General/Interview/Press

Kit Harington on Castle Black’s generational gap, and a new glimpse of Dorne

Posted on by Cian

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In an interview with the Irish Examiner, Kit Harington publicly opened up for the first time about the late J. J. Murphy, who will appear as Ser Denys Mallister in Season 5.

It was sad… He was in a scene in episode three, so I met him then. He was an old gent, but he was very excited being on set. We had a good chat. It was a day that Peter Vaughan [Maester Aemon Targaryen] was also on set — two legends of the acting world — and they sat and traded stories.

Reminiscing on their shared time on set, he also drew attention to the age gaps between the various actors at the Castle Black set, and their combined years of acting experience:

We had a whole four generations of people there — we had Brenock [O’Connor], who was younger than us, then us young bucks, and then Owen [Teale] and Dominic [Carter] who are an older generation than us, and then we had JJ and Peter — it was a cross-section of the acting society there, which was wonderful to see. May he rest in peace. He was a lovely fellow.

In the same interview, he offered some vague thoughts on the political situation between Jon and Stannis heading into the season:

What’s interesting about Jon this season, is that he has yet another older male figure come in his life — Stannis Baratheon. I thought [he] would tell me I was special and he could see something in me, because that’s what [Jon’s] had the whole time… But what’s interesting [in] this season is that he refuses to listen to [Stannis], becomes his own person and makes his own decisions.

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In a video from Canal+, cast members Emilia Clarke, Carice van Houten, Jessica Henwick, Rosabell Laurenti Sellers, Iain Glen, Nathalie Emmanuel, Sophie Turner, Kit Harington, Alexander Siddig, DeObia Oparei, and Alfie Allen all talk about their roles in the upcoming season (dubbed over in Spanish). What’s particularly intriguing for us, however, is that there are a few new B-roll shots from Daznak’s pit, as well as some dialogue between Ellaria Sand and Doran Martell.

Finally, the last couple of days have yielded some quite interesting updates from the Making Game of Thrones blog.

First up is an insight into the making of the red Weirwood leaves. It should be no surprise at this stage, but the props department continue to put an incredible amount of work into the tiniest of background details.

We have also been given a much closer look at the Maester’s Chain, and what the different links represent. The one on display does not seem to belong to any maester in particular, rather being a complete version to demonstrate the variety of materials involved.

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Cian

71 Comments

  3. Yes, this sounds a lot like the election, given all the characters present. Episode 3 it is, then.

  7. Well, if they’re taking pains to add such detail to the weirwood trees, I hope we get a whisper or two from them soon, as the wind passes through. 🙂

  9. SerDuncanTheTall,

    I don’t know if this was discussed before because I think this interview is a few days old but is he saying

    the Griffs ARE in?

    Spoiler from the books about ducks? Truth is I think he’s trolling just like Lena did with her heart made of stones.

  11. I’ve watched English movies with Spanish voices before, and it’s uncanny to hear the deeper, livelier dubbers. If Jon Snow had that voice that’s louder and deeper than everyone else, he’d be a Northern Oberyn. His power would be sex.

  12. Nikolai with his duck looks to me like Marvel with Howard the Duck in Guardians of the Galaxy. Nikolai trolling a bit there. 😉

  13. This is the transcrypt I made of the Canal +interviews for westeros.org. Is a mix of what I can hear from the actors and what the voiceover says so, sorry if there are things that don’t make perfect sense. I am sure there will be some misspelling and grammar mistakes, sorry about it, and please feel free to correct them!

    Emilia Clarke: “This season we are going to see a lot of new things, a lot of more shocking moments, there is going to be a lot more kind of those big red wedding style moments this season.”

    Carice Van Houten: “It looked good for us at the end of season four, we have captured Mance Rayder, we saved Jon Snow, now we are stronger, more possitive to take action, we have an army so we can go south and take the throne.”

    Jessica Henwick: “My character is Nymeria Sand, she is the middle daughter, well she is the second one of the sand snakes but if we talk about our trio I am the middle one. I myself am the middle child in my family so I have been able to use my own experience to understand some thing of her character.”

