Casting

Game of Thrones casts Joe Naufahu in season 6

Posted on by Sue the Fury

JoeHere’s a great piece of officially confirmed casting news to cap off the day! Deadline has announced that Joe Naufahu has joined the cast of Game of Thrones for the upcoming season. Deadline describes the part as a “multi-episode arc.”

Hailing from New Zealand, Naufahu had a recurring gig on Spartacus: War of the Damned, and appeared in the series Go Girls.

Once again there is no character mentioned in the announcement, but we can make a reasoned guess as to Naufahu’s role.

There are several Dothraki warrior roles left unannounced, and the actor fits the bill physically and age-wise for some of these parts. Given that Game of Thrones has confirmed the actor’s casting in the show and called it a multi-episode arc, there’s a decent likelihood that Naufahu may be playing Khal Jhaqo.

There was a casting notice for a character resembling Khal Jhaqo in May. Jhaqo is the khal of the khalasar that Daenerys encounters at the end of season 5.

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Sue the Fury
Susan Miller, Editor in Chief of WatchersOnTheWall.com

97 Comments

  5. “Khal” was the first name that came to my mind when I saw his pic. If he’s playing Khal Jaqho or any other Khal,

    I don’t think this has a happy ending to him lol if Dany is leading a khalasar in the middle of the season, as those leaked pics from last week suggest, Dany will probably kill him off – well, Drogon actually.

  7. It’s weird if he is indeed Khal Jhaqo. Dany wanted to kill him for raping and killing that girl she saved. She thinks about multiple times in the books. But because he wasn’t introduced in the show before, Dany wouldn’t have that same motivation. I’m sure they’ll do something awesome with him though, and I’m sure he’ll still be a huge dick lol.

  8. Maceless Fan,

    He could be some other khal who has the exact same position- the khal of the khalasar she meets. I don’t think the backstory matters that much.

  10. Maceless Fan:
    It’s weird if he is indeed Khal Jhaqo. Dany wanted to kill him for raping and killing that girl she saved. She thinks about multiple times in the books. But because he wasn’t introduced in the show before, Dany wouldn’t have that same motivation. I’m sure they’ll do something awesome with him and I’m sure he’ll still be a huge dick lol.

    only reason she would need is she is being held somewhere against her will..and could be that a couple Drogon fly-bys will convince him and his khalasar to follow her (him becoming Drogon snack much more likely of course lol)

  13. Sue, I’m new here, where could I find the codes to cover spoilers? I don’t want to ruin the fun for anyone. Thanks

  16. LordDavos,

    Hello fellow NZer! I don’t live in NZ right now so I haven’t seen The Last Saint so thanks for the heads up, I’ll definitely track it down. I feel like an idiot for not realising Joe and Rene were brothers.

    Congrats to Joe!

  18. Ser Oromis Locke:
    First reaction: He played in Spartacus? Well.. More man-ass for the ladies..

    I believe the character he played was a slave of Glaber that was freed by Spartacus – he then pretended to still be a slave when the Roman officer noticed that the collar was off of his neck. Could be wrong.

  19. Kargaryen,

    The instructions on how to use spoiler coding is at the top of every comment thread (below the Show/Hide Spoiler buttons) and also in our FAQ. 🙂

  21. Well, he is definitely NOT Jhoqo, considering that is who Drogo killed in season 1. No one remembers the interview where GRRM advised them not to kill him because he had a big role in future books? I’m sure he will fit the same role. But it won’t be Jhoqo.

  25. LordDavos,

    James Rolleston, yes! Oh man, Boy and Dark Horse were so amazing. And hey, I just googled Boy to remind myself of when it came out, and it turns out Taika Waititi workshoped the script with David Benioff!! Check out this from wikipedia:

    “Waititi started developing Boy soon after finishing the short film Two Cars, One Night; and it first emerged as a film called Choice. The project was accepted into the Sundance Writer’s Lab in 2005, where Waititi workshopped it with script writers Frank Pierson, Susan Shilliday, David Benioff and Naomi Foner Gyllenhaal.”

  26. Oh yes. I called for Manu Bennett, but this guy looks like he can rock it. If ride through the Nightlands with him any day.

