Spoilers are harder to come by this year, and that’s no surprise given that Game of Thrones is pulling out all the stops to plug up the leaks during the filming of the final season. Emilia Clarke confirmed there’s a “strict social-media ban” in place for the cast and Liam Cunningham has commented on the tight security for the show’s scripts. Precautions in place, shooting on season 8 has rolled along this fall. The stars are flying in and out of Belfast, Northern Ireland as needed for regular filming, and the sightings have continued this week with Sophie Turner, Kit Harington and Kristofer Hivju among the actors spotted in the city over the past few days.
In addition to the usual cast sightings, we’re happy to share a new report from the set of Game of Thrones, involving the Ironborn. Beyond this point, beware of major spoilers!
According to a reliable source, filming has been taking place this week in the Banbridge, Northern Ireland filming studios. We’ve learned that the area being used is the ship and green screen set, one that Game of Thrones regularly reuses for various ships throughout the show, re-dressing as needed. The really exciting news though is that our source tells us this filming involves both Theon (Alfie Allen) and Yara Greyjoy (Gemma Whelan). The actors were seen shooting with men playing Ironborn followers.
Details of the scenes beyond this were unclear, so there’s still room for speculation with the new info. When we last saw Yara, she was in a highly dangerous situation, being held as her uncle’s prisoner in King’s Landing. However, no other major characters were spotted during this filming which indicates to us that Euron (Pilou Asbæk) was not present, and it’s possible Yara may now be free from her murderous uncle’s clutches. If Euron moved the captured Yara to a ship, could GoT be filming her rescue (as Theon declared his intention to save her in the season 7 finale)? Or does Yara escape and this scene on a ship take place at a later point? We don’t know yet, but it’s good to see Yara will live long enough to share a screen with her brother again.
Ooh, major news. I was well aware of Alfie Allen filming at “Pyke” harbor as well as Banbridge last week but I had no idea, Gemma Whelan was at Banbridge as well. Thanks! I missed you guys giving us spoiler news like this one! 🙂
Myranda remembers!
Im calling it. Theon rescued yara. This will be in one of the later episodes.
Whew! I was very worried that Yara would be killed off quickly. At least it looks like Theon will make the attempt to save her. I dislike the book!Ironborn, but I love Gemma and Alfie and their portrayals.
This is such good news, I can’t help but so wonder though if Euron takes Yara with him to Essos or if he leaves her as a prisoner in Pyke not believing Theon is man enough to rescue her.
Whoohooo! I figured we’d see Gemma again, but this is sounding more positive as to the potential situation involved. 🤞
You’re calling something that he pretty much vowed to do in the S7 finale? 🤨😂
I think Theon will survive and will rule the Iron Islands, but he’ll never be the old Theon again. And I wonder if the girl on the ship to Pyke got pregnant from him. That way he would have an heir.
Yara and Euron will die and maybe Theon will be the one to kill him.
I think this is after Euron’s death. Maybe even in the last episode after the Great War.
Good because I love their chemistry as siblings in the show and as actors in general.
Yeah, I ‘called it’ last year when we got a spoiler that one of the Greyjoys would be captured by Euron. 🙂
It IS set up as Theon’s redemption as a man and a Greyjoy after all.
mau,
I don’t think so. IMO, Theon & Yara should play some part in the great war comming as an unexpected reinforcement at some point. Therefore, I would place Yara’s rescue around mid-season: maybe, ep 4 to add more action and suspence for the episode which seems to be a short lull between two major battles.
If Yara survives to the end, I wouldn’t be terribly surprised if the final episode includes her and Arya sailing off together to find out what’s west of Westeros. (Then they can do a sequel sitcom at sea, where the crew keeps getting their names mixed up. Har!)
If Yara does survive, I wonder if she will be as broken as Theon. She is on a ship called Silence where the entire crew has had their tongues removed (they were doing that to Yara’s shipmates) If this horrible thing does happen,it might make her aware of what its like to be in Theon’s shoes, and perhaps she’ll show some PTSD herself. Hope not, but it was something I thought about while watching that scene – that she will not come out of this unscathed.
That is the ONLY reason Theon and Yara should be in S8. That is the ONLY way Theon can achieve any measure of “redemption.” Otherwise, who cares if he rescues Yara? His unforgiveable (his description) sins were against the Stark family. He betrayed Robb, and turned Rickon and Bran into refugees. He snitched on Sansa when she asked him to light a candle. He watched her being tortured for over a year.
