‘Game of Thrones’: Who Is The Mountain?

The Mountain is among the Game of Thrones characters to make it to the show’s final season, and continues to play a big role as the menacing giant standing beside Cersei Lannister as she sits on the Iron Throne. With his face hidden behind a helmet and his excessively violent nature, he has become an unforgettable cog in the show’s supporting cast.

The character’s true name is Ser Gregor Clegane, a knight of the House Clegane and Sandor “The Hound” Clegane’s older brother. He became known as The Mountain That Rides and simply The Mountain.

The Mountain’s biggest moment under the spotlight came during Season 4, when he faced Oberyn (Pedro Pascal) in the arena and crushed his opponent’s head with his bare hands. After the duel, Cersei (Lena Headey) learned that Oberyn’s weapons were covered in a deadly poison and Gregor would die. However, Qyburn (Anton Lesser) experimented on Gregor.

After Cersei’s walk of atonement in Season 5, Qyburn introduced her to the “new” Mountain. Now, the Mountain looks even more imposing, wearing a full suit of armor with his face completely covered. All that remains visible are his red eyes and the bluish skin that surrounds them. To this day, The Mountain remains completely loyal to Cersei, doing whatever she commands.

The Mountain is one of the few characters in Game of Thrones‘ run to be recast. In Season 1, he was played by Conan Stevens, who left the series because of scheduling conflicts. Ian Whyte, who played a White Walker in Season 1, played The Mountain in Season 2.

While Whyte has continued to play minor roles in the show, including the giant killed by Lady Lyanna Mormont (Bella Ramsey) in “The Long Night,” Icelandic strongman Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson was cast as Gregor for Season 4. Since then, Björnsson has played the character.

In the past few years, Björnsson has gone viral several times thanks to videos of his incredible strength. He currently holds the title of World’s Strongest Man and was the subject of an ESPN E:60 documentary.

During that 2017 interview, he surprisingly admitted to steroid use in the past, but insisted he has never failed a test while competing for the World’s Strongest Man titles.

“When you want to be the best, you do whatever it takes,” he said of his steroid use.

However, when asked if he was still using steroids, the 30-year-old asked if the reporter could “just skip those questions.”

Björnsson did say his training has caused his family to worry about his life, considering he also acts and works as a pitchman. He is also raising a daughter from a previous relationship, and is married to Kelsey Henson.

“When you are putting yourself through all this, I’ve always thought about, ‘What if I pass away?’” Björnsson told ESPN. “It would be very hard to know that I left my family too soon. I want to be there for my family. I want to be there for my daughter. But this is my life. This is what I enjoy to do.”

Björnsson will defend his title at the 2019 World’s Strongest Man competition in Bradenton, Florida on June 13-16.

Game of Thrones airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO.

Photo credit: HBO