No, that wasn’t Matt Damon in the George R.R. Martin were also hyped about a little HBO show called Game Of Thrones based on his A Song Of Ice And Fire book series.
To be fair, calling Game Of Thrones a “little show” is downplaying its popularity. Even before it became the pop culture juggernaut it is now, Game Of Thrones was drawing in millions of viewers and was nominated for a total of 13 Emmy Awards after its first season came to a close. The success of Game Of Thrones’ first season – and the seven seasons that followed – was no doubt thanks in part to its brilliant first episode “Winter Is Coming”.
Apart from being a fantastic introduction to the show and the worlds of Westeros and Essos, one thing, in particular, caught the attention of viewers during the Game Of Thrones premiere. In the episode’s opening scene, a trio of Night’s Watch rangers are scouting the Haunted Forest beyond the Wall when they happen upon some dismembered wildling corpses, with their body parts arranged ritualistically. Soon after, one of the rangers meets his maker when he’s brutally killed by a White Walker. That character was Ser Waymar Royce – the first character to die on Game Of Thrones – and some viewers wouldn’t be alone in thinking he bears more than a ing resemblance to Oscar-winning actor Matt Damon.
Alas, that wasn’t Matt Damon in the Fantastic Beasts – wasn’t available and the part was given to Ostlere instead.
After making history as the first character killed onscreen in Game Of Thrones, Rob Ostlere had a five-season stint playing doctor Arthur Digby on long-running BBC medical drama Holby City. The Succession writer and co-executive producer Lucy Prebble.