We had been wondering whether filming would still be going strong for the rest of June, given that many cast members have wrapped already, and now we know the answer to that question: the King’s Landing shoot we have kept tabs on for months has resumed, while an old Northern Irish location makes an unexpected return in season eight!
Our sources informed us that the Cushendun beach parking lot would be closed off today because of Game of Thrones filming, and it would remain so until Saturday. The cast rarely works on weekends, so it’s likely they will only actually shoot for a few days, until Friday. As scheduled, the crew took over the Cushendun caves this morning:
This is unexpected
#GameOfThrones
Via reddit pic.twitter.com/P9lVByYsBw— A Red Priestess (@a_red_priestess) June 6, 2018
The Cushendun caves have appeared in Game of Thrones before, as the secret way into Renly’s camp at Storm’s End. Davos used it to smuggle Melisandre in so she could do her weird smoke monster baby magic. It seems unlikely that the final season will revisit the Baratheon stronghold. This leaves few known candidates, most prominently the Dragonstone caves, which Jon convinced Daenerys to mine for dragonglass last season.
The scene was mostly filmed on an interior set in Belfast. The cave entrance, however, was part of the singular rock formations of Zumaia; that is, the Dragonstone beach. In their return to Spain this year, production did not film in the Basque Country, and they may be looking for a more authentic cave this time, which could explain the relocation.
In other filming news, Los Siete Reinos was sent a video of the King’s Landing set during recent filming. If you have been following our reports, it may not surprise you:
Not much can be discerned from the low perspective where this video was taken, except for the the heavy dark smoke, which can only mean one thing: lots of fire, as has been a constant in this set. Also, of course, this means the King’s Landing battle shoot will continue for a little while longer, which is nice to know. We may get a few surprises yet!
Hodor
Interesting food for thought. Perhaps they find a different type of dragonglass or another form of weapon in the caves that is needed to kill the NK?
Maybe they run out of dragonglass and they need more?
Maybe Jon and Dany just wanted to have epic cave sex?
Beh, no idea.
Such a short filming window in a cave has to mean it’s for a short scene or segment of a scene huh. Like everything it’s just a big guess why they’d need a cave that couldn’t be done with a set, or the previous set if it’s for Dragonstone use. One thought of course has to do with trying to enter the Red Keep by the way Arya came out near the water in S1.
I’m totally willing to watch some of that. š
This might involve scenes of evacuating Winterfell via the crypts, which lead to deeper and older crypts and possibly a system of caverns. There may very well be a back way out.
I would love to see some subterranean wonders under Winterfell! They have hot springs, so there could be thermal vents and bubbling pools and whatnot.
Firannion,
I like your idea.
Jon “the Caveman” Snowgaryen showing his gf a good time in his fetish environment..?
Actually, I like Firannion‘s idea of subterranean WF/evacuation… But it’s unlikely going to be a huge scene if the filming only lasts a couple of days. Maybe they just film whoever is coming out of the cave’s mouth, the rest is in the studio. Or someone(s) going in.
Yay, Kings Landing is burning, and we don’t know how or why!
Anent the first picture illustrating this article (Jon showing the cave paintings to Dany).
My favourite meme from that was a cartoon. Jon rushing into the cave where his Hand is hard at work, Jon going “Quick, Davos, hide the crayons, she’s coming!” hahaha, I loved it!
Unfortunately I’m not on my laptop so I can’t find the link for you all.
(And no, I don’t think Jon or Davos faked those cave paintings, the cartoon was just so spot on about how hard our onion knight will work for his lord when he thinks the cause is just and right.)
talvikorppi,
I remember that, it was too funny! š
It would seem sacrilegious to have a Winterfell evac route going through the tombs. We can presume that Winterfell does have “moleways”, underground access tunnels, for the hard winters when the snow is so deep, you can barely get around. But having these evacuate to outside the walls would provide an entry point for invaders, too. Someone always talks.
Then again, this is teevie. GRRM wouldn’t have done it.
They probably are going to add to the cave drawings after the war is over. Whoever survives will go and add some information about what happened. Most likely Jon and/or Dany, since they’re the only ones who saw the drawings.
Firannion,
Iād totally be down with watching Jaime and Brienne escape WF via hot spring. š
Firannion,
Oooo… that’s a good idea. They have to escape WF somehow and we’ve all read/heard about those secret passageways, tunnels, and hot springs… so maybe. I thought maybe it would be used in a Bran vision or something but I hope it’s what you said.
