'Game of Thrones' Star Nikolaj Coster-Waldau Explains Why He Thinks Final Season 'Pissed Off' Fans

It has been almost seven months to the day since Game of Thrones ended in one of the most divisive series finales of all time. And though the new year is around the corner—a time of leaving negativity behind and starting anew—some fans are still processing their grief.

While many of the stars from the HBO show have addressed why they think the fandom is so displeased, Jaime Lannister actor Nikolaj Coster-Waldau recently reiterated what he (and many other people) believe is the real problem. WinterIsComing reports that the 49-year-old actor recently made an appearance at the Global Citizen Awards, where he was discussing his work as a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Program.

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Was thrilled to meet the nominees for The Global Citizen Prize: Cisco Youth Leadership Award : Luisa Bonin of São Paulo, Brazil; Nashin Mahtani of Jakarta, Indonesia; Alain Nteff of Yaoundé, Cameroon; Priya Prakash of Gurugram, India; and Haroon Yasin of Islamabad, Pakistan. You are all winners showing how we all have potential to make a positive difference in the ? thank you #globalcitizen @dolcegabbana

A post shared by Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (@nikolajwilliamcw) on Dec 13, 2019 at 12:54am PST

During his speech, he briefly discussed the controversy around final season of GoT, saying, “I’ve traveled around the world and what has really been wonderful is how these communities have grown out of a love of this one show,” adding:

“And I also think that’s one of the reasons a lot of people are pissed off. They didn’t want it to end, just period. Did not want it to end. Because does that mean I’m gonna lose my friends that I’ve been hanging out with? People have online communities around the world, and it’s been about this show and our love. Also I’ve met people that say ‘no no we’re going to carry on, we’re gonna keep going.’”

This echoes Coster-Waldau’s co-star and on-screen brother, Peter Dinklage, who recently said that audiences were going through a kind of “breakup” with the series. Though many argue that this is only a fraction of a much larger issue, particularly with the writing and character development, like any good split or loss of friendship, it is going to take some time to get over.