Honestly, it’s hard to imagine anyone else as Jon Snow. We’ve spent years looking at Kit Harington’s brooding, "I know nothing" face. But here is the wild reality: Iwan Rheon Game of Thrones history nearly started with him wearing the black cloak of the Night’s Watch.
He was that close. In the final callback for the pilot, it came down to just two actors for the role of Jon Snow. It was Kit and Iwan. They chose Kit, obviously. But the showrunners, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, couldn't forget the Welsh actor with the piercing, slightly terrifying blue eyes. They kept his name in a drawer for a few years, waiting for the perfect moment to bring him back. When they finally did, they didn't give him a hero’s sword. They gave him a flaying knife.
The Mystery of "Boy" and the Long Game
When Iwan finally joined the cast in Season 3, his character didn't even have a name on the call sheets. He was just "Boy." For an entire season, fans who hadn't read George R.R. Martin’s books were left scratching their heads. Who was this weirdly charismatic guy "helping" Theon Greyjoy escape, only to lead him right back into a torture chamber?
Iwan knew, of course. He’d been told he was playing Ramsay Snow (later Bolton), but he was sworn to secrecy. He couldn't even tell his castmates at first. He just had to show up and be... well, a psychopath.
What’s fascinating is how he built the character. He didn't just play a "bad guy." That’s boring. Instead, he looked for the "joy." The producers told him during his audition that Ramsay shouldn't just be evil for the sake of it—he should be having the time of his life. Iwan took that and ran. He modeled Ramsay on a mix of the Joker (Heath Ledger's version), Dennis the Menace, and Liam Gallagher. It’s that swagger, that chaotic "what am I gonna do next?" energy that made him so much more than a typical villain.
Why We Couldn't Look Away
Ramsay Bolton wasn't like Joffrey Baratheon. Joffrey was a brat with too much power. He was annoying. You wanted to slap him. But Ramsay? Ramsay was a professional. He was a tactician of misery.
The relationship between Iwan Rheon and Alfie Allen (Theon) is one of the most intense things ever put on television. Off-camera, the two were actually quite close, which is probably the only way they got through those scenes. Iwan has often talked about how difficult the torture sequences were to film. There’s a specific kind of mental toll that comes with pretending to be that cruel for twelve hours a day in a cold, damp studio in Belfast.
The Scene That Crossed the Line
Every actor has a limit. For Iwan, it was the wedding night of Ramsay and Sansa Stark.
He’s been very open about the fact that he didn't sleep the night before filming that scene. It was "horrible," he said. While the show was famous for its violence, that specific moment sparked a massive backlash from fans and critics alike. Even for a show about dragons and ice zombies, it felt too close to the bone. It was one of the few times Iwan felt truly uncomfortable with where the character was going.
Beyond the Dreadfort
It’s easy to forget that Iwan Rheon is actually a lovely, soft-spoken Welsh guy who writes folk-pop music. If you listen to his album Dinard, it’s almost jarring. You’re waiting for a lyric about flaying people, but it’s actually just beautiful, melodic stuff.
He also came from a background that was the total opposite of Ramsay. Before Iwan Rheon Game of Thrones became a household name, he was Simon Bellamy in Misfits. If you haven't seen it, Simon is a shy, invisible, socially awkward nerd. The range it takes to go from Simon to Ramsay is basically Himalayan.
He’s kept busy since leaving Westeros, too:
- He played Mick Mars in the Mötley Crüe biopic The Dirt.
- He took on the role of Maximus in Marvel’s Inhumans (we don't talk about that show much, but he was the best part of it).
- He’s done voice work for games and even played a young Adolf Hitler in a comedy short. Talk about typecasting.
The Battle of the Bastards: A Fitting End
Ramsay’s death is widely considered one of the most satisfying moments in TV history. Watching Jon Snow finally land those punches felt like a decade of catharsis. But even in his final moments, Iwan played Ramsay with that same smug, "I've already won because I've broken you" attitude.
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The fact that he was eaten by his own hounds—the "starving" ones he bragged about—was poetic justice at its peak. Iwan actually liked the ending. He felt it was the only way Ramsay could go out. He couldn't just die in battle; he had to be humiliated by the very cruelty he created.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Actors
If you're looking to appreciate Iwan's work beyond the memes of him eating a sausage, here’s how to dive deeper into his craft:
- Watch Misfits (Seasons 1-3): To truly understand his acting range, you have to see where he started. The transition from the "creepy but lovable" Simon to the "utterly monstrous" Ramsay is a masterclass in character development.
- Listen to "Dinard": It will completely reset your brain. It’s impossible to be scared of him when you’re listening to him play acoustic guitar and sing about love.
- Analyze the "Joy": If you’re a student of acting, watch his scenes again. Notice how he never plays the anger. He always plays the amusement. That is why Ramsay is so terrifying—he’s the only one in the room having a good time.
Iwan Rheon turned a character that everyone should have just hated into a character we couldn't stop talking about. He proved that a villain doesn't need a tragic backstory or a complex motive to be iconic. Sometimes, they just need to really, really enjoy their job.