    Rosabell Laurenti: “I play the role of the youngest one, in the show I am Oberyn and Ellaria’s daughter.”

    Iain Glen: “I am worried because she doesn’t have my advice.”

    Nathalie Emmanuel: “Personally, I think she has become a very good friend for Daenerys. Her Queen has a lot of worries but I also think she worries for her and is very supportive. I think both support each other.”

    Iain Glen: “He goes into a very very dynamic and difficult journey on his own. is also a very physicall season for him too, with a lot of fighting like all those sequences we did in Spain, we really loved filming there, we filmed some fantastic sequences there.”

    Sophie Turner: “She is the eldest Stark now, she is the key to the north and she has to be there to reunite with her younger brothers. I mean, if they are still alive. She just have to stay alive for them.”

    Kit Harington: “We leave Jon Snow at the end of last season defending the Wall, against all odds. He thought he was looking death in the face and he survived. He certanly didn’t expect to be around this seson, he didn’t expect to be back at Castle black. We find him trying to negociate with Stannis and his army and he has to play politician really, with Stannis.”

    Alex Sidding: “I play Doran Martell who is the heir of the family that rules Dorne. On a simple way he is my bodyguard but.. I spend a lot of time alone and he is the only person there with me.”

    Deobia Oparei: “I play Areo Hotah, he is this fearsome warrior, captain who looks after the prince but he is also, if you like, the chief police of House Martell of Dorne.”

    Alfie Allen: “In this season if you like, Theon is not as alone as in previous seasons. I guess you may kind of see the hint towars Stockholm Syndrome, that is something we always had a feeling was there but in this season there are definitely some messed up kind of tender moments between Theon and Ramsay.”

    “I think is sort of a theme of season five how a lot of characters take paths that they have never taken before. We are going to see characters meeting that didn’t have any dialogue with each other before.”

    Deobia Oparei: “This season we are getting into this multicultural land. I think that’s something great we contribute to Game of Thrones.”

    Emilia Clarke: “Yes you are going to see Dragons, there is going to be a lot of Dragons this season.”

  14. Kay,

    Yes, that’s what I’m thinking, too. Trolling around.

    In fact, I think it’s rather interesting how the Golden Twins seem to be enjoying creating hype for characters that are loved by fans but out of the show.

    Naughty, naughty.

  17. Omg Nik quit yer trollin’ 😉

    and wow Jon Snow’s spanish voice surprised me, not like Kit’s!

    Excited for Dorne 🙂

  18. Seeing an increased interest for the maesters this season, including the history and lore, Im hoping we may see oldtown next season.

  20. So since it seems

    the election will be in episode 3,

    I’m giving Maggie’s recap its due credit…

  21. Ser Pounce: Yes, that’s what I’m thinking, too. Trolling around.

    I am confused: in what way is this “trolling”? What do ducks or any other aquatic birds have to do with anything this year?

  23. Did somebody else notice the the large green’screen’ in the arena from the canal+ video?

    when you stop the video at 4:31 you can see cranes and other stuff in the right part of the arena while the camera quickly pans it from the royal seat in the foreground. There is this huge green ‘thing’ in the middle of it. Hopefully it is a ‘dragon bodydouble’ after all

    EXCITED

  26. When Griff needed someone to train his son Young Griff in skill at arms, Harry Strickland sent him Rolly. A year later Rolly was knighted by Griff. Having no second name Rolly choose the name Duckfield because he was in a field with some ducks when he was knighted, earning him the nickname “Duck”.

    Griffs confirmed lol.

  29. Alfie Allen: “In this season if you like, Theon is not as alone as in previous seasons. I guess you may kind of see the hint towars Stockholm Syndrome, that is something we always had a feeling was there but in this season there are definitely some messed up kind of tender moments between Theon and Ramsay.”

    Funny that Alfie mentions this now. We have already seen plenty of Stockhold Syndrome ‘hints’ coming from him in seasons 1, 2 and 3.

  32. Why is nobody talking about 3:35 on the Spanish video?

    Areo is rehearsing taking off someone’s head… Bronn or Jaime?

  33. Matt,

    No, he’s not.

    He’s putting the axe to Jaime’s throat threateningly to get him to surrender. Jaime and Bronn both survive that fight.

