Conor McGregor turns down Predator lead role, says Game of Thrones was never offered

Early in December, reports came out that UFC champion Conor McGregor would be playing a part in the upcoming season of Game of Thrones. Dana White even said that he knew about the role beforehand, and was ‘glad’ McGregor was doing it. Other entertainment sites even had specifics, saying McGregor would have a small, non speaking role as a pirate in “Euron Greyjoy’s crew”.

The news was widely reported, but according to McGregor himself, the role was never really offered to him.

“That thing was everywhere! I’ve never even heard about it,” McGregor said on a recent interview in England. “I’m going to be in Game of Thrones? I heard about it once. Straight after the Nate Diaz 2 fight, Ari and Patrick was standing there, the new owners of the UFC, backstage in the dressing room after I beat Nate. Dana was infront of them, saying ‘these guys want you to be in Game of Thrones.’

“I’m sitting there banged up, my legs in bits, and he’s trying to offer me a Game of Thrones role. I’m looking at them, saying ‘I’m not trying to be in show-business, I’m trying to be in the fight business come at me with a real number to fight again!’ That was the only time I’ve ever heard of the word Game of Thrones, but it went everywhere, months later! I don’t know where that came from,” he said. “I have never been in contact with anyone from Game of Thrones, about starring in Game of f—king Thrones! Don’t believe everything you hear.”

As for an actual movie role that was offered, the UFC champ says he declined to star in the upcoming 2018 movie, Predator. He says he was approached while filming a web series for Pegasus.

"I'll tell you there's a lot of offers that I've turned down. I got offered The Predator movie,” he said. “During that three day course, the people from Predator who are having this new Predator movie, a blockbuster. They came in and tried to sell the whole shit. 'We want you to be the main guy and you're gonna fight Predator' and I'm like 'This sounds brilliant! How much?' Not enough.

“We went back and forth negotiating and the number climbed up but if I was to do it, it would mean eight weeks Toronto or somewhere. It's too long a time. You can't do a million things at once,” he said. “The Pegasus thing was one thing because it was like three days, in and out. But seven, eight weeks on a film set is heavy as f—k. Plus it would have crept in around when Dee is due. I didn't want to get tricky with that so I turned down that offer."

There’s a couple of popular Hollywood names already tied to the Predator sequel. While it’s unclear what “main guy” role McGregor was specifically offered, it is reported that Narcos star Boyd Holbrook is now the lead actor in the film.