  29. Maceless Fan,

    Jorah told Daenerys that Rakharo’s death was probably by the hands of Jhaqo’s or Pono’s khalasar. She swore vengeance.

    One callback line and they could set up the exact same motivation.

  30. Wayne Gleeson:
    Ehh, no one will ever touch Jason Momoa as Drogo

    But that’s just it – they don’t need to!

    Welcome to Khal Pogo. Probably won’t use that smile much, which is a shame.

  31. Iridium

    Great catch!! Maybe its not so far fetched. Is there some moody misunderstood sullen Dothraki part out there….

  33. A multi-episode arc? How long do we expect Khal Jhaqo to really live for?

    He could just be playing a bloodrider, perhaps one who will join up with Dany if he’s gonna be around for a while.

  34. Robb Snow,

    It would be a waste if he wasn’t something more significant than just another bloodrider! He’s super-hot and a great actor so I’m hoping to see a lot of him (take that however you like).

  36. So Dothraki Khal, who is at least in Episodes 1 and 2. How many more depends on how he deal’s with Drogon’s Mom. Quick BBQ-ed lunch if he misbehaves. Drogon needs all his strength to heal and fly to Westeros.

  38. One of either Mago or Jhaqo

    Whichever wasn’t killed in S1

    As long as we don’t end up with a Marillion type situation all should be well

  39. Kargaryen,

    Welcome to the Wall! 🙂

    Ok, yeah, I know this is shameless, but with as great as this guy looks in the twitter pic Sue posted (I’m guessing it was Sue, and, thanks, btw), has anyone found an equivalent pic of Luke Roberts, yet? *angelic smiley*

  43. The New Zealand take over continues, now all we need is cliff Curtis on the show there’s not a race that man doesn’t fit into fictional or otherwise

  44. LordDavos:

    good to see Cliff doing so well as well.

    Yep, Uncle f’ing Bully has done alright.

    Roose On The Loose,

    True, I don’t think it annoys him too much though, more work for him! I haven’t watched Fear the walking dead yet but I assume he’s busy with that for now. Good on him.

  46. Robb Snow,

    I imagine the first three episodes or so, if he’s Khal Jhaqo or an equivalent? Purely speculation, but I’d say he abducts Dany, takes her to Vaes Dothrak so that she can (must) become a member of the Dosh khaleen, yet Dany learns to take control of Drogon, who burns Jhaqo and everyone who opposes her to a crisp.

    Or maybe intimidation does the trick, and this Khal becomes a truly recurring character throughout this and following seasons, as the face of Dany’s new khalesar. Could be! The books set up the antagonism quite clearly, though, if he is supposed to be Jhaqo. Maybe Jhaqo does die, and this actor plays the next khal who does learn to play nice.

  48. Bufferzone:
    The slow and stealthy Aotearoa/New Zealand takeover of Game of Thrones continues…

    Oh is that what they’re up to? This gent does look like he can play a convincing Khal – I suppose he’ll be talking Dothraki so natural accent will not matter (I don’t know how broad his NZ accent is – not that there is anything wrong with such an accent). I did laugh when the TV show castle had an episode with a “British” detective who had a broad Australian accent (yes, and before anyone jumps on me I know that Australia and New Zealand are different).

    Danaerys’ story-line does seem to bring her into contact with more nice-looking men than other prominent female characters!

  49. Luka Nieto: Purely speculation, but I’d say he abducts Dany, takes her to Vaes Dothrak so that she can (must) become a member of the Dosh khaleen, yet Dany learns to take control of Drogon, who burns Jhaqo and everyone who opposes her to a crisp.

    I agree this is likely, but my only problem with this is that we’ve seen this (or a variation of this) several times before. There’s no doubt Drogon has to be part of what makes her a strong leader in the eyes of the Dothraki…. but it would be nice if she manages to demonstrate a bit of that leadership and authority without him first.

  50. Is it just me or have there been a disturbingly small number of dragon sightings this season? Should we expect less dragon action than season 5?

