Why did Tommen Kill Himself on Game of Thrones?
Many viewers of the Game of Thrones season 6 finale questioned, "Why did Tommen kill himself?" after his death. The young Baratheon became the heir to the Iron Throne, but finally the strain of his family and the conflict among Westerosi powers overcame him. Given his youth and how more innocent Tommen Baratheon was than his savage brother Joffrey, his death is among the most sad ends for a Game Of Thrones character.
Life of Tommen Baratheon within Game of Thrones
Even displaying respect for the black sheep of House Lannister, his uncle Tyrion, Tommen seemed to be a more sympathetic king than Joffrey. Still a young lad, though, he was terrified and confused, controlled by anyone with claws in him. This covered family members including his mother Cersei, his grandfather Tywin Lannister, his wife Margaery Tyrell, and the High Sparrow. Though Tommen's rule as king on Game Of Thrones was brief, it's not much of a surprise given he lacked any sense of awareness of the dangers surrounding him; nevertheless, Tommen's death was still shocking.
Tommens' Death in Game of Thrones
Tommen's death followed the character's increasing activity in Game of Thrones season 4. Like his siblings, Tommen was surreptitiously the result of a sexual relationship between Cersei and her twin brother Jaime Lannister. He was there for the wedding between Joffrey and Margaery Tyrell and the funeral that followed the death of his older brother. Tommen was crowned the next Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, naive and inexperienced yet.
Margaery turned her attention to Tommen to realign the strong families after Joffrey passed suddenly. Soon after they got married, Cersei became envious of Margaery's impact on her son and gave the High Sparrow more authority, which set off strife right away. Cersei's intention to keep her son apart from the Tyrells backfired when the Faith Militant arrested Margaery and her brother Loras, which resulted in her capture and atonement walk.
The High Sparrow and his religious group progressively brainwashed Tommen. Cersei was to be tried for her crimes even though the trial by combat was abolished. Cersei planned a wildfire explosion at the Great Sept, killing thousands including Margaery, as the trials were about to start. Tommen removed his crown and killed himself by walking out of his bedroom window following the catastrophic incident. Although Tommen's suicide included Margaery's death, the actions of his mother were more important in determining the reason behind it.
How the Lannisters Made Tommen Baratheon Suicidal
In many respects, Tommen Baratheon's death seemed unavoidable. Nearly everyone who met Tommen in Game of Thrones interacted with him in some capacity. While his mother worked to control him, Margaery seduced him in a vulnerable state. Even the High Sparrow knew he was a flimsy young man fit for use advancing the Faith of the Seven. Of course, Margaery's death caused a great deal of loss, but the trauma of growing up a Lannister took front stage.
For Tommen, it incomprehensible that his mother deliberately killed thousands of innocent people in King's Landing, including the woman he loved. Tommen had recently lost his only siblings; those deaths happened soon after Robert Baratheon, his expected father, passed away. The young king felt he had no other choice but to take his own life after realizing his newly discovered faith was a lie and he had nowhere left to turn. It made for one of Game of Thrones' most sudden deaths.
Tommen's Death Filled Cersei's Tragic Prophecy for the Show
Tommen Baratheon's death fulfilled an ominous prophesy first presented in Game of Thrones season five. A flashback in the first episode of season five, "The Wars to Come," showed Cersei looking for the aid of a witch called Maggy the Frog. Demanding that the woman foretell her future, the witch spins a terrifying story that ends up forming Cersei's background and prophecy.
For a moment, you will be queen. Until another, younger and more beautiful, to cast you down and take all you treasure. The king has twenty [children], you have three. Gold will be their shrouds and crowns.
The only thing Cersei Lannister truly worries about in life is her children, thus they will be the thing lost. Poison kills Joffrey; Myrcella dies also from poison in retribution for Oberyn Martell; then Tommen kills himself. All three of her and Jaime's children's deaths finally complete the prophecy; their shrouds are indeed golden.
Maggy the Frog also foretells in the Game of Thrones books that Jaime might be the one to murder Cersei going forward, but this never comes to pass. In the end, the moment Tommen ends his life satisfies this prophecy and in quite disturbing conditions befitting Game of Thrones.
The Cinematography Made Tommen Death Unforgettable
Game of Thrones season 6, episode 10, "The Winds of Winter" was directed by Miguel Sapochnik, who also directed some of the best Game of Thrones episodes, and handles the scene when Tommen dies in an unforgettable way. Tommen sees from distance Cersei's destruction of the Red Keep as he sits in his quarters and is notified of Margaery's death. Tommen is shown facing the window with his back turned to the camera as an attendant tells him he's "very sorry, your grace."
