Game of Thrones: Joe Dempsie rubbishes 'bonkers' theory about David Benioff and DB Weiss 'rushing' ending

Actor said he thinks final season should have been longer

Joe Dempsie has debunked a Game of Thrones fan theory about why the end of the show was shortened.

The hit HBO series drew to a close in 2019 with a shortened run of six episodes. Other than the drama’s penultimate outing two years before , all seasons of the series typically ran for 10 episodes.

Many fans of the show criticised the conclusion for its rushed nature. A common complaint was that showrunners David Benioff and DB Weiss attempted to cram too much into the six episodes, which ultimately left viewers feeling dissatisfied.

This prompted some fans to claim that Benioff and Weiss had, in fact, checked out and wished to quickly move onto other projects, namely a brand new Star Wars trilogy they were preparing.

Dempsie called this idea “bonkers” in a new interview with The Independent.

“Working with them for a number of years, I know the last thing they wanted is for almost a decade of work to be undone by a final season that didn’t hit the mark,” he said. 

“Also, we’ve all got egos! No one sets out to make something rubbish.”

Dempsie did accept that the final season should have been longer, adding: “Watching it back, I think they could have maybe taken a little more time.”

The British actor, 33, can currently be seen in channel 4 drama Adult Material, in which he plays the husband of a porn star named Jolene Dollar.

Read the full interview with Dempsie here.