‘Game of Thrones’ King Joffrey Actor Jack Gleeson Makes Surprise TV Return and Fans Are Beside Themselves

Fans are reacting after it was announced that actor Jack Gleeson is returning to acting six years after his reign as King Joffrey on Game of Thrones came to an end. On Monday, it was confirmed that Gleeson would be returning to TV in a much less sadistic role, joining the cast of the upcoming BBC comedy series Out Of Her Mind.

At this time, details of Gleeson’s role are being kept under wraps, including his character’s name. From British comic Sara Pascoe, the series “subverts the traditional sitcom format by combining eccentric characters, animation, and scientific explanation,” according to Entertainment Weekly.

The role will mark Gleeson’s first since his time of the popular HBO series Game of Thrones came to an end. His onscreen counterpart, King Joffrey, had been widely disliked, with the backlash at times transcending from screen to real life.

Keep scrolling to see how fans are reacting to Gleeson’s return to the small screen.

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“Good for him to have had a time off,” one fan praised the actor’s decision to briefly step away from the limelight. “He would’ve been hated even if he played roles of a protagonist in other shows.”

“I never forgive him on what he did to Ned [Stark],” wrote another, referencing Gleeson’s wifely-hated Game of Thrones counterpart.

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“What an actor!” tweeted somebody else.

“Look at the guy sooo innocent,” joked another, adding a laughing face emoji.

“Nice I hope he played a better role this time around,” commented another person.

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“He did a great job being Joffrey,” applauded one fan. “I still really hate that face.”

“Oh that’s nice,” wrote one person. “The actor seemed like a real sweetheart in interviews, it would’ve sucked if the anti-Joffrey sentiment had made him abandon a career he was so good at.”

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“Such an amazing actor! Hope he doesn’t get hate irl again,” wrote another, prompting someone else to write, “He does that’s why he stop doing tv show/movies for a while.”

“He’s sooo good at being evil,” shared somebody else. “I can’t see him the other way round.”

“Good to see him,” commented another fan.

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“The best GoT Villain,” wrote another person.

“No no he needs to remain dead to me don’t care,” added somebody else, who is clearly still reeling from the terror King Joffrey rained in Game of Thrones.

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After one fan pointed out that they believed Gleeson had decided to take a step back from acting after his GoT character was killed off, several people jumped in to comment, one person writing that he retired “for a bit untill the hype d.ed and now it did.”

That same person later explained that “people couldn’t difference he actor from the character and hated him so I get it.”

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Since King Joffrey’s death on Game of Thrones in the 2014 episode “The Lion and the Rose,” which was followed by a brief appearance in the episode “Breaker of Chains,” Gleeson has not held any further acting credits. Speaking to the Independent just prior to his character’s death, he admitted that he didn’t “want to do any more professional acting.”

“After Game of Thrones, I’d be happy to do some amateur plays but I don’t think I want to do any more professional acting,” he said. “I’d like to be an academic, a philosophy lecturer if possible. I’d do a Masters in Ancient Hebrew maybe, and a PhD hopefully, if I get in.”