Reports are emerging of a most unlikely addition to the ever-fluctuating Game of Thrones cast. According to an Irish newspaper, the show's casting directors have been rather inspired by another popular TV bloodbath: The carnage-filled offerings of UFC.
The Belfast Telegraph reports that 28-year-old Irish UFC fighter Conor McGregor is being offered a role in one of the final two seasons of Game of Thrones. "He was headhunted as it were by HBO, as one of the Game of Thrones directors is a huge UFC fan," a source told the Telegraph. "They believed that he would be a perfect fit for the show." Yep, we can already imagine the buff Irishman kicking butt (Targaryen butt? Lannister butt?) in Westeros — just look at that beard!
Last year, McGregor — the reigning UFC Lightweight Champion — starred in what now looks like something of an audition tape. The MMA champ fought the actor who plays "The Mountain" (a.k.a. Gregor Clegane) on the show, Icelandic professional strongman Hafþór Júlíus "Thor" Björnsson. In the clip, which has been viewed over 23 million times, McGregor looks positively diminutive next to the 400-lb, 6'9" Björnsson — but he moves quick enough to hold his own. If he indeed joins the show, we feel sorry for whatever poor soul he faces on the battlefield.