Pedro Pascal let fans put their fingers in his eyes, until he regretted it

Actor used to allow ‘Game of Thrones’ lovers to pay tribute to his character, Oberyn Martell, in a very peculiar way

Pedro Pascal has shared the hard lesson he learnt after letting fans pose for pictures with their thumbs in his eyes.

Though most recently hailed for his performance in the dystopian drama The Last of Us, the actor is also known to many for his portrayal of Oberyn Martell in season four of Game of Thrones.

The character was a charismatic prince who met a grisly end when fearsome warrior Gregor Clegane gouged out his eyes and crushed his skull in a bloody battle.

During a recent Hollywood Reporter roundtable discussion with other actors, including Succession star Kieran Culkin, Pascal spoke about how he used to allow his supporters to honour Oberyn in their selfies together.

“I remember, early on, because of Game of Thrones and the way my character died, people were super into taking selfies with their thumbs in my eyes,” Pascal began.

“That’s a lot of trust!” Culkin said in response.

“At first, I was so earnest and happy about the success of the character in the show, I’d let them! In New York! Of all places,” Pascal continued.

“And then I remember getting a bit of an eye infection.”

Pedro Pascal (Getty Images)

The conversation, which featured Pascal, Culkin, Snowfall star Damson Idris, Dahmer’s Evan Peters, The Old Man’s Jeff Bridges and Michael Imperioli of The White Lotus season two, had been sparked by a discussion about enforcing boundaries with enthusiastic supporters.

While Idris spoke of some lustful fans telling him that they’ve prepared a dinner date for him “at home”, Culkin expressed his lack of appreciation of surprise physical interactions with fans.

“I was with my kids, pushing a stroller and this guy grabs me and does one of those,” he said, making an action of grabbing a shoulder and shaking it vigorously. “He said, ‘Hey man, love your show’, and I said ‘no touchy!’”

Earlier this month, Pascal was one of several industry figures to show solidarity with the Writers’ Guild of America (WGA) at the MTV Movie and TV Awards for their ongoing strike over working conditions and pay.