Ed Sheeran Opens Up About Backlash He Received After 'Game Of Thrones' Cameo

Ed Sheeran has opened up about the backlash he received after making an appearance in “Game of Thrones.” In a recent interview, he said he felt he “pissed off a lot of people” with his cameo.

The Grammy-winning singer graced the “Armchair Expert” podcast Monday, where he talked about his appearance in the hit HBO series and the daggers he received afterwards. During the podcast, he told hosts Dax Shepard and Monica Padman that he was a huge fan of the series, pointing out that “everyone would say yes” given the chance to become a part of it.

The singer appeared as a Lannister soldier in the pilot episode of “Game of Thrones” season 7, titled “Dragonstone,” where he and Maisie Williams shared a short scene around a campfire. In the said scene, Sheeran sang a ballad in the medieval woods.

Sheeran said while his involvement in the series made him happy, he admitted people’s negative reaction to it affected him.

“I feel like people’s reaction to it sort of muddied my joy to it,” he said.

Sheeran’s “Game of Thrones” cameo trended on social media at the time, with several fans pointing out that watching him singing like that during his appearance felt a bit too distracting to the plot. However, the singer explained the gesture was meant to lessen the blow of Arya Stark’s death in the original script.

Sheeran also admitted he accepted to make a cameo for his friend Williams, whose character at the time was apparently going to be killed off. He explained that Arya Stark was apparently not going to make it to the end, so he said yes when he was asked to surprise her with his cameo. However, the surprise was ruined by Sophie Turner when she mentioned his involvement to Williams.

“She’s always been awesome,” he told of his dear friend. “I don’t think they had written the ending yet. It was meant to be her last season but it wasn’t. And as a surprise for her, they got me on. So, she was meant to turn up on set. And I was by the fire.”