the one who’s dead. So, yeah, he’s floundering.

TVLINE | I love Corlys, but let me tell you: When I learned about Addam and Alyn, I was disappointed in him. This was not an isolated lapse in judgment or a one-time thing. So basically, start singing, because I want to hear some defense of Lord Corlys.
[ Laughs ] To be honest, I’m going to admit that my response was the same as yours when I read the script. Because for a year-and-a-half, promoting the show, I was all about “It’s just her,” and “She’s the one” and so forth. Then I read that, and I was like, “Excuse me?!” [ Laughs ]  But I still maintain in that, I guess as Eve would say, in that very “mannish” way that his feelings for her are genuine. That she is the one. I am still working through it as to trying to find the reasoning behind it because exactly what you said is what I said…

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My thing was, “OK, yeah, one child. OK, great. He’s a sailor, blah, blah, blah. But he then goes back and has another child, so what’s that? … So, I am still trying to find the way through it… Eve and I had long conversations where she would say, “Part of the thing that’s bothering Rhaenys is that this person must have been quite special.” Initially, I was like, “No, no, probably not.” But yeah, I think maybe there was. Maybe we’ll explore that later. I don’t know.

TVLINE | Putting aside all of that, Rhaenys was like, “You need to do right by this kid.” How much do you think that’s in his mind as he approaches Alyn in Episode 6? Do you think he would have done it if she hadn’t given him a little shove?
It’s forefront in his mind, actually. I’m not sure that he would have. He might have thought that eventually, had she been around, had she not said anything. But I think the fact that she says to him in that speech, as you just said, “I know who he is.” … He feels that is permission, especially after Baela rejects his offer. Again, I think the offer to Baela is in the moment because Baela shows spirit. She showed strength. She stands up to him. She says… I forget what the lines are, but basically “Do whatever the f–k you want.” He’s like, “Oh, wow, you are like your grandmother. You’re like your mother. Maybe you can [be my heir].” She rejects him, and then he’s left thinking, “I need to have an heir.” …That’s the catalyst for him making that approach.

TVLINE | I also love the scene where Baela rips into him.
Bethany [Antonia] is brilliant, and Bethany enjoyed doing that to me.

TVLINE | All of my haranguing aside, we’ve been shortchanging Corlys’ grief, which he’s clearly feeling and which is well-warranted. The death of a spouse is the kind of thing that fundamentally changes a person. So tell me how the Corlys we’ll see going into the end of the season is different from the man we knew before.
He flounders. I think the thing about Corlys that is good for him is that if he focuses on something, then he’s fine. Then everything else can drop by the wayside. I think that’s what he does. He’s happy to be going back to sea. He’s happy to be going to war, frankly, because it’s clear. There’s no gray: You either do this, or you die. This is something that’s only occurring to me now that I talk about it, but I think he also decided “I’m going to raise this boy up. I’m going to prepare him and that’s going to be my project.” Without giving anything away, that way is not a smooth path, because Addam has thoughts of his own, has feelings of his own. I feel like I I’m either crying or being shouted at. [ Laughs ]

If you’ve got thoughts on Corlys, House of the Dragon ‘s season so far and/or predictions leading into the finale, hit the comments and let us know!

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