'Game of Thrones' Casting: Sorry, No Angela Lansbury

It turns out that the rumor was just a rumor. Game of Thrones won't be turning into Murder, She Wrote next season, and Angela Lansbury won't be part of the bloody HBO drama's new cast. The internet had been awash with rumors about the alleged casting news this week, thanks to an unfounded report on a German gossip website. A spokesperson for the 90-year-old Lansbury denied the rumors, however.

The rumor didn't seem extremely outrageous, even if Lansbury's career to this point hasn't included many roles as gritty in tone as GoT. Just last week, news had surfaced that British actor Jim Broadbent, who has appeared in films as family-friendly as the Harry Potter series, will be playing a significant role in GoT next season. The series has become a place where just about any reknowned British actor of any age can feel right at home.

But not Lansbury, apparently. The actress' publicist said on Wednesday that Lansbury will not be appearing on the series. HBO didn't offer any comment, and there's no word on whether a role on the series was ever offered to Lansbury in the first place.

The upcoming seventh season of Game of Thrones does not yet have premiere date. Production on the series has been delayed, and the premiere will reportedly come later in the year than the usual fall debut.