  51. I suppose the idea is to show Dany dealing with a Drogo-like figure and to show how far she’s come in comparison to before. The trouble is this Dothraki storyline has the potential tobe boringly samey

  52. jentario,

    I honestly can’t tell if you’re joking or not. But one of the Dothraki castings mentioned a big setpiece filmed in November. My guess being,

    the khal meeting the Young Widow

    spoke about. That’s a prime opportunity for a dragon to show off, don’t you think?

  54. Ross,

    I agree on principle, but for the life of me I cannot see what kind of authority the Dothraki would respond to if it is not based on violence and might. Dany could be as clever and tricky as she liked; but the cleverest and trickiest of them all, Littlefinger, would probably die after a minute or two of his usual shit if he tried it with the Dothraki.

    What has been set up, both in the books and the show, is that “The Dothraki follow only the strong”; Dany’s strength is as the mother of dragons. Now, there are many ways to go about this, and Drogon saving her of his own accord (and to her surprise) could be pretty disappointing; though, to be fair, Martin and D&D have surpised me with scenarios I’d assumed would be disappointing before. Anyway, I think there is a way this could feel more unprecedented and meaningful: if this was the moment Dany truly mastered Drogon, the fiercest of his dragons. She can show her strength and/or cleverness in taming him, and then Drogon can work his crispy magic on the Dothraki. Then again, as a captive I don’t see how Dany could find an opportunity to master Drogon, so maybe the event will just go the blitzkrieg route; the dragon will appear out of nowhere and burn them all, and then (and only then) will Dany have an opportuniy to take control of Drogon, both in TWOW and season six.

    But who knows! It’s all speculation at this point, however sure we might be sometimes of what will happen, as there is no source material left for this and most other storylines. Sue says we book readers aren’t Unsullied yet, but that’s only true for Sam and Gilly, the Greyjoys, Arya (and only for the first few episodes!), and a bit of Dorne and the Riverlands. The other stuff is all The Winds of Winter; and while it’s true that the depth of the books gives us more room to speculate, it’s all still speculation. For example, R+L=J was only a theory, however sound, until the show hinted at it with a hammer last season, which basically confirmed it.

  55. Luka Nieto,

    Yes there might be something different they can do here. Perhaps by dominating / taming Drogon in front of the Dothraki, she wins their approval (without necessarily all the usual BBQ action). It would also be good to see something different with the existing Khal… perhaps for example, he could choose to stand aside for her when faced with true power. Although knowing what we do of the Dothraki, that’s pretty unlikely….

  56. I think that not long ago, the guys at Los 7 Reinos said that many female extras in Almería had described the new Khal as “quite the looker”.

  57. Ser Dosser,

    He most likely was busy and this isn’t the first time he has declined pictures taken with him,just because this guy was a well known guy doesn’t make him any different than any other fan .

  58. Maceless Fan,

    In the show, Dany sends Rakharo to scout the Red Waste, but only his horse returns, with Rakharo’s decapitated head in a bag (along with his cut braid of hair, to mark his defeat). Jorah speculates that he might have been killed by Khals Pono or Jhaqo to show their contempt for a female leading a khalasar.
    Plus, she can just hate him for abandoning his husband, or for being a complete unwashed asshole like all the Dothraki.

    EDIT: Sorry, it seems like monsieurxander has already answered this.

  60. Sue the Fury,

    Thanks, Sue, you made me happy by posting those pictures! I don’t know him, but I’m looking forward to! Slim chances, I’m aware, but I’d like him to be Raegar! Just the man to convince any girl to forget she has been promised…

  62. Ross: Perhaps by dominating / taming Drogon in front of the Dothraki, she wins their approval (without necessarily all the usual BBQ action).

    Daeny does not even need to do that. If Drogon simply acts on her behalf, either as servant or as bodyguard, then that is more impressive. A person’s allies says more about him/her than does his/her servants.

  63. Luka Nieto,

    Again, I think that the best way to think of dragons is as over-sized cats, not as dogs or as horses. You impress people by breaking horses. You impress people by training dogs. And you impress people with big cats by getting in a cage with them and having them let you feed them without eating you. Double that for dragons.

  64. Ok ladies…

    after all these “bewbs on HBO” discussions we had so far, I have to discover this ab-so-lute obsession with Mr. Naufahu and Mr. Roberts physical assets, namely abs and wazoo.

