10 Most Terrifying Moments From HBO's Chernobyl
3. Dyatlov
Just Dyatlov.
Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgard and Emily Watson are rightly winning praise for their portrayals of Valery Legasov, Boris Shcherbina and Ulana Khomyuk respectively, but unfortunately Paul Ritter’s villainous Dyatlov is being slightly overlooked.
Considering the actor is perhaps best known for more light hearted or comedic roles, his turn is even more impressive. For all the show emphasises the fault of the Soviet Union’s propagandist attitude and the prevalence of lies as the cause of the disaster, Ritter makes Dyatlov slot into the role of sinister villain so easily.
During the explosive start, we see Dyatlov screaming orders, refusing to believe that the reactor has blown open, sending helpless men to check. Faced with deadly radiation or defying Dyatlov, the men choose the radiation every time.
In the final episode, this ferocity is dialled up even more as we see the men crumble under his iron fist. His open hostility towards his men, his stubbornness in the face of disaster, and his sheer arrogance while Chernobyl literally burns around him makes him a truly terrifying villain.
While the story avoids a cliched good guy, bad guy trope, it’s hard to deny that Dyatlov is one of the scariest characters around.