Angela Lansbury isn’t on social media, but the beloved actress of the stage and screen started trending on Facebook over a rumor that she’d be featured on HBO’s Game of Thrones for Season 7. Long story short, that was debunked. Now for the long story.
Shortly after Jim Broadbent, another acclaimed actor with a variety of lauded credits, was announced in a significant role, a rumor lit up the webosphere over Lansbury’s potential casting. The report stemmed by German tabloid newspaper Bild (via IGN) and stated the 90-year-old legend would have a guest appearance on set for four days that would yield a two-episode arc.
It wasn’t the craziest thing we ever heard, and perhaps people supported its legitimacy because it fulfilled our wildest dreams of having the star of Murder, She Wrote crossing over into Westeros. Plus, the show played host to numerous awards-caliber actors in the past, including Golden Globe winner Ian McShane, who had a single-episode arc.
However, today brings word that this is all just a figment of our Thrones-induced imaginations. EW reached out to Lansbury’s reps, who confirm she will not be featured in the series, even in a minor role. Just think, if Lansbury were on Twitter, she could’ve cleared up the rumor mill in less than a day.
Game of Thrones will return next year for Season 7 before finishing out the series altogether with Season 8. This next run will begin later than usual in order to take advantage of the weather — it’s just not realistic for the producers to film all they need in a winter-less season ‘cause, you know, Winter Has Come. Only seven episodes will begin airing in summer 2017, so savor them while you can because Season 8 will likely have even less.
