The UFC lightweight champion and former featherweight champion seems to be making inroads to a career in pictures, with a role on HBO’s Game of Thrones.
It’s good to be the king. Conor McGregor has taken the UFC by storm over the past 3 or so years since making his debut in the Octagon. “The Notorious” ran roughshod over the featherweight division, picking up (and leaving) the featherweight belt behind in his wake. A planned jump to lightweight was momentarily thwarted by a two fight series with Nate Diaz at 170 lbs. But, McGregor got back on track pretty quickly and, after defeating Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205, became the first fighter to win belts in two divisions.
Is Hollywood next? It might be.
Speaking with The Sunday Life newspaper, a source close to the situation told reporters:
“It’s been agreed that McGregor will appear in one of the remaining two seasons of Game Of Thrones. He was headhunted as it were by HBO, as one of the Game Of Thrones directors is a huge UFC fan. They believed that he would be a perfect fit for the show.”
The news is perhaps a little less surprising considering McGregor has already had some contact with actors on the show, even going so far as to release a sparring video with “The Mountain,” Hafpor Julius Bjornsson. Add in the continued use of shooting locations in and around Belfast, and it may be that we see a tiger-tattooed warrior showing up on HBO in the not-to-distant future.
In the meantime, McGregor is apparently taking some time off with a new baby on the way. He’s expected to return late spring of 2017. Who he’ll fight then, be it Khabib Nurmagomedov, Tony Ferguson, or maybe even Nate Diaz again, remains unknown. Stay tuned to Bloody Elbow for more news and updates.