The Epic Game Of Thrones Scene Bruce Willis Reportedly Tried To Ruin
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It may feel like an eternity ago now, but at this time in 2019, Game of Thrones was the undisputed king of television. Never before had a fantasy series received so much mainstream attention, nor achieved such massive popularity, from viewers across the globe. However, following a controversial series' finale that left the majority of fans justifiably upset, the program once hailed as one of the greatest of all time has gracelessly fallen off the map in short order. Nevertheless, looking back, there's a lot to appreciate about Game of Thrones, and the effort that went into making it such a smash hit to begin with.
A common point of praise for the HBO original was its stunning visuals that made Westeros come to life on a grand scale. Locations like King's Landing and the Wall were breathtaking because of the attention to detail those putting GoT together maintained. The aesthetic of the show, while incredible, did require a fair amount of CGI and set construction to pull off, so your potential Westeros sightseeing tour will be sadly incomplete. That said, there are still many areas from Game of Thrones you could visit with just a car or a plane ticket.
One such vacation destination is the city of Dubrovnik, located in the nation of Croatia just off of the Adriatic Sea. The region hosted the iconic season 4 fight between Gregor "The Mountain" Clegane (Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson) and Oberyn Martell (Pedro Pascal) at the abandoned Hotel Belvedere, located along the coastline. The sea provided a beautiful backdrop to their otherwise brutal battle ... and nearly contained a cameo from an angry, yacht-driving Bruce Willis — yes, the Bruce Willis of Die Hard and The Fifth Element fame.
Bruce Willis' 'yacht rage' got the best of him
Per SyFy Wire, this tale comes straight from James Hibberd's new book Fire Cannot Kill a Dragon: Game of Thrones and the Official Untold Story of the Epic Series.
Since Game of Thrones is set in the distant past, it wouldn't make much sense for modern boats to occupy the sea, no matter how far off in the background they are. The episode's director, Alex Graves, explained, "When we scouted the amphitheater, there were all these yachts out front, so we needed to make a deal to make sure the yachts weren't there when we filmed. They all backed off a quarter-mile so they wouldn't be in the shot. Everyone agreed to do it — except one person."
According to Graves, and a handful of other people working on GoT at the time, that individual was none other than Bruce Willis. Accounts from those in attendance that day recall the actor's yacht circling the amphitheater where they were filming — as if to say, as Graves put it, "F*** you, I'm in your shot."
However, Willis' "yacht rage"-induced efforts were in vain. Graves noted, "We were all laughing because we were aimed away from the water at that time anyway," so Willis ultimately just made a fool of himself.
Though many remember it as Willis' boat frustratedly attempting to mess up one of Game of Thrones' most talked-about duels, others recollect the day quite differently. Executive producer Bernadette Caulfield stated, "I think that's been blown up a little bit more than it probably really was. We never actually saw Bruce."
Even still, if the story is true, it'll just be another addition to the long list of fun, emotional, and downright odd stories to come from the prank-filled Game of Thrones set.