As we reported yesterday, Game of Thrones has been busy with shooting in Iceland this week, shifting filming over to the beach in Vík. Several cast members have been spotted in the country, creating an eclectic group of characters in one storyline.
Today we can add to the headcount, with reigning gingerbeard Kristofer Hivju sharing a photo on Instagram this morning that confirms the Tormund Giantsbane actor is in Iceland.
In the picture is a LARC-XV, an “amphibious cargo vehicle” according to the brief wiki entry, a sort of boat and truck in one. This particular LARC-XV vehicle is found in Iceland, confirmed by several sources including this other photo taken several years ago in Skeiðflötur, a place located only a few minutes’ drive away from Vík and the black sand beach Reynisfjara.
Reynisfjara was home to filming this week, with its famous black sands…and that might be black sand in Hivju’s photo. Given that the show appeared to be filming a small boat landing over the past couple days, it makes sense they’d need a special cargo vehicle to handle their equipment in and around the water.
I’ll skip the extensive spoilers in this article (check into yesterday’s report for more about who else has been spotted and what they’re likely filming), but I’ll also mention there are rumors that Kit Harington has once again been spotted in Iceland. Those reports are unconfirmed at this time, however, so take them with a grain of salt until we have some sort of proof.
It is true. All of it.
The leaks.
If Kristofer just arrived, that means those photos on the beach we got yesterday weren’t with the hunt crew, since the formation wasn’t complete.
Which means the hunt crew will start shooting this week, once they’re all present ! We now have Kris, Liam, Joe, Iain and presumably Kit in Iceland.
Two men (and one woman) short ..
Hopefully we’ll see proof of Kit being there soon !
Thanks for the post, Sue !
GeekFurious,
It was totally obvious the moment they made the frozen lake set at Wolf Hill Quarry. Any doubt left in my mind regarding those leaks was gone after that.
GeekFurious,
Yeah, and can I say how calming this is? Like, if we didn’t have them, right now, this place would be a flurry of competing theories and, let’s be honest, insults.
As it is, I’m pretty calm about the next season. …and, actually, the season after, too. It’s as if ASOIAF/GOT has ended already for me, to be honest.
Yaga,
But why ? That’s like saying you already know how its going to end. The final season could still go in every which way.
Wish I could be as relaxed as you are !
You’d think the production team would be more strict on what the actors can post on social media. Although I guess this isn’t too spoiler-y to the average person.
I don’t know if I’m ok with the fact that I know the entire plot of S7. I mean, the decision was up to me so it’s entirely my fault anyways. I’m not one to have regrets so it’s not that bad, it’ll still be nice to see how the scenes play out visually. (yup, I’m in denial) Are you guys ok about it? Is it the first time since it’s past the books that you know so much in advance?
Irina Stark,
There’s no indication that he only just arrived. He could have been there for a couple days. More accurately, we only just found out about it. 🙂
Everyone, there’s no spoilers in this post, so please be careful about covering your spoilers, especially the leaks.
GeekFurious,
Why don’y you not get ahead of yourself? We have no actual ‘confirmation’ on many things 1. The leak is vague, lacks context, lacks details (especially with indoor scenes), lacks plot points we’ve gotten from other sources (Iron Bank, King’s Landing parade, who knows what else is thee) so we don’t have it all 2. It was a pre-production leak, which means the season won’t be just like it (that’d be a post-production/screening leak for you). Consider rewrites, filming changes (scenes added, cut out, altered), post-production editing and cutting-room floor that are common and unavoidable. 3. Leak traps. Different versions of script which is a fact. 4. The word has it that there have been massive rewrites. 5. Who knows what the source was (but unlikely it were the scripts). 6. Even if scripts, as an industry insider would tell you “A script is not finished until the movie is released”. “Screenplays evolve while they’re being shot and we hate to have people think they are getting the whole picture.”- DreamWorks’ executive.
So all in all, we don’t have the whole picture. Far from it. We just have glimpses at the outlines.
