Peter Dinklage talks Bolivar Trask in X-Men: Days of Future Past “I didn’t want to play the villain”

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Actor Peter Dinklage, best known for his impeccable portrayal of Tyrion Lannister in HBO’s Game of Thrones is gearing up for another cult icon role as Bolivar Trask in X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST. In the comics, Trask is a hard-nosed bigot who creates the Sentinel robots in order to crush the mutant race, but Dinklage wanted to bring a little more to the role, as he explained to EW.

“I didn’t want to play the villain. He’s a man of science. He’s a man of invention. He actually sees what he’s doing as a good thing — [his ambition is] definitely blind and he’s quite arrogant. He’s strove all his life for a certain respect and attention.”

While Dinklage may not see himself as the “main” villain, he certainly has opposition from all sides. Not only is he fighting mutants and their band of X-Men, but also another man of “immense power.”

“He’s up against Richard Nixon,” Dinklage said with a wry smile. “He’s got some hurdles.”

I think casting Dinklage in this is brilliant. It’s nice to see the actor being offered roles that forego his physical stature and capitalize on his acting stature. Taking on the “villain” role for X-Men as Trask is a really great role for Dinklage and I have no doubt he’ll bring the same level of intensity and charm that he’s so powerfully demonstrated on Game of Thrones.

X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST unleashes the Sentinel’s on May 23, 2014.