Game of Thrones: Ramsey actor Iwan Rheon faced 'ferocious' dogs in real life

'Iwan was covered in sticky blood and actually tied to the chair'

** Spoilers for season six of Game of Thrones **

Since his introduction in Game of Thrones, fans have been praying for Ramsey Bolton’s death, and when it finally came there were celebrations all around.

However, the bastard’s death by dog wasn’t just fatal for the character; according to director Miguel Sapochnik, the dogs were ferocious in real life, chomping at the bit to get a piece of actor Iwan Rheon.

“There’s always a level of excitement or anxiety when shooting the death scene of any of the characters in the show,” the director told The Wrap.

“That said, it was also a complicated scene because it was late in the shoot and therefore late in the year. Iwan was covered in sticky blood and actually tied to the chair. And then there were the dogs who were pretty ferocious in real life.”

The report details how the dogs being used in the scene were Cane Corsos, or the Italian Mastiff, large dogs who are used to hunt wild boar. Experts recommend spending time with the canines from a young age so they know the difference between friend and foe.

Sapochnik also spoke to the publication about the conditions in which the scene was shot, revealing that 40 people were crammed into the kennel.

“That kind of overpowered ‘what’ we were shooting. And it should,” he said. “Part of a crew’s strength is the way they behave in difficult shooting conditions.

“It also allows the actors to set the tone a bit and I think this was a tough scene for Iwan because it was the death of a character he’s lived with for years. I thought he did a great job as did Sophie [Turner].”

Recently, Turner revealed she had received scripts from season seven, teasing her character’s fate in the upcoming episodes.