1. Richard Ridings/Jamie Campbell Bower
There've been plenty of recastings in Game of Thrones three year history, but no scene in the show has shown the effects quite so much as the very opening one. The three members of the Night's Watch we see venturing beyond The Wall only to be shortly slaughtered by White Walkers. The role of Ser Waymar Royce, the noble who leads the expedition, was originally to be played by Jaime Campbell Bower, whom you might recognize as Anthony from Tim Burton's Sweeney Todd, as Caius from The Twilight Saga, or as Jace Wayland in the upcoming Mortal Instruments: City of Bone. Rob Ostelere played the short-lived Royce in the series proper while Dermot Keaney took over as Gared, the ranger who quite literally loses his head, from Richard Ridings. Oh, well: actors come actors go, but the stories remain the same. These are just 10 of the actors (unisex term) that have come closest to appearing in Game of Thrones as we know it. Are there any of them you think you would have preferred in the roles, any characters you wish had been recast altogether? Sound off below.