In the World of… book there was a part that seemed to hint at CotF related caves near Storm’s End. Maybe that could be it?
I read an interesting theory that claims Jaime Lannister is Azhor Ahai. I donāt buy into it with the evidence that was presented, but itās an interesting idea.
Apparently, one of the cave drawings shows 3 people. The one on the left is left-handed while the other two have a circle in between them. The theory suggests that the circle between the two people is a symbol for Jon and Danyās destinies linked together, while the left-handed figure is Jaime.
The other part of the theory states there is a translation error that, once cleared up, will shed light on the identity of the hero. According to the Valyrian dictionary, the words for ālordā and ālightā are āaeksioā and āonosā. However, the words for āgoldā and āhandā are āaeksionā and āondosā. Therefore, Jaime is Azhor Ahai.
Food for thought.
talvikorppi,
I remember laughing when I saw that, and also thought of the Far Side cartoon of a village where the natives are hiding the tvs and such, captioned “hurry, the archaeologists are coming!”
Yeah, and they get distracted by another hot bath and… one thing leads to another… and no more maid of Tarth. And then they’re overwhelmed by the enemy, and Jaime dies in the arms of the woman he loves, and Brienne in the arms of the man she loves, and I’ll cry a river. :sniff:
Not that I think this is how it’s gonna go down but I like to collect possible Jaime death scenes – I think he’s 99% certain to die, Brienne maybe not so much. Or what do I know, lol!
ash,
Aah, the Far Side! Yes, and I remember the exact cartoon you mentioned. š
Except… wasn’t it the anthropologist coming..?
I still think it’s like a 75% chance or greater that Brienne’s last scene will be filling in Jaime’s pages in the Book of Brothers with his great deeds.
That’s a lovely thought. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed Jaime’s arc and feel he has evolved in the most positive way of any character (and that includes Sansa and Theon) but I agree that his chances of making it out alive at the end are fairly remote. He deserves to expunge his ignominious legacy as Kingslayer.
Clob,
Woot Woot! Heeāŗ. My crazy spec for the day is that Dany and Jon find a way to return safely to valyria and become amateur archaeologists…
talvikorppi,
I discovered (googled) the Jaime Weirwood stump dream where he and Brienne have flaming swords. If he dies I think it may be while he and Brienne are fighting the AotD.
Only if they stop for a “conversation” along the way. š
talvikorppi,
Oh jeez. I just read what you wrote after I posted pretty much the same thing. Yes! Detour for Brienne & Jaime to take care of unfinished business, eg, to make her into the former Maid of Tarth.
The reason I like the idea of a very secret subterranean escape from WF is because the books repeatedly make a point that the crypts go several levels deeper, far deeper than the present level. If the swords of the oldest Kings of Winter on the most recent level (= the one we’ve seen) have already rusted to nothing… The iron swords put on the tombs of even older Kings of Winter must have rusted away as well.
In the books, in his first POV chapter, Ned goes to the crypts with Bobby B, and seeing the tombs, thinks how the swords are placed across their tombs to keep the spirits or the old lords and Kings of Winter from rising, Ned also observes how several have rusted to nothing and feels unquietened about it. Like, are their spirits now free to haunt the living? Ned shrudders at the thought. This is at the first level. The swords on the lower levels must have rusted away long before. (Except the very oldest would have bronze weapons, before iron-working came to Westeros, wouldn’t they?)
So why haven’t the old Kings of Winter/their spirits stirred? Will they ever, or is it just a superstition?
Or are they guarding the secret escape route? Warding it? Will they rise and fight against the real enemy?
The phrase “the North remembers” is bandied around as some sort of a motto glorifying the North, but it’s patently obvious the North does not remember. Fair enough, it’s been 4000-8000 years since the last Long Night. (As an aside, House Royce of the Vale has a “magical” bronze armour inscribed with old runes that nobody can deciphre anymore, and the house words are “We remember”. hahaha)
This is a long way of saying that the ghosts of old Kings of Winter may let living creatures pass but not dead (wights) or ice creatures (white walkers). Once the’re awakened, probably by Bran and/or Sam with his horn.
Or what do I know. š
The idea of the passageways was set up all the way back in Season 2.
Leuwin and Theon have the following conversation in 210:
L: Join the Nightās Watch. Once a man has taken the black, heās beyond reach of the law.
All his past crimes are forgiven.
T: I wonāt make it to the Wall. I wonāt make it feet past the Winterfell gates.
