FABIEN FRANKEL’S FIRST ON-SCREEN “DEATH” AS CRISTON COLE, BUT WHAT HE’LL NEVER FORGET LIES BEHIND THE CAMERA
For audiences watching House of the Dragon, Ser Criston Cole’s fate in Season 3 was one of the series’ most talked-about moments. The dramatic sequence marked the end of a character who had been central to the story since the beginning, leaving fans divided over both the outcome and the way it unfolded. Yet while viewers focused on what happened on screen, Fabien Frankel has revealed that the memory that will stay with him forever has very little to do with the scene itself.
Instead, the actor says the most unforgettable part of saying goodbye to Criston Cole happened long before the cameras started rolling—and even after they stopped.
For Frankel, the sequence represented a milestone unlike anything he had experienced in his acting career.
“I’d never died in anything until this,” he admitted in an interview following the episode’s release. “It’s my first-ever death.”
Although countless actors eventually perform a death scene, Frankel’s first experience came after more than five years portraying one of House of the Dragon‘s most controversial characters. That alone made the moment feel far more significant than simply filming another dramatic sequence.
Ironically, the actor already suspected his time on the series would eventually come to an end.
As a longtime fan of George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood, Frankel had read the source material and knew where Criston Cole’s journey ultimately led. Still, knowing something is coming and actually receiving confirmation are two completely different experiences.
That confirmation arrived in one of the most unexpected places imaginable.
Frankel was standing in line at the U.S. Embassy in London, renewing his visa, when his phone rang. On the other end was House of the Dragon showrunner Ryan Condal.
According to Frankel, Condal approached the conversation with great care and respect, personally explaining that Criston Cole’s story was coming to an end. Rather than treating it as routine production business, the showrunner reassured the actor that the creative team wanted to give the character a memorable farewell.
Even though Frankel had anticipated the moment, hearing those words directly still came as an emotional shock.
The phone call marked the beginning of a farewell that would prove far more emotional than he expected.
When filming finally arrived, another surprise awaited him.
Many viewers assume that large battle scenes require several days—or even weeks—to complete. However, Frankel revealed that his final sequence was filmed remarkably quickly. The production reportedly spent only around twenty minutes capturing the essential shots that would become one of Season 3’s defining moments.
Ironically, preparing for the scene took considerably longer than filming it.
Before stepping onto the battlefield, Frankel reportedly spent around ninety minutes in makeup while artists carefully attached realistic prosthetic arrows, including one positioned near his eye. The painstaking preparation contrasted sharply with the speed at which the cameras ultimately captured the scene.
Then came the moment that stayed with him.
Lying on the ground as soldiers rushed past and the chaos of battle continued around him, Frankel described feeling something he had not expected. Rather than excitement or relief, he experienced an unexpectedly strange and somber realization that his years as Criston Cole had truly come to an end.
It was no longer simply acting.
It felt like saying goodbye to a chapter of his own life.
That feeling only deepened once filming wrapped.
Instead of leaving the set empty-handed, Frankel received a deeply personal gift from Ryan Condal. The showrunner presented him with two of Criston Cole’s most recognizable possessions: the character’s helmet and sword.
For many actors, props become treasured reminders of the roles that shaped their careers. For Frankel, these items represent far more than pieces of costume design. They symbolize more than five years of work, friendships, challenges, and growth inside one of television’s biggest fantasy franchises.
Today, both the helmet and sword reportedly remain in Frankel’s London apartment, carefully preserved as reminders of a journey he is unlikely to forget.
Despite saying goodbye to House of the Dragon, Frankel is already looking toward new opportunities.
The actor recently completed work on a horror film directed by Arkasha Stevenson, joining a cast that includes Hunter Schafer, Josh Hutcherson, Emma Corrin, and several other notable performers. The project, filmed in New Orleans, marks the beginning of a new chapter in his career as he moves beyond Westeros.
Still, moving forward does not mean leaving the past behind.
When reflecting on his years with the series, Frankel speaks just as warmly about the people he worked with as he does about the production itself.
Among the cast members he remembers most fondly is Rhys Ifans, who portrayed Otto Hightower. According to Frankel, Ifans was constantly making everyone laugh with unexpected jokes, playful improvisation, and humorous moments involving elaborate costumes and fake beards.
Those behind-the-scenes memories, he says, are every bit as valuable as the finished episodes audiences watched on screen.
In many ways, Criston Cole’s final appearance represented more than the conclusion of a fictional character’s story. It also marked the end of a five-and-a-half-year journey for the actor who brought him to life.
Fans may remember the arrows, the battle, and the emotional farewell shown in the episode. But for Fabien Frankel, the defining memories lie elsewhere—in an unexpected phone call outside an embassy, the quiet emotions felt between takes, the friendships formed over years of filming, and a helmet and sword that now sit quietly in his home.
For viewers, Criston Cole’s story has reached its conclusion.
For Fabien Frankel, however, the experience has become something much more enduring: the first on-screen death of his career, and one of the most meaningful chapters of his life as an actor.