Why It Was A Mistake: Stephen Dillane is actually pretty damned good as the cold and pragmatic Stannis Baratheon. But for all the anger, threats, and vows of honour, TV-Stannis is sorely lacking the physical presence to convincingly back up his words. In the books, Stannis is tall, physically imposing, balding, and has a fantastic beard. TV-Stannis is of average height, average build, has some wisps of hair left, and a permanent case of 5 o'clock shadow. Aside from being physically the complete opposite to what book-Stannis is meant to look like, Dillane is also older than both his on-screen brothers despite portraying the middle son in the Baratheon family (with Robert being the eldest and Renly being the youngest). So not only is TV-Stannis mostly bark with little bite, he looks more like Robert and Renly's long-lost uncle than their sibling. Who Shouldve Been Cast: Since Stannis is meant to be physically intimidating, bald, and cold as ice, look no further than either Mark Strong or Vinnie Jones. Strong is known for portraying dark and twisted villains with a considerable physical edge. Jones on the other hand was previously a professional footballer and he used his intimidating presence to procure a steady acting career by consistently portraying violent criminals and thugs.