In A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, one of the biggest shocks in episode 5 comes during the Trial of Seven. Prince Baelor Targaryen, the heir to the Iron Throne, dies from a brutal head wound. The blow comes from his own brother, Prince Maekar Targaryen, played by Sam Spruell. However, one question remained with the fans following Baelor’s death. They wondered if Maekar does it deliberately or was it just an accident.
Quick read:
• Sam Spruell comments upon Maekar killing Baelor
• Maekar’s confusion between grief and opportunity
• Why does Baelor’s death change everything
What happens in the episode?
During the chaotic seven-on-seven fight, Baelor fights from Dunk’s side. Maekar, on the other side, fights against Dunk, in favour of his son, Aerion. During a particular moment when Aerion is attacked brutally by Dunk, Maekar runs to protect and defend his son. Baelor and Lyonel try to stop Maekar and he swings his mace in the heat of that battle. The strike hits Baelor in the back of the head. At first, no one realizes how bad it is.
However, at the end of the fight, Baelor asks for help removing his helmet; only for the back of his skull to come away with it. He dies right there, in Dunk’s arms. This moment changes everything. Baelor’s death puts Maekar next in line for the throne, setting up big future events in Westeros’ history.
Maekar’s killing blow being delivered AFTER Aerion initially yields so the trial was effectively over by then and Baelor died for nothing I’m going to fucking throw up #AKOTSK pic.twitter.com/WdrG9kWpiV
— yac (@yacinehowlett) February 16, 2026
Sam Spruell’s take on Maekar’s intent
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Sam Spruell opens up about the above-mentioned scene. He says the team filmed different versions to play with Maekar’s level of guilt.
“We did slightly different versions of culpability, I guess; whether it was accident or whether he meant to kill his brother. I think that was really exciting for me to experiment with and to discuss with not only Ira [Parker, showrunner], but Sarah Adina Smith (one of the show’s directors]. There is that kind of deep, deep desire to be number one in Maekar that might be realized by the death of his brother. So all the guilt or all the sadness or all the grief he feels is kind of bracketed by this realization that this means he’s next in line to the throne.”
In other words, even if the hit was an accident in the chaos of battle, Maekar’s ambition colors everything. Grief mixes with a hidden spark of opportunity. The show leaves some ambiguity on purpose as fans don’t see the exact strike clearly, keeping the question open.
Why it matters?
Baelor’s death isn’t just a sad incident; it is a turning point for the story. Baelor was seen as a good, fair leader who could have ruled well. Instead, Maekar rises, and his own flaws play into later Targaryen troubles. Spruell’s performance shows Maekar as a man torn inside. He grieves his brother, but part of him sees the upside. That inner conflict makes him more than a simple character.