As the attendant leaves, the shot stays the same; Tommen walks offscreen momentarily to remove his crown. Then he returns to the window, which the camera had been centred on all through. The young king moves forward silently, and Tommen passes peacefully out the window. Game of Thrones viewers won't soon forget this elegantly performed sequence. The destruction of the Red Keep had happened mere moments before, which in itself was an incredibly bombastic scene that featured a major character's death.
Designed to contrast the last one and accentuate a quiet death with a dramatic one, the scene where Tommen kills himself is a quiet one. Despite its subdued nature, showing Tommen's suicide still shocked Game of Thrones audiences to the core. As the last of Cersei's children die, she is pronounced Queen of the Seven Kingdoms, but this isn't why Tommen's suicide still lingers as a memory — it's the masterful way this moment was delivered to audiences by Sapochnik.
What Tommen Baratheon Actor Dean-Charles Chapman Thinks of the Death Scene
The Tommen Baratheon death on Game of Thrones might have been a shock for the audience but actor Dean-Charles Chapman has his own thoughts on his characters' death. Looking back on Tommen's demise (via Cosmopolitan), Chapman described how there were many takes of the now-famous fall from a variety of angles, and he admits that "I took a lot of face-plants." Though it likely wasn't the most enjoyable scene to perform multiple times, the take they chose was an ideal one as it is an almost emotionless final act from the young king.
In terms, of the reactions to Tommen's death, Chapman was particularly surprised by how Cersei took the news. After her emotional breakdown at having lost Joffrey and Myrcella, Chapman jokes that he was a little offended that Cersei seemed uncaring about the death of her remaining son and simply pushed past it on her way to the throne.
While it is easy to dismiss Cersei as cold-hearted at this moment, it suggests Tommen's death hit her harder than the other children as she had no more grief to give and even signals a more ruthless change in her. It also suggests that, given that her actions led to Tommen killing herself, she couldn't admit to herself that she was devastated.
Looking at the legacy Tommen left behind, Chapman's main concern was for Ser Pounce, Tommen's beloved pet cat. Though Ser Pounce is never seen again in the series following Tommen's death, Chapman hopes the cat was able to live happily in the Red Keep and find another cat to have kittens with. While it is a nice thought, hopefully Ser Pounce left King's Landing before Daenerys arrived in Game of Thrones season 8.
Kings Dying Early Is a Common Trend in Westeros
Tommen Baratheon's death seemed to mark a very short reign, but Game of Thrones highlighted that sitting on the Iron Throne was not likely to lead to a long life. Indeed, Joffrey Baratheon's reign wasn't much longer than his younger brother's as he took power at the end of season 1 and died a young man at the beginning of season 4.
Even those who simply held the title of king were not long for the world as the War of the Five Kings ignited following the death of Robert Baratheon and all five of those kings were dead by season 6. Even Daenerys Targaryen, the person most fans wanted to see take the Iron Throne, only held it for less than a day before she was assassinated by Jon Snow. At the end of Game of Thrones, Bran Stark is named king, seeming to step into the role at a more peaceful time, which could ensure a longer reign.
Indeed, in House of the Dragon, King Viserys managed to reign for 26 years of prosperity before his death ignited a violent era. The Westerosi king who held the longest reign was Jaehaerys I Targaryen who was on the throne for 55 years, putting Tommen and other Game of Thrones kings to shame.
Tommen's On-Screen Death Is Similar to a House of the Dragon Character
The Tommen Baratheon death was very similar to the Helaena death in House of the Dragon. The first episode of season 2 ended with Jaehaerys Targaryen's tragic death. This happened because Helaena had to give the choice of pointing out who the "correct" child was to Blood and Cheese. The scene replayed one of the cruelest moments in George R.R. Martin's Fire & Blood book. Sadly, this means that Helaena had to make a decision about her children's fate.
Much like Tommen, Helaena had to make decisions she was not ready for. She was manipulated and treated in a way where she felt she had no choice left and ended up giving up on her power and taking her own life. In the books, she becomes extremely depressed after Jaehaerys' death, just as Tommen was with Margaery's death. As a result, Helaena jumped from her window to her death in Maegor's Holdfast, mirroring the exact death of Tommen in Game of Thrones.