  34. Ser Pounce:
    Kay,

    Yes, that’s what I’m thinking, too. Trolling around.

    In fact, I think it’s rather interesting how the Golden Twins seem to be enjoying creating hype for characters that are loved by fans but out of the show.

    Naughty, naughty.

    Loved by the fans? No. They never were. Years of discussions those names barely came to discussion. Only they started to matter to the purist once they were taken away.

    You truly want me to believe this character is loved by the fans?!?
    April fools is not until a couple of days

  35. Tyene confirmed as Ellaria’s daughter…..

    ….7.62 millimeter, full metal jacket…

  42. Lion of Night,

    I thought that whole duck joke was pretty lame.

    Wait, a lame duck? Quick, to Wikipedia!

    “A lame duck, in politics, is an elected official who is approaching the end of their tenure.”

    Ides of Marsh confirmed!

    Get hype!

  43. dom,

    That’s the audio as Canal+’s cameras picked it up. Actors often finesse their accents and line deliveries through looping however. I imagine the line reading we hear in the show will sound very different thanks to the magic of ADR.

  50. It is possible that I may withdraw from some other announced appearances later in the year… most likely in the summer and fall… but if I do, it won’t be from cons where I am the featured guest of honor. I would prefer not to have to cancel anything, but that depends on how the work is going.

    And by “work,” I mean WINDS OF WINTER, of course… but not exclusively WINDS OF WINTER. When I say, “my plate is full,” I don’t just mean with WINDS. I am still editing the latest Wild Cards volume, HIGH STAKES. I have an overall deal with HBO, and three new television concepts in various stages of development, with a variety of collaborators and partners. I am consulting on a couple of videogames. There’s the Wild Cards movie at Universal, where I’m a producer. And I’ve recently formed a new production company to make low budget short films based on a trio of classic short stories by… well, no, not yet, that would be telling. Premature telling.

    (Many of these other projects may come to nothing. Such is the dance of development as they do it in Hollywood. If anything ever actually comes to fruition, you will read about it here. Till then, don’t hold your breath).

    Anyway, I’m busy. But please note, most of these other projects involve me editing, producing, consulting, or financing. The writing I’m doing is all on WINDS OF WINTER.

    Speaking of which… after wrestling with it for a month or so, I’ve decided not to script an episode for season six of GAME OF THRONES. Writing a script takes me three weeks, minimum, and longer when it is not a straight adaptation from the novels. And really, it would cost me more time than that, since I have never been good at changing gears from one medium to another and back again. Writing a season six script would cost me a month’s work on WINDS, and maybe as much as six weeks, and I cannot afford that. With David Benioff, D.B. Weiss, and Bryan Cogman on board, the scriptwriting chores for season six should be well covered. My energies are best devoted to WINDS.

    Excerpt from Martin’s latest Not-A-Blog posting. Someone has already put up the link to the full statement.

  55. King Stannis,

    Fair enough. I shouldn’t have said “loved”. However, since there’s been talk that LS and the Griffs would not be included, fans have been up in arms about how necessary they are in the story and how much they want to see these characters. That’s what I meant. And I just thought it was interesting that it’s the “Lannister twins” that seem to be giving the fans a reason to cry out louder and then enjoying that fan outcry.

  58. Lollius Palicanus,

    Indeed. Obvious dubbing can make even the most powerful dramatic scenes seem comical, and even intentionally comedic scenes seem farcical. I don’t mind it in this case because this is a news report, and the intent is to convey the information, not maintain the realism of the scene. But if I’m actually watching a movie or TV show in another language, I generally prefer subtitles to dubbing.

  59. Jared:
    Lollius Palicanus,

    Indeed. Obvious dubbing can make even the most powerful dramatic scenes seem comical, and even intentionally comedic scenes seem farcical. Give me subtitles any day.

    You know, dubbing is made by real actors…

    Complaints about dubbing are quite ridiculous. Everybody likes to watch movie in their language, the companies won’t stop dubbing movies and series just because some english-speaking people don’t like it. Watch Game of Thrones in english and don’t complain because a spanish channel makes dubbing for their viewers.