GeekFurious,
To me it became obvious when
leak
Also “Well, if I know how many outdoor scenes I will have to shoot, which indoor scenes I am unable to keep under wraps, the schedule of all these shootings, which actors are going to return and with whom they are going to interact – in short, if I am a producer/scriptwriter – it wouldn’t be difficult to write a script that, once leaked, could be “confirmed”, letting people believe they have the real deal, even if such “confirmations” are there by design. Usually, what “fits” is not what is “true”. There is always the answer that fits and the answer that is true. But if we give away a roadmap to guide others analysis, we can make sure they stop at the answer that “fits”.
It’ll be a great day when it turns out it was their trick all along. Wouldn’t be surprising given their lack of any response and action concerning it.
I like a good bear.
phantomcloud,
The leaks may lack in details, I agree with that. But it doesn’t change that we know pretty much all the major plot points for next season, and that’s a fact, either you like it or not. Saying the opposite is plain denial at this point.
I recall saying quite some time ago that I figured we’d probably know more about this season before it began than any other, despite not having a ‘book’ guide. And here we are, lol. Was kind of hoping to be wrong, but I live for spoilers so it’s all good!
For some reason, Kristofer’s ‘partial face’ Instagram photos always make me smile. 🙂
Irina Stark,
No photos, but reports that
?
Pigeon,
That’s fantastic news. I can’t wait to see how he interacts with the others, it’s going to be great.
Flayed Potatoes,
I absolutely love that. I’m a sucker for harmonious arcs. It’s really quite brilliant.
phantomcloud,
I see your point but I don’t think they would go so out of their way to deceive us. Maybe bring in an actor or two on set, tweak a few things here and there but the bulk of the season was out in the open for the world to see and there’s no doubt it was true at this point. I wonder what caused this leak, they seem to have major security issues. Hope it doesn’t occur next year as well.
What ?
Irina Stark,
Well, how to put it… My thoughts have long (ie since I first read the books, which was before/during season 1) been that ASOIAF/GOT is essentially three stories packed into one: the story of the Stark girls avenging the deaths of their parents; the story of the Jaime-Cersei-Brienne love triangle; and the story of the War For Dawn. With every step the show is taking, this feeling is being confirmed. So that’s part of what relaxes me – think about how it was for me before season 5 and arguing that, no, Stannis would *not* become the Night King or some such nonsense that the rabid Stanfans peddled. And how terrified I was before the Season 6 finale that Margaery or the High Sparrow would pull one off against Cersei! By comparison, the current situation is positively calming.
And then you have the fact that, if the leaks are correct, (leak and book spoilers),
. And, you know, that’s enough for me. A lot of individual characters will probably die, but that’s just the way of things. Valar morghulis. It’s the humanity that counts.
phantomcloud,
I think we can say with some certainty what the general outline for S7 will be and some of the key events that will take place.
Yaga,
I like that. And as much as people love to quote Ramsay saying this won’t have a happy ending, I think you can look at the two things that inspired ASOIAF/GoT which were the Wars of the Roses in real history and Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings and see where this story is going. Both sources had the same conclusion: bittersweet, many lives lost. They also both ended with marriages that united the realm. So I see it ending with an important wedding. Maybe Tyrion and Sansa, maybe Arya and Gendry, I’d love to see Dany marry most of all but sadly I don’t think she’ll make it to the end. Regardless this supposed marriage will pave the way for the future of the kingdoms. If I am right, and I very much think I am, GoT will have the same ending as the War of the Roses, just as historian Dan Jones said. As for ASOIAF, we’ll probably be old when A Dream of Spring comes out, haha !
Last year it was leaked that we would see the origin of Hodor in season 6. But the leak was that he got knocked in the head by a young Robert Baratheon. So take things with a grain of salt.
Some of what we “know” could be disinformation or misinformation.
Awesome car.
I really really really hope no one leaks the final season, I don’t wanna know how GOT ends before I see it.I think it would really ruin it, so hopefully it doesn’t happen.
Red Nightmare,
That was just trolling and it also happened at the time that season 6 was already airing so maybe that guy happened to see an early screening of the episode but just wanted to mess with us,there was also a lot of trolling in regards to LSH making an appearence,one even from one of the actors who played the rogue Brotherhood members that killed Brother Ray . I also believed the leaks were fake at first since that guy didn’t have any proof besides stuff that we already knew but as the time passed and the sources of this site matched with what he said,it’s pretty clear at least 90% of it is real .
