The explosive ending to HBO’s Game of Thrones, one of the grandest shows ever brought to television, resulted in an even more explosive and divisive backlash from millions of fans around the globe. The fallout led to a period of significant financial/creative uncertainty at HBO, deafening silence for months from disgraced directors David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, and fans clamoring for answers from the show’s stars. Over time, select cast members such as Peter Dinklage and Emilia Clarke came forward with their mixed personal takes on the show’s ending. Actor Jacob Anderson has now spilled the beans on his opinion as well in an interview with PopSugar.
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Anderson joined the cast of Game of Thrones in Season 3 as Grey Worm, the anointed Commander of the Unsullied army under Daenerys Targaryen. He played a key supporting role in each season going forward, on the front lines with Daenerys right up to the very combative ending, which aired back in May 2019. As such, Anderson undoubtedly had plenty to say regarding the show’s finale, and he was, in fact, confused and even saddened by the massive outcry. In his interview, he explains:
Supporting the immense amount of hard work that went into making the final season, Anderson stood adamantly behind the finished product, despite understanding that the writing choices would likely divide some people. Perhaps not the rebellious answer some fans would like to hear, but nonetheless, he joins a select number of prominent cast members that have revealed their true feelings on the show that defined an era of television.
“I didn’t have strong feelings about the finale. I think everybody assumes that we all hated it. That’s not the case at all. I remember when I first got the scripts for that final season, I was like, ‘There’s something kind of punk about this season. It feels risky.’ And I feel like it was kind of fun. I enjoyed it and it was fun to make. It was full on, but it was fun to make. We were filming for 11 months in the snow and there were thousands and thousands of people worked so hard on [the final season]. And then for it to just, when it came out for people to just straight up be like, ‘You need to remake this. This is terrible. This is the worst thing ever.’ It was a little bit sad. But to be honest, I expected people to not like it, even though I liked it. I thought people were going to be annoyed by things.”
How House of the Dragon is Rekindling a Snuffed-Out Flame
The Game of Thrones finale is probably one of the most controversial finales in television history. Universally panned by audiences and many critics for its inconsistent writing and arguably deliberate ignorance of major character arcs, the sharp downfall from the show’s ending lingered dark and heavy over HBO for a time. Creative confidence in the network began to wane. Several previously planned spinoffs recreating other major events in author George R.R. Martin’s universe ceremoniously fell through, save for at least one.
House of the Dragon, one of the most highly anticipated shows in 2022, debuted on HBO and HBO Max with a whole lot to prove, and it evidently did not disappoint. With a new, robust cast and notably new directors and writers (save for veteran Miguel Sapochnik), audiences praised the refreshing enactment of the impending Targaryen civil war known as the Dance of the Dragons. Or at least the beginning of it so far. The first season recently concluded with a dramatic cliffhanger (especially for those who haven’t yet read ‘Fire and Blood’), leading to even greater anticipation for the second season, which won’t arrive until 2024.
Nonetheless, the dragon-filled prequel has reignited confidence and hope in the fantasy series that many fans thought was permanently lost. With four seasons planned to re-enact the tragic war of fire and blood, time will tell if the show holds strong from start to finish. HBO also seems to feel confident with putting this particular prequel at the helm, having rekindled plans for other spinoffs.
