No list of the most memorable on TV in 2022 is complete without the foot scene from House of the Dragon. You know the one.
There’s nothing wrong with being into feet, but did Larys Strong (played by Matthew Needham) have to be such a “disgusting” little guy about it? “She knows what Larys can do, how powerful he is, and how he won’t stop shy of killing his entire family in order to progress in this court,” Alicent Hightower actress Olivia Cooke said, adding, “It’s disgusting, it’s demeaning, it’s assault. But she’s not really left with any choices. She’s surrounded herself with psychopaths and murderers. There’s no one else to turn to.”
In an interview with People, Needham was asked about the “foot fetish” scene, which he thinks has been misunderstood. “I don’t think it’s a foot fetish like we understand it. I don’t think he’s sexually aroused by feet. It’s more that he’s making her show her feet,” he said. “You know, this man who’s had this club foot disability all his life is making this incredibly powerful person show him her feet. It’s such a power move.” He continued:
“It’s a way of reasserting control, putting someone in a box. It’s a display of dominance, really making someone feel as ashamed of that part of her body as he does of his. It’s associating her feet with something traumatic, which is what he does.”
Needham (more like Needfeet) knew the internet would “lose its mind” over the scene, but “that is the thing about this job: the oddest, most twisted things become normalized really quickly. Monday, I’m cutting out someone’s tongue and then on Tuesday, it’s the feet scene.” We’ll find out what happens on Wednesday in 2024.
(Via People)