L: There are ways. Hidden passageways built so the Lords of Winterfell could escape.
zandru,
To add to my long post above. I don’t think whole armies or garrisons or smallfolk women and children will be able escape through these putative caves. Just the characters that matter plus some lucky ones.
The Unsullied, the Dothraki, most of the armies, almost all smallfolk… dead.
Clob,
Stop! Tears are springing to my eyes just imagining that…. bittersweet. I would love it though!
(ducking for using the same overused word used by the cast to describe the final season…. but that’s the best word for this one, sorry!)
Mr Derp,
Yeah, I’ve read Jaime = Azor Ahai crackpots. I’m not convinced, not even by made up language words being kinda similar.
As all WotW regulars know, I’m a huge Jaime fan. I want him to find himself, reconcile his past and his present, his ideas of honour and reality. Mature and even find a meaningful, deep relationship with a woman, based on mutual respect and love… erm, until he dies in her arms.
Azor-ahaing would deny Jaime these deeply human experiences. I want some others cursed with it.
Have you actually read the chapter and the weirwood dream and the immediate aftermath?
It’s a very complex book thing – people are writing 20-page essays about it – and the show omitted it (sacriledge! sacriledge!) but still managed to get the most important thing. Jaime went back and rescued Brienne from the bear.
The show version is a bit thinner, doesn’t go as deep into characters’ heads – it’d be well-nigh impossible in a moving image medium. But the showrunners hit the important character points in especially the earlier seasons.
That would be a great final scene for Brienne! I’ve thought this exact same thing. The tears.. they’re coming..
Whaah whaah blub blub. I’m nearly tearing up now, thinking about the sad end of Jaime&Brienne. š
talvikorppi,
Nope. Just the chapter excerpt and some of the analyses. They mentioned Jaime saving her from the bear and a possible tie in to the Lady Stoneheart storyline. I focused on on the flaming swords part as well as them fighting adversaries until the flame of Jamie’s sword dimmed…
talvikorppi,
Aaaaaaaaaaaaa! dear lord yes anthropologists. Geesh.Ok this is the second time today I put my foot in my mouth – backing away from keyboard and looking for something else to do with my time…. (thanks)
krupke,
The dream, and things immediately before and after, should be read as a whole before bits get analysed to death. If you haven’t read the whole thing yourself, you should be wary of any analyses focussing on just one bit or another while ignoring others.
That said, it is fruitful to analyse the dream in detail – but always keeping the big picture in mind.
My biggest revelation, and also Jaime’s, came after he’d woken up.
“It was not him, he thought. It was never him.”
To understand Jaime, you have to understand who “him” is and why this is important. Like, super important.
talvikorppi,
if not him. who was it? (I haven’t read books. I’m curious though.)
Ten Bears,
Ned.
I’ve always been struck by a similarity between Winterfell and Dragonstone: they both have geothermal energy, but DS is more obviously volcanic. Obsidian occurs when lava is cooled quickly. That is one way we know DS had volcanic flows in the past.
WF heats its rooms with hot spring water flowing through the walls, in the book. Many posters have speculated what WF’s heated underground may portend. Since WF is closer to the wall, why wouldn’t WF have crypt drawings about the Others and their
symbols?
I’ve wondered if the spiral and circular symbols had anything to do with the seasons of Westeros and Dany’s prophecy about when she can have a child. Is the orbit of Planetos knocked off kilter by something, and will conquest of the Others restore regular seasons to Westeros by fixing the orbit of Planetos? Red comet could impart force here also.
And speaking of the sword forged from a falling star, recent analyses of falling stars here on earth have revealed rare isotopes of metals in meteors. So mayhaps that particular sword will have especially strong properties in the war for the dawn.
Clob,
Ohhhhh. In the words of Brienne’s other would-be suitor, “I like it!!!”
(Even though I’d love it if Jaime actually survived.)
Oops, sorry! I read your question too fast, not thinking. My bad. (It is past 5 am here so I’m not at my best.)
The answer is actually Jaime.
talvikorppi,
Possibly my favorite chapter ending in the books: “I dreamed of you.” So simple, but it knocked the breath out of me.
(The other one, of course, is the ending of the penultimate Hound & Arya chapter, which to me is most telling–in subtle GRRM fashion–of how much he has come to care for her.)
krupke,
The part of the Jaime weirwood dream that stood out to me was the flaming swords. It was very telling that the flame went out on Jaimeās sword while it didnāt go out on Brienneās. I think this meant that Brienne kept her oaths as a sworn protector while Jaime did not. He realizes that Brienne is the honorable āheroā that he always wanted to be.