    I have to admit that this…
    https://instagram.com/p/0pgYAwDUMD/
    …does not entirely scream: “Please, respect me for my integrity and honesty”…

    STILL: This show is sooooo sexist, and its fans are none the better… 😀

  66. Nero Martell,

    No such thing as reverse sexism. And considering how often men here ogle the actresses’ bodies, it’s only fair that people get to do the same with the attractive men once in a while. 🙂

  70. Oh dang, this is one of the guys that got to the mines to rescue Naevia in “”Vengeance”!
    I’m so happy he will be in GoT too, he’s going to be a great Khal (:

    EDIT: @ the staff: I don’t know if anybody is interested in correcting that but, since I’m a huge Spartacus fan, I feel the need to tell you that Joe was not in “Spartacus: The War of the Damned” because he died in the season before that one, “Vengeance”.

  75. Queen of the Keys,

    Same season that Spartacus cut off the original Mountain’s face 😀 I’d love to see more Spartacus actors in GoT. Manu Bennett would’ve made for a great Dothraki.

  76. Sue the Fury,

    More NZ men, please and thank you! And if any of them happen to need a “ticket” to American citizenship, I’m willing to make personal sacrifices. 😀 Just need to be at least 6ft tall, please, I don’t care for looking down on my guys.

  77. Valaquen:
    Queen of the Keys,

    Same season that Spartacus cut off the original Mountain’s face ? I’d love to see more Spartacus actors in GoT. Manu Bennett would’ve made for a great Dothraki.

    You’re right! That was one creative death, bet the Mountain would have like it himself.
    And I absoultely agree about Manu Bennett, to have him as a Dothraki would be incredible… we can still hope!

  78. Sue the Fury:
    Nero Martell,

    No such thing as reverse sexism. And considering how often men here ogle the actresses’ bodies, it’s only fair that people get to do the same with the attractive men once in a while.

    Indeed! Sue dropping them truth bombs!!

  82. Queen of the Keys:
    And I absoultely agree about Manu Bennett, to have him as a Dothraki would be incredible… we can still hope!

    He does have his own Fantasy series to keep him busy for the moment.

  83. Valaquen,

    That’s bullshit. Part of being a celebrity is having to put on a smile and take a photo with fans. It’s fucking part and parcel of the job. Sounds like Kit and Rose are a stuck up couple Jesus.

  84. I just hope the ending of Dany’s arc from Season 5 means we can just skip the whole Dany-is-starving-and-has-dysentery arc from the end of DwD.

  85. Ser Matt the Sullen:

    Part of being a celebrity is having to put on a smile and take a photo with fans.

    No it’s not. Outside of work/red carpet/charity events/media PR/professional obligations, they have every right to say no for whatever reason. Entertainers are not public property for the amusement of self-entitled strangers.

  88. Ser Matt the Sullen,

    Just because someone is in show business, doesn’t mean they lost the right to say no to something they don’t want to do. Nor does it mean that anyone should feel entitled to an actors time and such. Its an attitude like that, that makes people resent their fans.

    And please don’t say that they should get over it, they are human beings, not public property for us to use and bitch about when they don’t bow to our every whim.

  89. Redstar,

    Tyrion and Missandei taking a casual stroll through the gardens in Meereen?

    Hmm… are we gonna get a love triangle this season?

  90. Ser Matt the Sullen:
    Valaquen,

    That’s bullshit. Part of being a celebrity is having to put on a smile and take a photo with fans. It’s fucking part and parcel of the job. Sounds like Kit and Rose are a stuck up couple Jesus.

    Sounds more like the dude making a fuss on social media is a whiny little bitch, actually.

  91. Ser Matt the Sullen,

    Uh, no. Celebrities are actual people with lives of their own outside of work, and they shouldn’t have to be at beck and call of every single person they cross paths with out in public, especially when they’re trying to do things like spend time with loved ones or just live their lives in general.

    I hope Kit is being well compensated for all the trouble he’s put up with this year.

  92. Robb Snow,

    hehe possibly two. Tyrion/Missandei/Grey Worm and Daario/Daenerys/New Khal with poor ole Jorah on the outside crying buckets, forever trapped in the friend zone.

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