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Spoiler hysteria is a pandemic that’s sweeping the Internet. While it’s undoubtedly irritating to have a TV show or film’s plot spoiled for you by some selfish rascal online, when people still deem it acceptable to mouth off months after the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens when anyone mentions Han Solo’s death, it’s clear that we’ve collectively lost sight of how to handle ourselves online. This opinion has been echoed by Ian McShane, who suffered the wrath of the Internet after revealing a major storyline development pertaining to his upcoming appearance in HBO’s Game of Thrones.
McShane raised the ire of fans of the TV show after revealing that his character, a priest, would revive a popular character that was previously believed to be dead, leading to speculation that Jon Snow will be making a reappearance in season 6. But the Lovejoy and Deadwood actor was quick to point out the absurdity of the outrage he has caused in an interview with The Telegraph.
Speaking to the newspaper, he said: “You say the slightest thing and the internet goes ape. I was accused of giving the plot away, but I just think get a fucking life. It’s only tits and dragons.”
The British actor then went on to give away yet another plot twist, adding:” They asked me if I wanted to do Game of Thrones and I said, ‘Sure, I’ll be able to see my old pals Charlie Dance and Stephen Dillane’ and they said, ‘No, we’ve killed them off.’ I wasn’t sure whether I could commit, but then they said it would only be for one episode, so I said, ‘So that means I must die at the end of it. Great, I’m in.’ ”
While we perhaps wouldn’t want to see actors in all of our favorite shows and films wantonly ruining their major plot points for us, we can get behind McShane’s clear ambivalence when it comes to upsetting the Internet hivemind.