Game of Thrones Actor on *That* Ser Meryn Trant / Arya Stark Scene 

Game of Thrones Actor on *That* Ser Meryn Trant / Arya Stark Scene

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Ian Beattie talks about Season 5 and his theory on Syrio\'s "death."

Warning: Game of Thrones: Season 5 spoilers follow...

In celebration of Game of Thrones: The Complete Fifth Season recently arriving on Digital HD, IGN\'s own Joshua Yehl got to speak with actor Ian Beattie -- aka Ser Meryn Trant -- about his character\'s gruesome death this past season, as well as his thoughts on what 

IGN TV: So this is Season 5 coming out, and Season 5 was your final season on the show. What was it like to end on the show in such a gruesome way?

Ian Beattie: Well, funny, [executive producers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss] have said this once before -- and not without a touch of style -- that when it\'s your turn [to die], they phone you at the start of the season to let you know that it\'s your turn. I thought that personal touch was typical of the two of them - that they phoned me before and to say "Valar Morghulis." But they did say I would have a spectacular death, which of course it was, and that we also get to see a real side of Ser Meryn -- which I thought meant I was going to kill Bronn or something, like a popular character. Alas, no. It turns out we saw a pretty gruesome and despicable side to the character, which proved to be very, very challenging -- perhaps the most challenging two days of my career, to film those particular scenes. But nonetheless, I was extraordinarily grateful to get them.

IGN: What was it like filming that final scene with Maisie Williams?

Beattie: That took awhile. We filmed it over three days. The first day was episode nine. The second day was the first part of episode 10, where I\'m beating those three gorgeous little angels. And the second part, the last day, was just myself and Maisie and the death scene. I mean, it was wonderful. When you\'re working with somebody like Maisie Williams, it\'s unusual. It\'s just a measure of the young lady that I was able to put my complete trust in her. And hopefully she was able to put complete trust in me as well. You know, we went for it -- we

went for it. We had total confidence in each other, and it was a fantastic day.

By that same token, there were technical issues. After both my eyes were put out, I was wearing prosthetics over my eyes, so for the last several hours I was completely blind. [Laughs] So I arrived on set sort of being handed cups of tea, and it was a very, very weird feeling. I don\'t think I\'ll ever take blind people for granted again. But in a way, it actually really helped the scene because I personally, rather than my character, felt very, very vulnerable. And I was able to show fear and vulnerability because of that. But it was a difficult thing. It was by no means easy. But I think we nailed it.

IGN: Yeah, definitely. It was really, really intense. In Game of Thrones, a lot of characters have moral shades of gray, but Trant was just this awful person all the time. So what was it like playing this character that the audience just loved to hate?

It was only when episodes nine and 10 of Season 5 came out that we found out what a horror and what an evil person [Ser Meryn] really, really was.

Beattie: For the first four seasons it was actually a lot of fun. In the books, Ser Meryn would be reasonably two-dimensional. At first, I have to be honest, until I read the scripts for Season 5, I thought he was just a thug, a bully and a coward. It was only when episodes nine and 10 of Season 5 came out that we found out what a horror and what an evil person he really, really was.

I have to say, I find it very, very difficult to find one redeeming feature in this character. But I think there was one. I think he was fiercely loyal to Cersei. He may have even been a little bit in love with her, I\'m not quite sure, but he was certainly fiercely loyal to her. I suppose that was one positive that I found from him. But it was still great fun to play him. It was a great time. I have to say, I\'m so grateful to David and Dan for giving me the opportunity to play such a despicable character. I would like to think and hope that I have very little in common with him. I don\'t tend to beat my children up, which is good news. [Laughs] But he was great fun to play.

IGN: You said there that he might be in love with Cersei. Is that something you used to explain that fierce loyalty to the Lannisters, or something that the producers gave you?

Beattie: No, not at all. That was something of my own. I never actually reached a conclusion one way or the other, whether he was in love with her or whether he just adored her in the sense that you would adore someone who is so far above your station, that you would with a hero or heroine. Perhaps I phrased it wrong. Perhaps not

love, but he certainly loved her, and he certainly adored her. He would have done pretty much anything for her. The woman had that sort of strength, and I think he really responded to her strength, and he would have done anything for her, I believe.

IGN: You know, Trant survived a long time compared to most other bad guys.

IGN: Definitely. He beat out Joffrey and Tywin. What do you think it was about Trant that let him survive as long as he did?

Beattie: Oh, I think he was a pretty oily character. I mean, he was King\'s Guard to the King, and he was a bit of a sycophant to be perfectly honest with you. He would also never really stick his neck out.

I do remember quite clearly the scene where Joffrey had him beating Sansa, in Season 2 I believe it was, and Tyrion came in with Bronn, and Tyrion basically just said, "If Meryn utters another word, kill him." So Meryn didn\'t utter another word. I think that was quite telling. He didn\'t push it. I like to think he thought he was a survivor, and he stuck close to the people who were in power and who could afford him that form of protection. It was only when he slipped out of those gauntlets and slipped indeed out of his armor that he became too vulnerable, and that ended in his death.

Continued on Page 2, as Beattie talks about Syrio\'s death and a tease of what\'s to come...

Game of Thrones First Aired Apr. 2011

Season 5 Differences, Season 4 Differences, Season 3 Differences, Season 2 Differences, Season 1 Differences,

House Stark, House Tully, House Lannister, House Baratheon, House Targaryen, House Greyjoy,

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