The A-List Actor Who Turned Down A Major Game Of Thrones Role Over Money, Then Regretted It

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By

Ben Gibbons

Published May 2, 2026, 7:45 PM EDT

Ben is a Senior Writer on the New TV team at Screen Rant. He graduated from the University of Central Lancashire with a First Class B.A. Degree in English Literature and History.**

Born and raised in Ireland, Ben has always had a love for storytelling in all forms of media and operates multiple projects under the name Benjamin Blogs. Ben is a comic book writer and podcast host, in addition to his work as an entertainment journalist. He has worked as both a writer and editor for Screen Rant, Collider, and other media outlets across various departments, including features, news, reviews, and interviews.

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While Game of Thrones_** became a huge hit and nearly everyone involved saw their careers and fortunes skyrocket, there was one A-list actor who rejected a central role and found himself missing out. Brian Cox, a major star in Hollywood whose career has seen him tackle major roles in franchises like Fox's X-Men, event films like Troy, and arthouse films like Adaptation., was initially offered the role of Robert Baratheon in Game of Thrones.

In his memoir, Putting the Rabbit in the Hat, Cox has outlined that he turned down the role due to the low financial sum he was being offered, and the character's death coming in the first season, which likely meant he wouldn't benefit from any increase in future seasons.

Later, when discussing the success of the show, Cox highlighted how the cast of the show all went on to earn big, and while he found success elsewhere, it seems as though the actor feels that he may have missed out on the payday and the acclaim that came with the series as it developed.

Mark Addy Was Great, But Brian Cox As Game Of Thrones' Robert Baratheon Sounds Intriguing

_ Brian Cox in Pixels (2015)

Mark Addy was the actor who ended up taking on the role of Robert Baratheon, and his unique chemistry with Sean Bean as Ned Stark led to a fascinating and comical relationship on the small screen. However, if Cox had accepted the role, it's intriguing to imagine just how different the show could have played out.

While Addy added humor and brightness to the role of Robert Baratheon, Cox is better known for serious, sullen, and somber portrayals. By extension, if he had taken on the role, it seems likely that the tone of the character would have been darker and more intense. In addition, he may have appeared with more gravitas and appeared as a stronger match for the thorny queen Cersei.

The character is also closely linked to Ned Stark, which means that his impact, like Ned's throughout the entirety of the series, both in terms of his bloodline and legacy, would have set the course for the show in the long run, establishing Cox's role as one of the most pivotal of the series, and likely altering the course of the show in meaningful ways despite a performance that ends with season 1.

Brian Cox's Game Of Thrones Connection Foretold His Iconic Future Role

Logan looking stern in Succession

Looking back on Game of Thrones_ in light of how the series evolved and eventually ended, the conflict at the center of the story was all about who would ascend to the throne as the new King of the Seven Kingdoms. With Robert's death, the power shifts, and his heirs occupy the throne for some time, though the actual bloodline is evidently more complex.

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It's an intriguing contrast to a future role that Cox would go on to tackle when he played Logan Roy in Succession_, a series that revolves around who will take over as the new head of Waystar Royco once Logan Roy passes. Evidently, the two shows vary drastically in terms of their setting, with GoT set in a fictional fantasy world full of monsters and betrayal, but Succession also features monstrous people who stab one another in the back, just in an office setting.

Ultimately, Cox made a choice based on what he felt was best for his career moving forward, and while he may have missed out on the virality of Game of Thrones**, he did find enormous success with Succession. And in any case, he appears to be a continual force in Hollywood, which indicates there was certainly no harm done to his career by not taking on the role of Robert Baratheon.

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Game Of Thrones

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Drama

Action

Adventure

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Release Date**

2011 - 2019-00-00

Showrunner

David Benioff, D.B. Weiss

Directors

David Nutter, Alan Taylor, D.B. Weiss, David Benioff

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Kit Harington

Jon Snow

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Writers

D.B. Weiss, George R.R. Martin, David Benioff

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Game of Thrones

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