You know Conleth Hill as Game of Thrones' Varys, but guess who he originally auditioned for?

Here's a wacky tale from a what-if universe: Conleth Hill, the man behind Game of Thrones' Varys, told The Huffington Post in a recent interview that he originally auditioned for a much different role: King Baratheon.

"[The rumors are] true, to be honest," Hill said. "But I have to say that I came out of the meeting, which went all right, and looked who was in after me, saw who it was, and went, 'Well, he’d be all right for it,' and he was, and he got it. You know, that’s showbiz."

I admit, it's kind of hard to imagine the soft-spoken and manipulative Varys in the shoes of the brash and loud King Baratheon. But with Varys still alive and King Baratheon very much not, I'd wager he's glad things turned out the way they did.

Hill also told The Huffington Post that he was asked to shave himself bald after he'd accepted the role of Varys. He did not say whether or not that too was showbiz.

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Images: HBO