Knightfall interview: Pádraic Delaney previews finale, discusses Gawain’s journey
So what can you expect in this final episode? Pádraic Delaney beautifully plays the role of Gawain on the series, and in our exclusive interview with him we discuss the finale alongside his journey as the character, what motivates him, and also if he would like to continue playing this character beyond this season if the opportunity presents itself.
CarterMatt – What appealed to you about this show when you first heard about it?
Pádraic Delaney – My first thought was “this is new, this is completely original.” We’ve never seen the Knights Templar dealt with like this before, in a TV series revolving around their history and legends. That excited me in a way I hadn’t really been about anything for a long time.
What makes Gawain such an interesting character to me is that he has this legendary history, but struggles to maintain that legacy after his injury. What was the experience like navigating this character though this world?
I loved it. I agree, he is such an interesting character and I loved the journey I went on with him. Of all the characters in Knightfall, Gawain changes the most dramatically. He goes through a complete metamorphosis — the Gawain you see in episode 1 is so different from the guy you’ll see in the finale….
Leading up to the finale, what do you think motivates him?
His motivations change throughout the show. At the beginning he’s motivated to do everything to serve God and the Templars but again, he changes — he wants to get what he sees as revenge on Landry, to teach Landry a lesson. But as well as this Gawain also starts to think “I’m going to look after myself from now on, I’m going to be a bit selfish.”
After striking Landry with that hammer, do you think that Gawain is satisfied at all? Does he have more to do?
Deep down, no, hurting Landry doesn’t satisfy Gawain because he really hates himself. Even if he killed Landry, I’m not sure he’d be satisfied. Sure he sustained his injury saving Landry’s life, but regardless of how it happened, Gawain will never feel complete because he can’t fight like he used to.
Without giving anything away, what excited you when you first read the finale script?
Well the finale keeps up the tone of the previous 9 episodes, it’s exciting and shocking. But the best part is how all of the storylines which have been building up come together and explode. There will be blood.
Is there anything that you can say about Gawain’s story?
Like I said earlier Gawain in episode 10 is very far removed from the guy we meet in episode 1. When we were filming we weren’t privy to what would happen with our characters in the long term, but when I got the script for the finale, what Gawain becomes made sense to me. Even though the audience will probably think Gawain is foolish in his actions, they’ll understand why he does it because they will (I hope) identify with him in some way.
Provided that Gawain makes it through the finale alive, are you excited about the prospect of coming back for a season 2?
I think there is so much scope for this show to do not just another season, but several more. With Season 1 we’ve established this world, but now we can really expand it. There are so many different directions we could take Knightfall, so many possibilities, storylines to explore.
Is there anything else you are working on at present that you can speak about?
Doing Knightfall means I’m kind of tied up with that, but I have a film called The Witness that will be doing the film festival circuit this year. It’s with the amazing actor Bruno Ganz. There’s some great pics from it on Instagram – padraic.delaney.
Related – Read more on the Knightfall finale
Thanks to Delaney for speaking with us about his time on the show, and stay tuned for the Knightfall finale Wednesday on History! You can also like CarterMatt on Facebook to get even more updates regarding the series. (Photo: History.)