Theon Greyjoy (played by Alfie Allen) had one of the most interesting story arcs of Game of Thrones. He started off as a ward of the Starks, before trying to prove himself to his family and falling into the clutches of Ramsay Bolton (Iwan Rheon). However, he ultimately redeemed himself in the end after saving Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner) and sacrificed himself for Bran Stark (Isaac Hempstead Wright) as he was slain by the Night King (Vladimir Furdik) in the Battle of Winterfell.
In an interview with Haute Living, Alfie Allen has opened up about playing Theon, revealing how tough he found the role.
Theon went through a huge transformation, particularly after he was held hostage by Ramsay which saw him tortured and castrated as well as having to witness the rape of Sansa.
The 33-year-old British actor explained: “I don’t regret getting the part of Theon.
“There were times during the show that I would have said different without a doubt, but, then again, I don’t want to do Theon a disservice. [It goes without saying that] the relationship I had with that character was hard at times, but it’s lovely that I get to end this journey on a positive note.”
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He went on to say the filming process of the Reek scenes were “really, really hard” at times.
Allen, who is the brother to singer Lily, said: “I’d walk into rooms and it would feel like I was standing there naked.
“It’s different now, I suppose. Because [Theon died with] honor and redemption, people have come off the hate wagon and are now liking the character for how he went out.”
“I poured my heart and soul into the character and my work, but there were times during the show that I felt I was being laughed at.
“Theon, Reek, whatever we called him at the time, was being humiliated on the show, this global juggernaut, for such a long time.”
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He added: “And it was hard to separate myself from the character. It can really take a toll.”
Along with auditioning for Theon, Allen also went for Viserys Targaryen (Harry Lloyd), Robb Stark (Richard Madden) and Jon Snow (Kit Harington).
Allen admitted that Theon was perhaps one of the most human characters on the show, saying that he had made mistakes but in the end redeemed himself when it came to the crunch.
The actor confessed he wasn’t sure he was “destined for a happy ending” and thought he’d struggle after the HBO series, saying: “I was properly getting ready to get back to not working.”
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Since his ordeal of playing Theon/Reek, it looks like Allen is going from strength to strength with the star appearing in the film Jojo Rabbit and How to Build a Girl.
He’s also appeared in the third season of Hulu drama Harlots.
Reflecting on the controversial ending of Game of Thrones, which caused a huge uproar among fans, Allen said: “HBO set out to do a fantasy show that was steeped in familial relationships, and I think that’s what the last three episodes did; it rounded out those bonds.”
He defended Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, saying: “Some people might think it was hastily done, but what kind of pressure Dave and Dan were under, we can only guess.”
The actor said the ending was a “tough” thing to get right and given sky-high fan anticipation, it was always going to be hard to meet expectations.
