--- title: 'Game of Thrones' Sean Bean Wants to Stop Dying On Screen description: If you're a fan of the English actor Sean Bean, chances are you've seen him horrifically die on screen. He now wants to change things up. canonical: https://time.com/5683156/game-of-thrones-sean-bean-death-scene/ author: Madeleine Carlisle article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-09-21T14:33:08.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-24T07:25:03.535Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: 'Game of Thrones' and 'Lord of The Rings' Actor Sean Bean Says He's Now Rejecting Roles Where He's Killed og:description: “I’ve turned down stuff. I’ve said, ‘They know my character’s going to die because I’m in it!'" og:url: https://time.com/5683156/game-of-thrones-sean-bean-death-scene/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt84e57d9e5f208715/698a034f457a525adbd62d55/sean-bean-death-scenes.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: game of thrones sean bean death scenes og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 'Game of Thrones' and 'Lord of The Rings' Actor Sean Bean Says He's Now Rejecting Roles Where He's Killed twitter:description: “I’ve turned down stuff. I’ve said, ‘They know my character’s going to die because I’m in it!'" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt84e57d9e5f208715/698a034f457a525adbd62d55/sean-bean-death-scenes.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 'Game of Thrones' and 'Lord of The Rings' Actor Sean Bean Says He's Now Rejecting Roles Where He's Killed ## Video: This Theory Was Left Unanswered in the Game of Thrones Series Finale [Watch (HLS stream): This Theory Was Left Unanswered in the Game of Thrones Series Finale](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/9xk3R1Vy.m3u8) (1:56)  _Published 2019-05-21. If season 8 of Game of Thrones has taught us anything, it’s that prophecies aren’t always what they seem_  by [Madeleine Carlisle](/author/madeleine-carlisle/)  ## Madeleine Carlisle Sep 21, 2019 2:33 PM CUT  Sean Bean attends "Game Of Thrones" New York Premiere at Radio City Music Hall, NYC on April 3, 2019 in New York City. Sean Bean attends "Game Of Thrones" New York Premiere at Radio City Music Hall, NYC on April 3, 2019 in New York City.Paul Bruinooge—Patrick McMullan via Getty Image  by [Madeleine Carlisle](/author/madeleine-carlisle/)  ## Madeleine Carlisle Sep 21, 2019 2:33 PM CUT If you’re a fan of the English actor Sean Bean, chances are you’ve seen him horrifically die on screen. He now wants to change things up. Bean was famously beheaded in the first season of _Game of Thrones_, kicking off the show’s long spree of killing main characters. He took arrows in the chest in 2001’s _Lord of the Rings_, and he was crushed by burning metal in 1995’s _GoldenEye_. As one meme put it, “One does not simply kill Sean Bean.. One must do some repeatedly.” > [](https://twitter.com/NateWeeksLaw/status/689998256479272962) Turns out Sean Bean knows this, and has started turnings down roles where he dies, “Otherwise it was all a bit predictable.” In [an interview with _The Sun_](https://www.thesun.co.uk/tvandshowbiz/9957678/sean-bean-killed-on-screen-rejecting-roles/ "undefined"), published on Thursday, Bean said, “I’ve turned down stuff. I’ve said, ‘They know my character’s going to die because I’m in it!’ “I did do one job and they said, ‘We’re going to kill you’, and I was like, ‘Oh no!’ and then they said, ‘Well, can we injure you badly?’ and I was like, ‘OK, so long as I stay alive this time’,” Bean said. The 60-year-old actor’s repeated deaths are well known on the internet, and even launched a 2014 internet campaign titled #DontKillSeanBean. A 2011 YouTube video titled “Sean Bean Death Reel” has over 2,600,000 views. Bean said he was initially comfortable with his _Game of Thrones_ character Ned Stark getting killed, because he didn’t “want to get stuck in one of these series that lasts seven years.” But, since the show has been such a global hit, Bean added, “But I wish I’d have got stuck now. But it was very clear what \[_Game of Thrones_ author\] [George R.R. Martin](https://www.thesun.co.uk/tvandshowbiz/9901145/george-rr-martin-lord-of-the-rings-amazon/ "undefined") wanted to happen to Ned — and it did.” Bean makes it out alive in his upcoming project, the drama _World On Fire_, which premieres Sept. 29. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5683156/game-of-thrones-sean-bean-death-scene/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5683156/game-of-thrones-sean-bean-death-scene/"},"headline":"'Game of Thrones' and 'Lord of The Rings' Actor Sean Bean Says He's Now Rejecting Roles Where He's Killed","datePublished":"2019-09-21T14:33:08.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-24T07:25:03.535Z","description":"“I’ve turned down stuff. 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