Mel,
It’s going to happen whether we want it or not,the show is too big at this point to avoid leaks,maybe not the whole season but i guarentee you the ending is going to be spoiled just like Han Solo dying was spoiled just like Dumbledore dying was spoiled and lots of more examples of this kind . The best thing you can do is avoid this site(even though it’s the safest unfortunately you can’t control dumb people)and all the other sites that cover GOT and ASOIAF at least until the season is over .
Irina Stark,
I’m not sure saying that the War of Roses has a happy ending is a correct assesment of what really happened. A young girl forced to marry someone she doesn’t love to save her life and that of her sisters and mother after the murder of her brothers isnt’ exactly very romantic. Tudor was a stingy, cold bastard and he refused to marry his ‘intended’ until he was crowned to show everyone that she was ‘nothing and had no power’ and that he was King because he won the throne through right of conquest not through marriage. His Mother Margaret acted more like the Queen and dominated her daughter in law and she was the real power behind her son (shades of Cersei)while Elizabeth herself was relegated to doing her duty and bearing children like a good little wife should. Though Henry VII was successful in enriching the throne monetarily, people were said to be happy when he died as he was considered somewhat of a tyrant. While their marriage certainly ended the War of the Roses, I’d say calling it happy for Elizabeth was a stretch. More like a resigned peace and acceptance of the inevitable in a patriarcal world.
Mel,
It’s going to happen but hopefully the admins don’t allow any leaks on here …like they really tried this year but unfortunately there were people who kept posting stuff and now nearly all of us know the leaks … this year will sort of prepare us .. those who read the leaks myself included will watch the season and while it will still be great will feel the effect of knowing too much and will stay away from spoilers next year … that should stop most of us from even looking for spoilers but there’s still gonna be the odd douche who wants to know before every1 else
Tormund Lionsmane!
Yeah, it’s not the admins. fault all this leak business at all. They did the best they could to avoid that info spreading here, but at one point it was just unavoidable. The leaks were just a quick google search away to anyone who wanted to read them, and when it was evident that a good portion (at least) of them were legit, well, it was impossible to pretend that they don’t exist.
Lisa,
There is a huge amount we do not know, plus we know an outline of whats happening but how those events will be shown on the screen. I expect to be thrilled, moved, worried and rather surprised!
That’s not really accurate.
We told people last year that fans would discover the origins of Hodor in s6- that was something our sources told us and we knew it was accurate. We also provided the casting list for season 6, which included several young boys fighting with wooden swords.
People began to combine those two facts and speculate that Robert was one of the young boys and that he had hurt Hodor. But there was never a source that really said that. It was just people’s speculation based on two other items.
That happens a lot of every year, people start to forget the origin of the info.
Red Nightmare,
From: Long-time lurker, first-time poster…
I learned my lesson last year about taking alleged “leaks” with a grain of salt. Some extra on set leaked details of The Battle of the Bastards. (I did not intend to read them. They were contained in uncovered spoilers on another site. )
Most of the leaked details were true (e.g., that Wun Wun would burst open the gate to Winterfell), but without accurate context or chronology, he made it seem as if Jon Snow, Littlefinger and Ramsay were already inside engaged in negotiations when the giant suddenly tried to break down the gate. As we know, Littlefinger wasn’t there, and Jon Snow turning Ramsay’s face into a hamburger patty was not quite a “negotiation.”
There was also the report of bodies of at least two “well-known” characters burning on Bolton crosses on the battlefield. I remember the rampant speculation that Ramsay would necessarily choose to display the corpses of characters whose death and mutilation would have a demoralizing effect on the Stark-Wildling army, and so the logical assumption was that the two corpses burning on the crosses had to be Tormund and Davos (among a few other candidates) and would’t be some random, nameless guys. Yet, it turned out that the burning bodies belonged to random nameless guys.
