This article contains spoilers for the fourth season of ‘Game of Thrones’ and the third volume of ‘A Song of Ice and Fire: A Storm of Swords. This article also briefly references sexual assault.
Pedro Pascal has become a TV phenomenon, thanks to his lead roles in high-profile genre series like Disney’s The Mandalorian and HBO’s The Last of Us. However, it was another genre show packed with heroes and monsters, life and death, and ice and fire where he first sprung to global recognition.
The Chilean-American actor made a memorable entrance — and exit — in the fourth season of Game of Thrones, introducing us to one of the show’s most vivid and compelling characters, Oberyn Martell — the Red Viper and Prince of Dorne. Even in his short time on the series, Pascal’s performance and character on the show made a memorable impact.
Pedro Pascal before the Ice and Fire
Pedro Pascal was born in Santiago, Chile, and his family fled the country as refugees when Pascal was nine months old. His family’s opposition to the Chilean dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet, and their support for Pascal’s maternal second cousin, Andrés Pascal Allende, led them to political asylum in Denmark in the mid-1970s, before eventually settling in the U.S. After a childhood in San Antonio, Texas, and later Orange County in California, Pascal studied acting at the Orange County School of the Arts, then graduating to attend the prestigious Tisch School of the Arts at NYU (New York University).
Pascal took on guest roles in primetime TV dramas, including The Good Wife, Homeland, and two series in the Law & Order franchise. A hint of his future, however came in appearances in cult TV shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, where he played a friend of Buffy Summers during her freshman week at college. Pascal also had a small role in an ill-fated 2011 Wonder Woman pilot, but that left the road open to King’s Landing.
Entering the game
Oberyn Martell appeared as the representative of Dorne, as the head of House Martell, as well as the younger brother of Doran and the late Princess Elia. Oberyn arrived with his paramour, Ellaria Sand, and eight “bastard” daughters to represent his kingdom at King Joffrey Baratheon’s latest masterstroke in the War of the Five Kings: his marriage to Sansa Stark, which would be remembered as the Purple Wedding.
Viewers already knew weddings weren’t great news in Game of Thrones, and Oberyn arrived with considerable extra baggage; his older sister had been married to Crown Prince Rhaegar Targaryen, and was the mother of Rhaenys and Aegon.
Martell was a phenomenal fighter and a believer in life’s joys that Tyrion could appreciate. The charisma that made Martell a popular figure in Dorne was also a good fit for the Westeros capital. He had a quick temper, a quicker tongue, and a legendary reputation for hedonism. Despite his love of fun, Martell was well-studied and keen to feed his intellect as much as his sexual appetite.
He had all the attributes to fit in with the show’s favorite characters and make his presence felt in the outcome of A Song of Ice and Fire. Unfortunately, his qualities were too good to be true, and while he earned bonus points for his overconfidence and arrogance, they proved to be his downfall.
Showdown with the Mountain
Having been cast as Martell shortly before filming, Pascal crammed the second half of George R.R. Martin’s third novel in the saga, A Storm of Swords. In the original novel, the character’s only appearance in the series was almost entirely told from Tyrion’s point of view, in which the Purple Wedding ends with the assassination by the poisoning of King Joffrey Baratheon.
Martell instantly came under suspicion after the murder, due to his somewhat elusive past. His nickname, the Red Viper, came from his unusual style of combat (inspired, in the show, by Wushu) and his extensive study of poisons. In the event, Tyrion became prime suspect as a convenient part of his father Tywin’s ongoing machinations against his youngest son.
Tyrion demanded trial by combat, despite facing an insurmountable opponent in the Mountain Gregor Clegane. Seeing his chance for revenge, Martell quickly volunteered to take on the giant knight as Tyrion’s champion. It was a contest that had significant implications for Tyrion and Tywin and ended badly for both the Mountain and Viper. We’ll leave the outcome, and one of Thrones’ graphically jaw-dropping scenes, to your viewing discretion, but let’s say it was rather eye-popping.
Pascal’s Martell set a precedent that the shortened and divergent narrative of screen Game of Thrones couldn’t fulfill. As the first representative of Dorne, he developed much of the kingdom’s swagger and accent, which the actor disclosed, amusingly, was inspired by his own father’s.
Despite the poor prospects for his kingdom, Pascal’s Martell shone brightly as a highlight in the epic’s fourth year. The role earned Pascal a nomination at the NewNowNext Award for Best New Television Actor, and a joint nomination for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series.