Throughout the existence of Game of Thrones, viewers have seen quite a few notorious villains — some were met with more or less neutral reactions, while others were hated more intensely, but at one point, the situation truly spiraled out of control. Although fans of the series and George Martin's books can hardly be blamed for openly hating Joffrey Baratheon, who went down in television history as one of the most unpleasant characters, it eventually affected the actor who played the role in the series.
Jack Gleeson began receiving threats after portraying Joffrey in Game of Thrones
Fans of the series were ready to celebrate the character's death in the fourth season collectively, but some were unable to separate Joffrey from Gleeson, who embodied the character on screen — and this would have been the greatest compliment for the actor in his career if dozens of fans of the show hadn't started to equate the actor with Joffrey, sending Gleeson threats or insulting him online. This turn of events may have directly influenced the actor's decision to appear less on screen and focus on something else, although, according to him, the main reason lies elsewhere.
Game of Thrones changed Gleeson's view on the acting profession
Although the series became a turning point in the actor's career, it was Game of Thrones that convinced him to change his priorities — as Gleeson himself admitted, with his arrival in the role of Joffrey, acting suddenly stopped being perceived as a personal hobby and turned into a mechanical routine. Nevertheless, the actor does not blame the series for this, explaining that over time, that very hobby, as expected, became a profession — and thus, more responsibility came along, making the process itself less exciting than it had been before.