Along with the “grain of salt”, I wonder why, especially on on supposedly spoiler-free posts about filming of scenes or actors’ presence, there’s been a proliferation of redundant “The leaks are true! The leaks are true!” comments, or lenthy comments with the word “Leaks” followed by a long swath of text covered in grey spoiler coding. Replies, related comments, and the not-infrequent comments with uncovered spoilers are enough to taint those who do NOT want to know about or discuss the “leaks.” Polite admonitions from the moderators don’t seem to help, and worse, it has scared off long-time commenters whose observations and opinions I’ve enjoyed reading.
I have been sketching out my own predictions and observations based solely on the actual content of the episodes to date, with acknowledgements to Wimsey, Dee Stark, and other commenters who’ve provided invaluable insight into the storytelling and adaptation processes (e.g., “Chekhov’s Gun” and callbacks to prior events and disclosures); and a “glass half-full” appreciation for everything the showrunners have done so well under enormous time constraints, while overlooking the occasional misfire (like the mercifully euthanized Dorne narrative detour, and shoehorning Sansa into the Theon-Jayne Poole storyline). I doubt any of us has ever undertaken the monumental task of adapting a sprawling literary work consisting of thousands of pages into 73 hours of episodic visual medium, especially with the source material only half-finished. So while it’s informative to read comments with well-reasoned analysis that point out occasional inconsistencies (e.g., Arya’s care-free sightseeing stroll around Braavos and resulting apparent disembowelment), I wince when I read invective-laden accusations that “Dumb & Dumber” are “hacks” guilty of [that cliched fall-back] “lazy writing.” No work of art or creative endeavor is without perceived imperfections, but these producers and actors have delivered a product of unprecedented quality. That makes it all the more ridiculous to see condemnation of Season 7 as “fan fiction” before we’ve even seen it, based solely on some anonymous clown’s “leaks.”
Sorry for the long-winded digression. I had hoped to convey my polite request that if I venture to lay out a show-only set of predictions of expected developments and destinations for the characters, I’m not bombarded with rebuttals based on “the leaks! “
Ten Bears,
Welcome Ten Bears. You made a lot of points and argued them well. Except for the leak-avoiders like Dee Stark who IMO are smart to protect themselves, we are all in a sort of purgatory right now. I too recall that Season 6 leaks were only partly true and it gives me some reassurance–it looks like all my surviving favourite characters will survive S7. No wonder Yaga feels calm. Where the S6 leaks were wrong, at least I usually got those momentary thrills I had gotten in previous seasons when D&D had made the more awesome deviations from the books. Not all the S6 leaks were pleasing, but there’s still an element of surprise. GoT is known for many things, but surprises, especially in the form of totally subverting tired old tropes, are its bread and butter. We’re all allowed to speculate, preferably with staunch leak avoidance, but we do live in interesting GoT times. So go ahead and speculate. Half the GoT Youtubers do, some totally embracing the leaks, some avoiding them, and most in purgatory with us. But kudos to Sue and WoTW for scooping the Internet on so much of the information and especially the photos that do or don’t provide confirmation of various leak assertions. Like some of you, I’m less open to S8 leaks–they would be too bloody final. We’re still battling for the Dawn and want “bittersweet” to be on our own terms.
Irina Stark,
Oh, yes, I agree! (…With the caveat that the historic Tudor wedding was apparently nothing lofty, as per Kathy‘s post – I didn’t know that! But the propaganda was good.) But the LotR comparison, in particular, also reinforces my feeling that things will… turn out OK in the end, more or less. And, like I said already, the leaks resolved the last of my outstanding doubts. So, as far as I’m concerned, the series may be over already. I even have a feeling that, when all is said and done, the show finale won’t top the Season 6 one – which, in my opinion, was exceptional.
That said, I appreciate that a lot of people, like SRR above, are still fighting the good fight. So, I’ll shut up for now.
Kathy,
I definitely don’t look at it as being a happy ending, besides Dany was inspired by Henry Tudor only in some regards, the fact that he hid in France most of his life like Dany did with Illyrio and upon his return to England above his head waved a flag with a red dragon on it. I’d say George took bits and pieces from his story along with bits and pieces from other ancient historic figures like Alexander the Great and Cleopatra but mostly Henry because he was involved in the War of the Roses. Henry ended it, then sat on the Throne and the Tudor dynasty took over or in this case, the Targaryen dynasty, if she does get the Throne in the end. Henry’s rule was a pretty sappy scenario, mostly unjustified due to him being illigitimate and all that but accepted by right of conquest.
