Years after aired its series finale, mixed feelings about the show’s final moments remain. And it’s not just fans who have been speaking out lately, the Emmy-winning show’s cast has been vocal about how things ended too.
Among them is Jack Gleeson who famously starred as . The actor seemingly after wrapping his time on the show (although ). And while Gleeson’s character was killed off long before the finale, the actor has since made a rather surprising admission regarding the series ending.
By then, Gleeson had been prepared to leave the show since . “Yeah, definitely. That was one of the first things I did when I heard I got the part: I looked at the Wikipedia summary of the books and my character,” he said.
“So the whole thing wasn’t a surprise. I would’ve been happy to have one episode, or one season in the whole thing. The fact that I had as many as I did was an immense privilege.”
And while some would have been bummed to leave the show so soon, Gleeson just thought it made sense. “I didn’t care that much, because four seasons is enough. You have to end at some point,” the actor explained.
“My dad always says to leave a party wanting more. You should never be the last to leave, when everyone’s kind of sleepy and cranky and like, Oh, this is awful. You should leave a little late, but not so late that it’s bad, the energy is still there. I feel like I left at the right time.”
And while some actors enjoy watching the show long after their exit, Gleeson preferred to move on from the series completely. Just two years after Joffrey was killed off, the actor revealed that he hasn’t been keeping up with the show.
“No, there’s too much to catch up on,” Gleeson said.
“I’ve not a clue what’s going on. In my mind, all these characters are still alive and everyone’s in this place and those people are in that place and they have these motivations, and now everything’s screwed around so much that it’s a completely different show. I’ve no idea. Even when I got the script, I only read my own scenes. I’m just selfish. Maybe I should get into it. I hear it’s good.”
And while the show’s fourth season received much critical acclaim, the final season was labeled to be a disappointment for the most part.
Critics claimed that mishandled its female characters while others argued that the entire season felt rushed. At the same time, fans voiced similar opinions regarding the season too. A petition was even started, demanding that the show change its ending.
As for the show’s stars, some also later admitted that some things in the finale could have been changed. For instance, Lena Headey, who played Gleeson’s mother, Cersei Lannister, admitted , thinking that she could have been given a better death.
“I wanted her to have some big piece or fight with somebody,” the actress remarked. On the other hand, Sophie Turner, who played Sansa Stark (who was once betrothed to Gleeson’s character) was satisfied with the way the story ended for her character.
The actress also spoke out against those who petitioned for the ending to be changed.
“All of these petitions and things like that — I think it’s disrespectful to the crew, and the writers, and the filmmakers who have worked tirelessly over 10 years, and for 11 months shooting the last season,” Turner once told The New York Times.
“So many people worked so, so hard on it, and for people to just rubbish it because it’s not what they want to see is just disrespectful.”
It has been a long time since Gleeson was last in Westeros, although .
“It's funny because it still is such a large part of my life, but it's strange to think that 2014 was the last year I appeared in the show. It's eight years, almost nine years ago,” the actor said while jokingly adding, “I feel like an old man now. Old and wise.”
That said, Gleeson also admitted that he still hasn’t kept up with the show since he left. And that means he doesn’t even know how ended to this day.
“There was something about it where I was just like, 'No, I'll just leave it,’” Gleeson explained. That said, he does have friends who have seen the finale and “were mostly disappointed” by it.
For now, he has nothing to say about it. “Everyone's entitled to their opinion, but I don't have one personally," Gleeson continued. "That's not a political answer. I just didn't watch it.”
And while Gleeson is still refusing to watch and comment on the finale, he has no problem letting everyone know how he truly feels about those Joffrey memes. “I like memes as much as the next guy,” Gleeson said. “I'm into it. I love it. It's just fun.”
