GoT star says he expected a backlash when he read the final episode
Game of Thrones star Joe Dempsie has spoken out about the show's divisive final episode.
The reaction didn't come as a surprise for Joe, who plays Gendry on the HBO fantasy series, as he expected that kind of criticism when he read the script at the time.
Speaking to Nihal Arthanayake on BBC Radio 5 Live, he admitted: "Personally, when I read the finale, I remember saying at the time, 'I don't know how well this is going to go down'.
"It might be the kind of ending that might need to percolate and maybe with the passing of time, people might appreciate [it]."
Following the news that Kit Harington is taking a break from work to focus on his mental health, Joe went on to say how the main actors of the series were under "a lot of pressure" and that he was grateful not to be part of "the core group of actors".
Related: GoT star may have spoiled the end of George RR Martin's books
"One of the things that struck me when I returned in season seven, was how life had profoundly changed for quite a few people in that cast, in terms of fame and recognition," Joe added.
“And it made me really thankful that I wasn't one of the core group of actors, that really has to carry the weight of this show on their shoulders, and whose faces sell it because it is a hell of a lot of pressure."
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He continued: "For a lot of the others, for whom it's all they've known for the best part of a decade, it's a really hard thing to deal with – that being taken away all of a sudden."
Nihal Arthanayake is on BBC Radio 5 Live, Monday to Thursday from 1-4pm.
Game of Thrones aired on HBO in the US, and you can also catch up on the show via Hulu. Viewers in the UK can catch up via Sky Atlantic and NOW TV.
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