House of the Dragon cast reveal what Rhys Ifans would do to make them break character

Before Rhys Ifans was Otto Hightower, the King’s sneaky hand on HBO house of the dragonhe was Hugh Grant’s eccentric, scantily clad roommate notting hill.

While the Welsh actor’s character in the game of Thrones Prequel is much more serious, it seems he hasn’t lost any of the comedic talents that made him such a hit in Grant’s 1999 rom-com.

In a recent interview with BBC Radio 1, the cast of HotD discussed the methods Ifans would use to erupt in laughter during scenes.

“He didn’t have to [say anything]’ says Rhaenyra Targaryen actress Milly Alcock to host Ali Plumb. “Rhys Ifans has a certain twinkle under his eyes.”

Emily Carey, who plays Ifan’s daughter Alicent Hightower, interjects: “It’s just a look he gives you! Or he nudges, he likes to do that in scenes. If something goes wrong, he just starts poking.”

“Tell yourself how he moves,” says Alcock, “the Grinch.”

The interview then turns to Fabien Frankel (Ser Criston Cole), who says that Ifans would “yell profanity at your close-ups so that you would laugh uncontrollably during your shots.”

Ifans was so distracting that Frankel says sometimes the directors had to ask the actor to leave the set so the rest of the cast could finish filming.

house of the dragon will continue in the UK on Sky Atlantic on Mondays at 2am before repeating later in the day at 9pm.