‘GoT’ cast defends final season at Comic-Con 2019

'It made sense to me,' said actor Nikolaj Coster-Waldau who played Jaime Lannister

SAN DIEGO: The Game of Thrones (GoT) cast leapt to the defense of its much-maligned final season in front of a boisterous crowd at Comic-Con on Friday, blaming the backlash on negative media coverage.

The HBO fantasy epic's conclusion enraged fans around the world and organisers of the pop culture convention reminded attendees before the retrospective panel to make the cast "feel welcome."

PHOTO: HBO

While the cast drew a rapturous reception, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jaime Lannister) was booed after describing his character's death in the arms of his sister and lover Cersei as "perfect."

He said, "It made sense to me. This show has brought so many people together, watching it, loving it. So obviously when it comes to an end, it's going to piss you off no matter what... just don't call people names."

PHOTO: HBO

The panel was billed as the show creators' first public outing following the backlash. But David Benioff and Dan Weiss quietly withdrew, along with two cast members earlier in the week. The remaining members expressed support for the final season.

Conleth Hill (Varys) described the fan response to the show over the years as extremely positive, referring to the negativity as a "media-led hate campaign."

PHOTO:FILE

The atmosphere quickly lightened as cast members joked about stealing props from the set. John Bradley (Samwell Tarly) shot down theories that he was to blame for a plastic water bottle accidentally left in a shot. "Pardon me for being thirsty," he joked.

 

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