Massive spoilers for House of the Dragon Season 3, Episode 6 are ahead! You can stream it with an HBO Max subscription, and then catch new episodes every Sunday at 9 p.m. ET.
I always hope that when a character is written off a show, the actor gets to find out about it in a formal or exciting way. However, sometimes they find out reading a script, and other times they just get a phone call. For Fabien Frankel, he found out that Ser Criston Cole would be dying in House of the Dragon while standing in a ridiculously random place.
Criston Cole died unceremoniously in House of the Dragon, as he was shot and killed by arrows while talking about a battle. Of course, he got to beat up a bunch of guys during a smaller battle right before; however, that proved to be for nothing as his men were surrounded by a much larger army. Then, he died, and that was that. I feel like Frankel learned about all this in a fairly unceremonious way too, as he got the call at the U.S. embassy in London of all places. Recalling what happened after his phone rang, the actor told EW:
It was out of season, so it was unexpected. And I knew, as soon as the phone rang and it said Ryan Condal [showrunner], I was gonna get it. But he was very magnanimous and very generous and told me how it was gonna happen and said that he was writing something really special for it — and he did that.
House of the Dragon was Fabien Frankel’s breakout role, and he’s been working on the show for years now. Criston Cole’s death is a very big deal (even though many fans hated him). So, to find out he was going to die while standing in to renew his visa is honestly wild.
It’s also ridiculously random. Like, to learn a major secret about a show that also impacts your career while in a government building is remarkably unexpected. So, while Frankel’s character does die in the book, he was surprised to learn about his fate on the show this way. And then, once he found out, he just kinda had to go back to being in line at the U.S. embassy. Recalling how that felt, the Task actor said:
I was suddenly back in this U.S. embassy realizing that I’m dead, but I felt it coming.
We’ve had to learn time and time again that no one is safe on HOTD. I mean, in Season 3, Jace died, and then Criston Cole met his demise a few episodes later. Plus, this was bound to happen eventually, seeing as House of the Dragon is a book-to-screen adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood. However, even if you know it's coming, death is still shocking.
Now, as House of the Dragon airs its final few episodes on the 2026 TV schedule, I feel like it’s very possible more major characters could die. If that happens, I’d like to know how the actor’s learn about their fates. Clearly, the call can come at any time, and even if you know your time on the show will eventually be up, it’s still ridiculously random and wild to learn this information officially while standing in line to renew a visa.