He killed or directly caused to be killed: 2 innocent farm boys + Ser Roderick + Maester Luwin + flayed “North Remembers” old lady + countless other WF residents + (if we care) the Ironborn garrison at Moat C.
He invaded and captured WF at the worst possible time for Robb’s war effort. He was the first to raise his sword to pledge undying loyalty to Robb, and the first to betray him.
His big contributions thus far: offering to sacrifice himself when the Bolton search party found him and Sansa in S6e2 (give him credit for that); and hurling petite, 98-lb Myranda off a balcony (demerits for that; I liked Charlotte Hope).
I get why Jon almost killed Theon when he showed up on the beach at Dragonstone. I cannot fathom why Jon suddenly did a 180 and told Theon ~ “whatever I can forgive, I do.”
Theon should’ve started his “redemption” by cleaning out dog cages and latrines at WF – not by punching out an Ironborn moron in a raincoat, and chanting “For Yara!” If he’s only going to go off rescuing Yara, he should do it on another show. The Zombie Apocolypse is coming!
Now, if he sacrifices himself to save the lives of Sansa, Jon and Arya in five minutes or less of screen time, I’d be cool with that.
Anti-Greyjoy rant over.
Oh please no. 😱😩😠
Love this rant! I hate the Greyjoys like the Wildings hate Thenns.
One exception to the above, however…Myranda had to go.
Everything else, spot on!
I second that. Keep ’em coming, WOTW team! 🙂
Erica,
I know Myranda had to go. I just like the actress – and I didn’t find it so “heroic” that Theon overcame his Reekness only to toss a 98-lb young woman over a railing. How about when Ramsey was torturing Sansa?
For that matter, when Myranda threatened to mutilate Sansa, I would’ve preferred that Sansa use that corkscrew thingie she picked up to perform a little impromptu surgery on Myranda instead.
Oh wait…I forgot one thing: Theon did jump off the wall with Sansa into a snowbank. But 0 net points for that, because a real hero would’ve used his own body to cushion her fall.
Spinoff! Possible titles:
a) The Love Boat
b) The Voyage of the Dawn Squidwolf
Hey Bufferzone! Good to see your name again!
About spinoff titles: I’d be okay with the gender-fluid Yara captaining a Love Boat, with a different love interest on various points of the sexuality spectrum each week. Episode 1: Kinvara. Episode 2: Doloures Edd. And so on.
But not Arya.
As for “The Voyage of the Dawn Squidwolf”: It’d last one episode.
Yara: “What is dead may never die, but rises again harder and stronger!”
Arya: “Really? There is only one god, and his name is Death. Let’s see who’s right.”
(Arya tosses Yara overboard. Bubbles rise to surface, but no Yara. Waits five minutes. No Yara.)
Arya (to first mate): “Let’s see what’s out there. Engage!”
The End
(Yes, that superfluous last line was a STNG reference.)
Honestly though I’m not very interested in the on and Yar a storyline
Funny, at this point i only care about Theon’s storyline. Aside from Alfie Allen, what attracts me to Asoiaf/Got is how realistic it was and how it different with generic heroes, Good vs Bad stories in media. it filled with humanities that nothing is 100% good or bad. Nowadays, i believe only Theon’s story that still hold that value and the rest has turned to generic Hollywood stories (not to mentioned, the plot armor). It’s not bad, but for me personally, if i’m looking for generic Good Vs Bad or Zombie apolcalypse stories, i can just watch Star Wars or the walking dead, for example.
I really hope it doesn’t happen but I wouldn’t be shocked if Theon died… I’ll cry buckets if he does!
Also so much for my will to resist spoilers this year haha!
Aryamad,
Same. He’s gone from someone I couldn’t stand, to possibly the character I have the most hope for. Thanks, Alfie. 😜
Erica,
Absolutely!
I just i want to see Theon or Jaime killing Euron..but not before that pig suffers a lot..Not to die quickly .
Ten Bears,
I think anyone who are regulars here get it by now: you hate the Greyjoys, you hate Theon Greyjoy in particular, you don’t agree with or understand the character’s motivations, or his PTSD, and you’re not at all impressed with Alfie Allen’s acting abilities. You’re fully entitled to these opinions but it’s getting to the point that the repeated rants and negative opinions are becoming too much. At least for me.
