Game of Thrones Fans Are Celebrating the Show's True MVP Andrew McClay
Last night, Game of Thrones: The Last Watch aired on HBO. The documentary focused on the making of [...]
Last night, Game of Thrones: The Last Watch aired on HBO. The documentary focused on the making of the series' final season, and shined a light on much of the show's cast. One actor is being lauded as the unsung hero of the show after the documentary's release. Andrew McClay was featured in the background of ten Game of Thrones episodes, starting out as a Baratheon solider in the fifth season and moving on the Starks in seasons six, seven, and eight. After the airing of The Last Watch, many people took to the Internet to praise McClay's hard work.
Where is internationally critically acclaimed 8 season extra Andy McClay and is he doing ok and does he need anything pic.twitter.com/eWNOefoELR
— gabrielle rza (@gabriellemrza) May 27, 2019
One additional and truly deserved shoutout to Andy McClay, the greatest extra of all time #TheLastWatch pic.twitter.com/5STT8RSTl1
— eric (@j0nerys) May 27, 2019
Extra Andy McClay got more character development in the Game of Thrones Season 8 documentary than any character did in all of Season 8. Amazing.
— Will (@willtscott) May 27, 2019
I don’t think there is a more pure human being than Andy McClay. I’m so glad we got to meet him and witness a part of his story tonight. #TheLastWatch #GameOfThrones pic.twitter.com/LLh63ULjLR
— Erica Ludwig (@ericaludwig) May 27, 2019
You can see even more tweets about McClay here.
Other than Game of Thrones, McClay has been seen in one episode of Into the Badlands and in the 2017 short film An Irish Story. However, after all the praise coming from The Last Watch, fans of the series are hoping to see him more in the future.
Once fans discovered his frequent appearances in the show, they began calling him Longbeard. During the documentary, the actor revealed that his character's name was actually Aberdall Strongbeard. Pretty close!
McClay also shared in the documentary that he didn't do well in school, so when he finished at the age of 17 he told his mom that he wanted to pursue drama. He also enjoys making up history for his character, once claiming that his brother died in Whispering Wood, the famed battle in which Robb Stark defeated the Lannisters and captured Jaime.
If you want to learn more about Westeros' favorite extra, you can check out the actor's page on Facebook.
Game of Thrones: The Last Watch and all eight seasons of Game of Thrones are available to stream on HBO.