So Dany has the core of Henry’s story and over it there are layers upon layers of kindness, strength, determination and above all, a blood right which Henry didn’t have.
Thanks for the short history lesson, I love reading about this stuff ! ❤️
Yaga,
Yes, the basic idea is there. But we could be in for a treat in regards to who does partake in this Tudor wedding. The WotR counterpart would be Daenerys and a Stark but if she doesn’t survive, I see Tyrion and Sansa marrying most of all. Sansa Stark is the embodiment of Elizabeth of York, just like Elizabeth she was a political pawn her entire life and Tyrion is a Lannister (Lancaster).
It depends where George wants to go, I recall him saying in an interview: “I took the WotR and I tweaked it just a little and I added some fantasy elements and changed the characters, so now you have all the appeal of the WotR but you also have unpredictability. You don’t know who’s going to win, you don’t know who’s going to die.”
If he stays on the course of history, Dany will take the Throne and marry a Stark. If he goes a different direction, well, we’re in for a treat aren’t we ?
Grumpy Kat in Iceland
https://twitter.com/Kit_Updates/status/823499055745630212
Irina Stark,
Dany is not the only character with parallels to Henry VII, Jon has some too. Henry, unlike Dany, was born through a bastard line, which would seem to line up more with Jon. They were both brought up by their uncles. Their mothers (Margaret Beaufort and Lyanna Stark) were young teenagers when they gave birth, their fathers (Edmund Tudor/ Rhaegar) died a few months befor birth. Plus Henry VII’s royal coat of arms features a white dog on the right and a red dragon on the left..
At the same time, Dany has been given the exile and conquest storyline. (The same could be said for (f)Aegon and I have seen a few good theories about parallels between (f)Aegon and Henry VII.)
So this makes it even more murky as to which marriage will end the story lol. (I also believe that the story will end with some important marriage alliance).
LEAK SPOILERS
Pigeon, Irina Stark,
Ten Bears,
Hello Ten Bears and Welcome to the Wall *waves*. You make some good points and I’m not here to argue with them, just something you mentioned which I noticed, but don’t think many people did.
I, too, thought Littlefinger wasn’t in the Winterfell courtyard scene when Jon attacks Ramsay but when I looked really closely on my handily-large-screen-HD-tv I think he might have been. Grabed some stills from the video on Youtube. I think he might come into the courtyard at about the same time as Sansa and is standing near her – which makes sense, they were close to each other during the fighting and further away from WF than those in the thick of it – but we only see him from above. It looks a lot like him on my tv and in the zoomed still I’ve linked to. Not absolutely certain ‘cos we can’t see his face, but right kind of hair and clothes and roughly where I’d expect him to be. Not too sure what that thing sticking out is, looks like he’s gained a handle! 😉 What does anyone else think?
Ten Bears,
Well said.
There is a Battle of the Bastards ‘Making Of’ feature on the DVD, which features filming footage showing LF and Sansa in the background, moving into the Winterfell courtyard as Jon pummels Ramsay.
Alba Stark,
Aah, all becomes clear, thanks for that 😀 I bought S6 but have been lending it out to friends so haven’t watched the extras yet. Shame someone didn’t batter LF as well. I know there’s no need for anyone to do so in the plot at the moment, but we watchers know better! And sadly they wasted the chance for Wun Wun to take out one last baddie by landing on someone when he keeled over.
No problem! Most of that feature is made up of bits from the Behind the Scenes segments HBO put out during the season, but there are a few new bits and pieces added in.
Agree regarding LF – would be much nicer to have Lord Royce leading the Valemen!
Oh my god. ???????
Lulus Mum, hahaha i had a similar idea. Hopefully we’ll have another contest this year.
Ten Bears,
Tell ’em, Ten Bears! Welcome to the Wall!!
Rygritte,
*Internet high five* So few people have access to photoshop it’s up to those of us who are lucky enough to, to use it to its full potential. With great power comes great responsibility! 😉