There are Game of Thrones characters/story lines, and actors that I dislike and some of them happen to be among your favorite story lines and actors. But I don’t take up space, every single chance I get venting about my hatred or disdain about them. Why? Because all it does is sending off negativity. It’s not going to change people’s opinions of the characters or actors, and regarding people who actually enjoy those characters? – well, all it does is get them down.
There will always be characters we dislike but please consider if it’s really necessary to write about them again, and again, and again.
Lut,
I agree 100% – for me, Theon’s story line is the most interesting one on the show as he’s the only character who is still not done with his personal journey/arc before the Great War. Jaime was the other one, but he’s finally left KL after 3-4 seasons of personal arc standstill. All that’s left for him is joining the Great War which isn’t very exciting to me. I’m glad that Game of Thrones is still more than a simple story of very Good vs. very Evil or straight up Mary Sues.
I think it comes down to 2 things:
1) Jon reaching a point where the Army of the Dead are getting closer and closer to the Wall and he knows that fighting a war among the living will only be to the benefit of the Night King.
2) Jon spending time around Theon (they were at Dragonstone together for a while, though any interactions they had there were off-screen, and we saw in 707 that they’d traveled together to King’s Landing from Dragonstone) and coming to realize just how broken Theon is from their interactions – not just whatever Sansa told him. This isn’t the cheeky, obnoxious Theon he grew up with at Winterfell, but another person entirely. Like the audience, he sees that Theon has been punished for what he did. Jon knows from personal experience of the nothingness that comes after death and so is aware that perhaps death would be a release for Theon more than anything. And I think that, like Tyrion, Jon has always had a tender spot in his heart for cripples, bastards and broken things.
Alba Stark,
Well put! Yet another reason I wished the season were longer: so that we could see these interactions. I loved Theon this season because we see a little more humanity coming out of him.
I think you are spot on about Jon seeing how broken Theon has become and how Theon is still rebuilding some sense of identity. I think it was in ADwD that even the Northerners who see Theon “Turncloak” at Winterfell don’t attempt to kill him because they see the torture he endures under Ramsay. “I’ll leave you to him” I think one said. That interaction always stuck with me.
Pigeon,
yes, this. I get the Theon hate, but knowing what I know about PTSD and how hard it is to overcome, I do see redemption for him even if it means he sacrifices himself to the cause. Its him (and the hound) I am most rooting for, not because I forgive them for what they’ve done, but I’ve seen how far their characters have traveled down that road.
Alfie Allen is one of the best actors on the show so more of him won’t be a bad thing, especially if it takes time away from the lesser actors. I think Theon will still have a big role to play in what’s to come. Perhaps the drowned god will defeat aegon the conqueror.
Season(s?) ago remember Alfie was shooting at Banbridge but was only spotted at a hotel some distance away from there. I am guess Gemma has her new baby with her?
Thank you!
Indira, Gemma and Emilia were like crackling flames on the screen when they were on together at Dragonstone. I was interested to see more of these women characters together, along with Olenna acting as mentor to motherless Dany and getting all up in Tyrion’s grill. But, alas….
Anyway, Ellaria is, presumably, still alive in that dungeon, broken and appropriately punished for her crimes. Maybe she’ll escape somehow, despite what the actor said about not reappearing? From this spoiler, it appears Yara will make it. And, I don’t suppose that Olenna had some unheard of immunity to the poison Jaime fed her. 🙂 I would take two out of three.
Anon,
Indira said she is done with the show and there is no reason for her to lie.
Not touching this article/comments with a 10 ft pole but here’s my prediction…
Yara dies in attempted rescue by Theon. Theon is captured and tortured but eventually kills Euron at some climactic moment then survives to become ironborn leader. The end!
This is completely on the side, but if you want to know about what climate scientists think when watching Game of Thrones , then you will enjoy this…..
I just hope that if Theon does kill Euron, it will be after Euron betrays Cersei.
mau,
Bah! You probably believe that Stannis is really dead, too….
