Ciaran Hinds Didn't Like All The Sex In Game Of Thrones, Wanted More Politics

Actor Cirian Hinds, who played Mance Rayder in HBO's hit fantasy series Game of Thrones, has commented that he felt "put off" by how much sex was in the show. Speaking to The Independent, Hinds said all lovemaking took away from what he believed makes the show great: politics.

"I was rather put off by the amount of sexuality that was going on in it, because it was taking away from the actual political storytelling," Hinds said (via Variety). "But that's business, I guess, from their perspective."

Hinds is joining another mega-popular fantasy series, as he recently signed on to appear in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.

Game of Thrones definitely had a lot of steamy scenes. Emilia Clarke, who played Daenerys, said on the Armchair Expert podcast that she agreed to take on the role with the understanding that the "catch" was that she would perform a number of nude scenes.

"But I'd come fresh from drama school and I approached it as a job: if it's in the script then it's clearly needed," she said. Clarke also discussed her intense sex scenes with Khal Drogo actor Jason Momoa, who Clarke credits with helping her manage those scenes on set.

"He was always like, 'Can we get her a f**king robe? She's shivering!' … He was so kind and considerate and cared about me as a human being," Clarke recalled.

Matt Smith, who plays Daemon on House of the Dragon, told Rolling Stone that he wonders if the Game of Thrones series has too much sex. "You do find yourself asking, ' Do we need another sex scene?'" he said. "And they're like, 'Yeah, we do.' I guess you have to ask yourself: 'What are you doing? Are you representing the books, or are you diluting the books to represent the time [we're living in]?’ And I actually think it's your job to represent the books truthfully and honestly, as they were written."

Kit Harington, who played Jon Snow, told Vanity Fair that his sex scenes with Clarke as Daenerys felt "unnatural and strange."

House of the Dragon will return for a second season, and additional Game of Thrones shows could follow, like the proposed series based on Jon Snow.