Varys, a bald man in fur-trimmed robes, from Game of Thrones

Varys

2019reaction imageclassic

Published October 4, 2026

Varys, also known as Lord Varys, is a Game of Thrones character played by Conleth Hill who became a Reddit reaction image in May 2019 after a shipwreck scene showed him coughing on a beach. His execution in "The Bells" and a leaked table-read clip of Hill reacting to the script fueled a second wave of fan-appreciation memes on r/freefolk.

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Overview

Varys, also known as Lord Varys, started as a book character in George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire before entering the HBO adaptation Game of Thrones in 20112. The meme version has two flavors. The first is a reaction image taken from season eight episode four, "The Last of the Starks," showing Varys lying face-down on a beach and coughing up seawater after a shipwreck3.

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The second strain is fan-appreciation imagery of actor Conleth Hill, built around his visibly frustrated reaction during a cast table read filmed for the documentary The Last Watch1. Posts in this strain pair stills of Hill with text praising him for sticking with a script he reportedly disliked, often framing him as a stand-in for fans who felt let down by the final season4.

Origin & Background

Platform
HBO (source scene) / Reddit (viral spread)
Creator
Unknown
Date
2019

Varys first appeared on August 1st, 1996 in Martin's novel A Game of Thrones, where he is the master of whispers who collects the secrets of Westeros's powerful families1. He was introduced to the HBO series on May 1st, 2011 in the third episode, "Lord Snow," played by Conleth Hill2.

The meme format emerged on May 6th, 2019, the day after "The Last of the Starks" aired, when Redditor enterprise1 posted the beach shipwreck still to r/freefolk as a reaction image. The thread, which framed the Night King arc as a plot device to shrink Daenerys's army, pulled more than 51,200 upvotes in its first week1.

How It Spread

The reaction image strain spread almost entirely through r/freefolk, the ex-r/GameOfThrones splinter community where fans vented about season eight1. A second wave kicked off on May 12th, 2019 when "The Bells" aired and Daenerys executed Varys. In an exit interview with Entertainment Weekly, Hill said Varys had been sidelined after season six and that he was "bummed" to miss a final scene with Littlefinger5.

On May 26th, 2019, HBO aired the documentary The Last Watch, which showed Hill at a cast table read reacting to his death with visible frustration1. The next day, Twitter user @Peg_lin1 posted a clip captioned "Varys throwing the game of thrones script across the table is all of us right now," which pulled over 260 retweets and 1,200 likes in 24 hours6. On r/freefolk, user SwitchTow posted a Hill still captioned "THIS 👏 MAN 👏 DID 👏 NOT 👏 KNEEL 👏" that cleared 59,000 points7, and user KillLaKyle90 paired Hill with Mark Hamill under the caption "Both actors hated the script but still gave amazing performances" for over 47,000 points8.

Timeline

1996-08-01

Varys debuts in George R.R. Martin's novel A Game of Thrones as the master of whispers.

2011-05-01

Conleth Hill plays Varys for the first time in Game of Thrones episode "Lord Snow."

2019-05-05

"The Last of the Starks" airs, including the beach shipwreck scene later used as a reaction image.

2019-05-06

Redditor enterprise1 posts the shipwreck still to r/freefolk; it clears 51,200 upvotes in a week.

2019-05-12

Varys is executed in "The Bells," prompting Conleth Hill's critical exit interview with Entertainment Weekly.

2019-05-26

HBO airs The Last Watch, showing Hill's reaction at the table read.

2019-05-27

@Peg_lin1 tweets the "throwing the script" clip; r/freefolk fills with Hill appreciation posts.

Frequently Asked Questions