Jack Gleeson: The HAL computer from 2001: A Space Odyssey. It’s terrifying because it has no empathy, and you can’t rationalize with it as you would a human being. As for actors, Rutger Hauer was pretty perfect in Blade Runner. Just his eyes...

GQ: What performances influenced King Joffrey’s petulant brand of evil?

Jack Gleeson: A big influence was Joaquin Phoenix in Gladiator. Sometimes when I’m sitting on my throne, I think of Phoenix sitting on his, with that smirk on his face.

GQ: Have you ever rooted for a villain?

Jack Gleeson: There’s a scene in Psycho, when Norman Bates has just killed Marion and put her in the trunk of a car and he’s pushing the car into, like, a lagoon. The scene is so tense and you see his face and he’s like, "Oh, please. Can this car just go under..." And you’re like, "Yeah, I hope so too, man, and I hope the cops don’t come..." But, wait a second, he just killed this girl for no reason! I was rooting for a murderer.

GQ: When did you figure out you could, well, personify evil?

Jack Gleeson: When I was auditioning for Joffrey. I only had one audition, and the producers and writers were laughing at my performance because I was being so snotty and arrogant. They found it comical. I thought that was good.

GQ: Do you worry about repeating villainous clichés?

Jack Gleeson: Definitely. And I think my portrayal of Joffrey is very clichéd. It’s something that’s so easy to slip into because I’ve seen so many villainous characters on TV and onstage and in films. Joffrey is definitely informed by those performances.

GQ: How much of Joffrey was on the page and how much is you?

Jack Gleeson: I have to give all the credit to George R. R. Martin, the writer of the books the show is based on, because the character is so perfectly described and analyzed. I didn’t need to create new characteristics or mannerisms, and the hair, makeup, and costumes helped as well.

GQ: Was there one specific piece of his costume?

Jack Gleeson: Joffrey’s rings—really decadent gold rings with opals—helped me get into the character. You can play with them. And the crown, of course. It completely abstracts you form everyday life. When I put it on, I feel like everyone is subservient to me.

GQ: Is the preparation different when you play a villain?

Jack Gleeson: I think so. You have to tap into and embrace the negative feelings you try to repress in everyday life.

GQ: Like what?

Jack Gleeson: Feeling superior to everyone, for one thing. Arrogance is a weird emotion to take on, but you have to do it.

GQ: Is that arrogance hard to shake when a scene is over?

Jack Gleeson: Usually not, because after a long day of work, you’re just happy to take off all your annoying armor and the costumes and just be yourself again. I’m quite relieved when I can stop being Joffrey.

GQ: Do you think that Joffrey sees himself as a bad guy?

Jack Gleeson: I think he sees himself as the hero of his own tale, the knight in shining armor. You look at the horrendous things he does, but he always justifies them in his head.

GQ: Do you have a favorite Joffrey line?

Jack Gleeson: I do, but it involves an explicit word beginning with "C."

GQ: It’s okay. GQ readers can take it.