Poor pay. Cutthroat casting decisions. A machiavellian network. These are not normally terms associated with life as an actor on HBO goliath Game of Thrones.
But in a fiery interview after meeting a bloody demise on the show, actor Alexander Siddig says he's glad his time on the fantasy series based on George R.R. Martin's books is over.
More Entertainment Videos
Game of Thrones season delayed
Game of Thrones producers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss have confirmed that the next season of the show will be delayed and will have less episodes.
Siddig played Prince Doran Martell in season five of Game of Thrones before being stabbed to death at the very start of season six. He is best known for his role on '90s series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
In a long interview with StarTrek.com, the British-born actor said showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff had contracted him until the middle of season six before having an about-face and killing him off.
"There was something wrong about that because I had been contracted for four episodes in the following season, so if they were going to kill me off at the end of the last season why would they contract me for those four episodes?" Siddig said.
"Maybe they thought, 'Well, let's prove that we're going to stray from the books. We're going to do something else, and he will be our first example of that'."
Siddig said the show had the best crew in the world and recalled how actors would be "praying they weren't going to be killed", even though the pay was terrible.
"From an actor's point of view, professionally you don't want to be on a show like that for too long – unless you are one of the top leads who originated the show – because your schedule gets kind of messed up.
![Actor Alexander Siddig played Prince Doran Martell in season five of <i>Game of Thrones</i>.](/web/20160926202101im_/http://www.watoday.com.au/content/dam/images/g/r/o/g/k/1/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.grobjn.png/1474886397006.jpg)
"You don't earn as much as you would if you were doing another show because they're Game of Thrones, and they don't have to pay anyone. So it's kind of a blessing in disguise."
He also accused HBO of leaking their own material to increase hype around the series.
![<i>Game of Thrones</i> cast members at the 2016 Emmys (from left) Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Maisie Williams, Emilia Clarke, ...](/web/20160926202101im_/http://www.watoday.com.au/content/dam/images/g/r/k/g/1/1/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.grobjn.png/1474859258548.jpg)
"The more secretive it is, the more special it is. And certainly Game of Thrones plays that. They misinform the crowd and they give them tidbits to send them in wrong directions.
"So, for example, last season, I believe that the first few episodes were stolen and downloaded online, and everybody got to see them before the show actually aired, and everybody was furious at HBO and whatnot.
![<i>Game of Thrones</i>' writers David Benioff and Dan Weiss.](/web/20160926202101im_/http://www.watoday.com.au/content/dam/images/g/r/o/g/z/e/image.related.articleLeadNarrow.300x0.grobjn.png/1474859258548.jpg)
"I am almost positive that those four episodes were leaked by HBO themselves. So there is an enormous amount of spin going on. I can't tell you that for sure; that's just my opinion, but it's games; everybody's playing these games."
Season seven of the show is currently filming in Ireland and is due to air in the middle of 2017.
0 comments
New User? Sign up