Game of Thrones fans weren’t the only ones dissatisfied with the series finale. In making-of documentary Game of Thrones: The Last Watch, Conleth Hill, who plays Lord Varys in the drama series, looks incredibly upset with his character’s ending, and Twitter has taken notice. As soon as The Last Watch hit HBO, fans pointed out that Hill looked “visibly pissed” during the table read, when he learned that Game of Thrones planned to kill him off in Season 8, Episode 5. “They really did my mans dirty,” said one fan of Varys’ fate.
Towards the beginning of the Game of Thrones documentary (at the 15:14 mark, to be precise), viewers see part of the table read for Season 8, Episode 5, “The Bells.” After creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss introduce the scene, the actors dive in. “I told you what would happen if you betrayed me,” says Emilia Clarke, as Daenerys Targaryen. “You did,” replies Hill. “Lord Varys, I, Daenerys of House Targaryen, first of my name, breaker of chains and mother of dragons, sentence you to die. Dracarys.” With that, Daenerys’ dragon, Drogon, spews fire on Varys, and he burns alive for attempting to hand the Iron Throne to the true heir, Jon Snow.
As Clarke reads Dany’s proclamation, Hill throws his script on the table and becomes visibly upset. He sits back in his chair and crosses his arms, rocking back and forth as his co-stars attempt to comfort him.
Twitter users were quick to pick up on Hill’s reaction. “Varys throwing the Game of Thrones script across the table is all of us right now,” wrote one viewer. “Conleth Hill got it right, this season was dog turd,” said a fan. “My mans was PISSED!!!” wrote another.
Fans seem to be picking up on a very real reaction. After Episode 5 aired, Hill told Entertainment Weekly that he took Varys’ death “very personally.” Said the Game of Thrones star, “I took it as a person, not as an actor or an artist. I understood the reactions of previous actors who had been in the same position a lot more than I did at the time. You can’t help feeling that you failed in some way, that you haven’t lived up to some expectation that you didn’t know about.” He continued, “At the time, nothing could console me. I kept thinking: ‘What did I do wrong?'”