I’m here to agree emphatically with those who hope for plenty of screentime in S8 to be devoted to the completion of Theon’s arc. I never got much invested in the rest of the Ironborn characters, but Theon has plunged the lowest and had the longest climb back out of his personal hell of pretty much anybody in the entire saga. Annoying as he was at the beginning of the story, I am now rooting very hard for him to make it through to the end and find some peace with those he has wronged.
It helps that Theon is an extremely complex and well-written character to begin with, but Alfie Allen has thoroughly internalized and sold him. What an amazing actor he is! He’ll never get the big Shakespearean roles, because he doesn’t have the kind of mellifluous voice that carries the necessary gravitas. But there’s a lot more to acting talent than how you read a line. Even when he has zero dialogue, I can tell exactly what’s going on inside Theon at any moment by the way Alfie turns his head or slumps a shoulder or clenches his jaw or makes (or avoids) eye contact. I could watch a whole season’s worth of just him and not look away.
Firannion,
Theon really cannot get that much screentime. He is not one of the major characters, after all, and getting everything in for Jon, Daenerys, Tyrion, Bran, Arya & Sansa is going to take up a huge chunk of the season. Ultimately, the story really is riding on those characters. Yes, Jaime, Theon & Cersei have to get in their last hurrahs. However, right now we seem to be heading towards characters putting together that if false pretenses underlay everything they “knew” about Robert’s Rebellion, then they probably underly everything they “know” about the White Walkers. Theon just doesn’t have the connection to Robert’s Rebellion that the Big Six do.
This is not to say that he won’t get in an important little part: but it probably will be like a notable short harmony vocal in a rock song, and not like one of the main riffs.
That stated, I think that we can speculate that, in some manner, Ned Stark’s activities are going to foreshadow or even plainly influence Theon’s little contribution. More and more, I am coming to think that Ned’s role in Robert’s Rebellion is a parallel for “the Last Hero”/Azor Ahai figure from the last great war. In particular, it strikes me as how Ned’s battle against Arthur Dayne is primed to be a parallel for what happened in the past: not only do we now know that the Ned & Dayne’s fight didn’t happen as the fairy tales portrayed it, but also that Dayne was not a bad guy holding a woman hostage against her will and/or hiding away from the main war; Dayne actually was guarding the child that he thought to be the true King of Westeros. And now that Bran knows that the stories he “knew” concerning Robert’s Rebellion are lies, it will be natural for him to do what Sansa did with Littlefinger’s advice and apply it to the system staring at him: i.e., the White Walkers. And that is going to pull his siblings (& Daenerys) with him.
Now, I don’t see Theon redoing the Last Hero & Ned, but this time getting it “right”: that will be for Jon & Daenerys. However, given that Theon seems to have fully accepted that he’s really Ned Stark’s son, not Balon Greyjoy’s son, look for him to do some small thing that both is very Ned Stark, but also what Ned Stark would have done in Robert’s Rebellion had Ned known the truth(s).
Ten Bears,
TF? You just count all of Ramsay’s crimes as Theon’s. That makes zero sense. Theon never flayed an inch of anything. He was traumatized by all the flaying he witnessed and was a VICTIM OF. Did you watch the show half asleep?
Stoneheart,
this
mau,
…they’re all liars there.
No. Did you read what I wrote half asleep?
He killed or directly caused to be killed: …”
Stoneheart,
Here’s what Theon did, in his own words:
From S6e2, “Home”
Theon: “Jon will have me killed the moment I step through the gate.”
Sansa: “I won’t let him. I’ll tell him the truth about Bran and Rickon.”
Theon: “And the truth about the farm boys I killed in their place. And the truth about Ser Rodrik, who I beheaded. And the truth about Robb, who I betrayed.”
Sansa: “When you take the black, all your crimes are forgiven.”
Theon: “I don’t want to be forgiven. I can never make amends to your family for the things I’ve done.”
——————-
P.S. No need to apologize. Just be more civil next time.
Wimsey,
“This is not to say that he won’t get in an important little part: but it probably will be like a notable short harmony vocal in a rock song, and not like one of the main riffs.
If Theon’s going to sing background vocals, it’s got to be some kind of contribution to or sacrifice for his Stark family. (To me), rescuing Yara doesn’t constitute atonement for what he himself admitted were his unforgivable sins against House Stark. Nor does it help Jon & Co. in the upcoming Zombiepalooza.
Wimsey,
LOL!!! Thank you for the link. 🙂