In the books, they are on their way to a āmeetingā with Stoneheart. I believe Jamie will sacrifice himself so that Brienne can live. But not before professing his love for her and dying in her arms… Also, despite Jamieās redemption arc, he did push a toddler out of a castle window. So how can you fault Lady Stoneheart for punishing him for that crime? That is a sin that must be repaid & I believe Jamieās final act will be recognizing that and making the ultimate sacrifice.
This, I like!
Not to mention killing his cousin to get out of captivity. And standing by Cersei for way too long (at least on the show), which may very well be his undoing as Lady Olenna said.
Aegon the Icedragon,
Bran was hardly a toddler š But yes, pushing him out the window is in my mind his worst crime (People in Westeros would probably rate killing the king he was sworn to protect and fucking the queen (=treason) as worse, but that’s the society they live in.)
This is why I’d love for Jaime and Bran to meet, to resolve the issue. It can be argued that Jaime’s horrific deed actually helped Bran become what he now is, the Three-eyed Raven, whose role will be crucial in defeating the Others…
I’m not saying that Bran should thank Jaime or anything such. But it might sway Bran in not having him executed. Or maybe he will give the nod, Arya will slash his throat, take his face and use it to kill Cersei… ugh, I’m not a fan of that scenario but it is possible.
As to Lady Stoneheart, I think both Jaime and Brienne will survive the encounter, there seems too much story left in Jaime’s arc, e.g. valonqar, Rhaegar’s children (fAegon or Jon). It’s not even a given they will meet LSH, they could be intercepted by the Blackfish, for example. But we shall see.
Enharmony1625,
As to the cousin, that’s a show-only thing (in the books Jaime’s cousin Cleos Frey dies in an ambush by outlaws). The reason why many book!Jaime fans grumble about the show’s handling of the character is because the show made Jaime much worse and Cersei much better (smarter, less cruel, more human). Oh well, I understand most of the choices, even endorse them. But it is annoying. š
BTW, I agree with you and Lady Olenna. Jaime’s relationship with Cersei might be his undoing.
I foresee Jaime sincerely apologizing to Bran for what he did and Bran responding with little care or emotion and/or telling others that it was a necessary event and Jaime is needed (for something). He’s not ‘Bran’ anymore after all. “It doesn’t matter anymore. It’s not important.”
I was wondering about the cousin-killing as I was writing that. Having read the books only once (and seen the show 5 times all the way through), it’s hard sometimes to reconcile smaller details between show & books. Good to know.
I really don’t mind the show’s portrayal of Cersei and Jamie as compared to the books to be honest. Except for Cersei’s sudden IQ boost in season 7. š
Logistically it may be possible, but story-wise and character-wise I don’t see that happening at all. It would severely taint Arya’s character and completely waste Jamie’s arc because it would ultimately suggest that the point of his existence would be to serve other characters’ purpose. i.e. He’s just a tool in the demise of Cersei.
Bran: “I saw you boinking your sister. You were so beautiful.”
Jaime: “That’s it?”
What happens in that Hound-Arya chapter?
Ten Bears,
Iāll respond when Iām on my laptop. šŗ
Aegon the Icedragon,
I agree with your post, but Bran was 8 in the books, 10 in the show
Pffft! Tea all over my tablet. š
Very much yes to the bit I bolded. I like Arya quite a lot but if she kills Jaime I’m gonna HATE her forevvverrr!!! hahaha.
Arya is quite judgemental, maybe Bran can teach her some moderation?
Now, how on earth is Jaime going to survive meeting Dany? He killed her father, a King he was sworn to protect. Maybe Tyrion?
Anyway, I don’t think our soiled knight will survive. I just don’t want him killed for petty revenge.
Wait so is filming officially finished now after this week?
As for the caves my first instinct is this is either an escape or entry into either Winterfell or Kings Landing. That said, with so many actors having finished filming it could be something completely different.
talvikorppi,
I agree….Jaime will probably die. But as much as his wish is to die in the arms of the woman he loves (and as much as I’d like that wish to be fulfilled for him), Renly (her first love) died in Brienne’s arms. If the second man she loves dies in her arms too, it will move beyond poetic to just plain tragic, from her perspective at least.
I do think the hot spring scene needs to happen though!
This š