The cast and crew of Game of Thrones are mourning one of their own. Actor Andrew Dunbar died unexpectedly on Christmas Eve. Although his exact age was not listed, he was reportedly in his thirties. Dunbar worked as a body double for Alfie Allen, who played Theon Greyjoy on the HBO hit, which came to an end earlier this year. Dunbar also frequently appeared as an extra on Game of Thrones, and was a tour guide on set, and was the DJ at season wrap parties, among other roles.
Andrew Dunbar passed away at his home in Belfast, Ireland, on Christmas Eve, per the Daily Mail. Belfast is a location Game of Thrones filmed in throughout its eight seasons. Dunbar’s other TV credits include the crime drama Line of Duty, the SyFy series Krypton, and the Irish sitcom Derry Girls. The cause of Dunbar’s sudden death has not been disclosed so far.
Along with being Alfie Allen’s body double, Andrew Dunbar contributed to Game of Thrones during one of its most thrilling scenes. Dunbar played one of the Starks' supporters, who pulled a bow and arrow on Ramsay Bolton. It all went down when Jon Snow tore through Winterfell to confront Bolton during the fan-approved “Battle of the Bastards.”
Andrew Dunbar’s Northman got a significant close-up after Jon Snow successfully blocked Ramsay Bolton’s second attempt to shoot him. Dunbar's pitch-perfect reaction added to the dramatic build of the scene, in my opinion. Dunbar’s work with Game of Thrones did not end on-screen. He also continued the connection off-screen, working as a Game of Thrones tour guide. On Instagram, Graham Smith posted the following tribute:
TheExtrasDept also posted a tribute, which shined a light on how in-demand Andrew Dunbar was among productions. They also took an opportunity to share what kind of person Dunbar was, calling him “kind” with an “infectious personality.” Check it out:
On Twitter, one of the actors Andrew Dunbar worked with shared a tribute to the late talent. Jesse Morris shared a picture of Dunbar from his time on Game of Thrones with a caption that commemorated him. Here is Morris’ tweet:
Also, taking to Twitter to remember Andrew Dunbar was Michael Arbuthnot. Arbuthnot’s tweet indicates that the two co-starred together on Game of Thrones as those Stark supporters. Check out what Arbuthnot had to say about Dunbar, and see the sketch he did of him below:
Andrew Dunbar will clearly be missed and touched many lives. It turns out that along with contributed in front of the camera, Dunbar played a pivotal role in those much-documented wrap parties for Game of Thrones. Actor Andy McClay told Belfast Live:
Everyone who met Andrew loved him. He did a lot of different things, including working as a Game of Thrones tour guide which he was brilliant at. He could have made it as a professional actor but he really wanted to do his art and DJ. The acting was special to him but it was mostly for fun and although he’d a lot of talent, when people told him to go professional, he just laughed and said he was happy as he was. His DJ sets were amazing and when he did one set for Game of Thrones, he ended up doing them all for the end of season parties.
Getting to do all of Game of Thrones’ end of season parties is quite a testament to Andrew Dunbar’s DJ skills. It sounds like he had a lot he wanted to pursue outside of acting. On a personal level, he has been commemorated as being someone that everyone adored.
The tributes to who he was as a person are moving reminders of the impact that he had on those who got to know him. CinemaBlend sends its condolences to Andrew Dunbar’s loved ones.
Game of Thrones is currently streaming on HBO GO in its entirety, including "The Battle of the Bastards" episode that features Andrew Dunbar. In related television, there are this winter’s premieres.