  60. Moka,

    My intention was not to diss the actors – I was expressing a general preference with respect to my own viewing experience, and mine alone. I can understand if my remark came across as a bit flippant, and I sincerely regret that.

    I want to be unequivocally clear – I do not believe all American movies and TV shows should be broadcast exclusively in English as some kind of cultural imperative. Indeed, I was approaching it from the opposite perspective. Whenever I watch Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Pan’s Labyrinth, or Les Revenants, I want to watch them in their original Mandarin, Spanish, or French, respectively. I find that having American voice actors dub over the original actors’ lines in English detracts from the experience because the lines themselves aren’t part of the performance that’s being delivered and it takes me out of the scene – whereas reading subtitles doesn’t, for whatever reason. But that preference is far from universal. I know that some people have a strong aversion to reading subtitles, either because they find them annoying or because reading them diverts their attention from other things that are happening on screen. That’s an especially valid concern for a show like Game of Thrones that has an array of rich visuals packed into every frame.

    By no means am I attempting to say the practice of dubbing should be stopped. I want all fans of Game of Thrones across the world to be able to watch the show in the manner that is most conducive to their own enjoyment. If that means dubbing over dialogue, that’s great! Whatever allows the show to reach the widest audience possible. I’m sorry if my ill-considered remark came off as dismissive or condescending in any way. That wasn’t my intent.

  61. Lion of Night,

    Well, ice dragons fly, too! 😀

    Is there anything involving swans in Dorne? My Crows amnesia means that the fact I do not remember anything about them is basically a negative evidence argument!

  62. Am really, really looking forward to Dorne–loving these tiny glimpses!

    Does anyone know the name of background music from the Canal+ video? The section that plays during Ellaria and Doran’s scene is really pretty (3:07).

  65. Didn’t Kit say that J.J. Murphy was in a scene in season 3. What scene is that?

  66. Lollius Palicanus:
    I hope all can agree that dubbing is the worst invention in movies or tv?

    I’m certainly happy that I’m from a small enough country that it’s not worth the effort dubbing things and we instead get subtitles. People’s voices is such a big part of their performance. Also if one is used to subtitles one can watch any movie in the world really. English subtitles is available for pretty much everything.

    My dad was watching a series the other day which name i forgot but it has a mix of dutch and danish people and also a swede and they where all speaking their own language except at some point when they where to communicate with each other and spoke English. I love that such shows are being made nowdays because more people feel comfortable with subtitles.

  68. Moka,

    A lot of non-English speakers prefer to watch a movie in English (or in its original language) with subtitles. I started watching tv shows with subtitles long before my English got decent enough to understand even a simple discussion (and it helped me a lot by the way).
    I’m French and the problem I have with dubbing here is the casting. The actors are generally good, but I found that the casting is often ridiculous. Women, in particular, are frequently dubbed by actresses way too young or with a voice that sounds like it. I will always cringe when remembering Lisa Cuddy in House, who was clearly dubbed by a 25 years old at most. I love my language but it’s the kind of things that just put you out of the fiction instantly I think.
    I’m pretty sure we have the same problem with Cersei for example. I won’t go out there and check as I don’t want to end up crying alone in the shower once again, but if you’re brave enough, I encourage you to go have a look on YouTube.
    My point is it’s not only English speakers who have a thing against dubbing. And beyond the problem of having good actors with a good casting, dubbing can never achieve the same performance. An actor alone in a room with a microphone cannot perform the same way as an actor on set and in costume.

  69. Moka,

    I’m not an anglophone myself, for the record. I agree with all the reasons other people have already given.

  70. Jared,

    This was very well said.

    When language is a barrier, some like dubbing far more than subtitles while others like to hear the original voices and don’t mind subtitles.

    Subtitles are of course a pretty good way for the watcher to try and learn the other language. On the other hand, professional subtitles lack precision and simplify lines. If they don’t, they may become hard to read.

    As noted by Jared, particularly Game of Thones with its richness in details can be more easily enjoyed with dubbing for some, as it’d be more likely to keep all information (with good dubbing actors, even the non-worded information like tone of the voice, intonation, …).

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