In the final days of filming Game of Thrones, Kit Harington (Jon Snow) received a visit from GQ, to discuss and reflect on his time over the show’s soon to be historic 8 season run. “The last season of Thrones seemed to be designed to break us,” says Kit. And it’s a fitting start to the interview – no one in the cast has wielded a sword more often, or spent more days on and off set preparing for battle after battle than Kit (Don’t @ me, fact-checkers). “Everyone was broken at the end. I don’t know if we were crying because we were sad it was ending or if we were crying because it was so fucking tiring. We were sleep deprived. It was like it was designed to make you think, Right, I’m fucking sick of this….I’ll miss it one day – but I’m done.”
Back in the days of auditioning, at the ripe age of 22, Kit had been asked to read for the far-distant, once unattainable season 3; the producers had him reading Jon’s attempt to convince Ygritte not to attack the Wall, all while hiding his betrayal to the Wildling cause. That’s mighty ambitious of them, doncha think?! Flash forward to a failed pilot, a greenlit pilot, a successful season 1, and another 7 in the can, and here we are. But as he looks for his next big role, Thrones always overshadows everything: “Of course I want to be in a film that gets a run at the Oscars. I’d love that. But am I seeking the red carpet-ness, and everything that goes around it? No. ’Cause I’ve done that. I’ve been to the SAG awards nine years in a row with Thrones. What’s more to experience about it?”
Looking back on his time as a producer and lead actor on 2017’s HBO miniseries Gunpowder, he says “That gave me a taste for it. I never really knew what a producer was but I worked with some of the best there are on Thrones, and I really see now why they love what they do.” But he’s very cautious about always searching for ‘the next best thing.’ “Most actors, whatever they tell you, are seeking fame. Seeking notoriety. Because that’s the goal, isn’t it? That you’re on the red carpet. That you’re at the award ceremonies. That you’re in something where people stop you in the street. And I’ve had that the last nine years. And I think there would be something a bit wrong with me if I was still seeking it.” We hear you Kit, we hear you. The most important thing though, is the off-screen romance GOT led to with his costar Rose Leslie (Ygritte), “I thank the show for everything. But more than anything else, I thank it for introducing me to her.” (collective dawwww)
Next up: Following his previous West End performance as the titular role in Doctor Faustus, he now is appearing in a revival of Sam Shepard‘s seminal play, True West. After all the grueling and time-consuming work of Thrones, Kit feels ready to move on to ‘normal life’: “It doesn’t stop you imagining the grass is greener, it doesn’t stop you desiring the security of the nine-to-five lifestyle.”
Meanwhile, making his rounds of the awards circuit promoting his 2018 BBC miniseries Bodyguard, our dearly departed King Robb (Richard Madden) will never be able to shake the mantel of his former employer. As is custom, talk turned to Thrones: “Absolutely, I can’t wait for the new season of it, yeah…Jon and Daenerys, I think they can do it [rule Westeros] together, I think that would be good.”
And finally, HBO head honcho and CEO Richard Plepler confirms to Variety that he has seen the rough cut (no CGI, no finalized music, etc.) of the final 6 episodes of GOT: “It’s a spectacle. The guys have done six movies. The reaction I had while watching them was, ‘I’m watching a movie…They [GOT showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss] knew the bar was high. They’ve exceeded the bar. I’ve watched them twice without any CGI and I’m in awe. Everybody’s in for an extraordinary treat of storytelling and of magical, magical production.”
What do you make of the rough cut news? Any feelings on Kit’s post-Thrones career? Do you feel Richard Madden has chosen poorly? Let us know in the comments below!
No CGI 3 months from premiere? At this rate we’ll never get a trailer 😀
Just imagining how awkward the final battle looks without any CGI lol. Dany and Night King on top of the mechanical things they use for the dragons with green screen everywhere lol.
Jack Bauer 24,
To be fair, we don’t know when he saw it. It could have been a couple of months ago. But yes, it would have to be pretty strange. The fact he gushes over it anyway makes me very optimistic for the final product. 😊
Jack Bauer 24,
As Vanessa said, we don’t know when he saw it. He’s probably had it for a while if he’s watched it twice already. Beyond that, we KNOW from past seasons that they work on the cgi elements right up to the last minute to get it right. As an example, if I recall correctly, they said they were still working/reworking the NK/Viserion attack on the Wall a week before the premiere.
That would at least make it easier to be in the proper character mindset during a grueling war.
Clob,
* late edit *
Actually, I think they were working on the the Wall attack up to a week before airing of that episode.
Also – – We did have a comment from the VFX guy that they would be working or on retainer through May. I think they want to keep their teams/companies available through airing for whatever arises.
I hope Kit doesn’t become one of those actors that bad-mouths the production that made his career. He seems a little like “I’m too good for this now” at the end of these last two seasons with some of his comments.
Jack Bauer 24,
Most of the trailer doesn’t usually have much cgi anyway maybe a few seconds of a battle and Drogon mostly just shows glimpses of the characters and part of a speech so cgi doesn’t need to be completed for that but I don’t think we’ll get the trailer until around 2 months before it airs but we should soon get, a promo like “the long walk”, release date, season and character posters and promotional pictures first.
I’m definitely excited to see Kit’s post-GoT career. I will be seeing True West later this month so it will be fun to see him doing a play. Richard was fantastic in Bodyguard, he did not choose poorly (nice clip). 😂Also, he sounds like he’s just trying to instigate theories with his Jon/Dany quote, much like Sophie does in her interviews as well.
Also! In case anyone was interested in entering another Omaze contest, this time it features having tea with Kit and seeing True West in London. (Unfortunately no GoT set visit).
https://www.omaze.com/experiences/kit-harington-true-west-vip?ref=kit
Dark Sister,
Get ready for a ride! True West is awesome. Saw it last week and it exceded my expectations in every way. Kit is brilliant and hilarious! Watch out for the toast 😉 Johnny Flynn is brilliant and dangerous and together they make a perfect pair. Who ever chose to cast those two as rivalling brothers: Kudos! Their chemistry is fu*** AMAZING!
No CGI just means he’s seeing the episodes cut together (could be the editor’s cut, or the producer’s cut, or the director’s cut, whatever). Doesn’t mean the CGI is not finished for a lot of it… just that it wasn’t included in the cuts.
OT, but I came across a book online today, “Shrewsbury 1403: Struggle for a Fragile Crown,” and thought Wall Watchers might find the author’s name to both familiar and amusing:
link
Johanna van Locchum,
Woo-hoo! I’m excited, now! I sadly missed Maisie’s play so I’m making up for that to see Kit!
Too many actors are talking about Dany and Jon ruling together. I’m wonder if they want us too think that’s the way it will end so the shock will be bigger for the truth.
And lovely that Kit thanks GoT that because of that he get to know Rose. He seems someone who has his priorities right. I’m wondering what the next big thing will be for Kit.
Clob,
Pity they couldn’t have spent more time/money on that segment..
The CGI was pretty bad for much of that segment- almost as bad as Dany’s escape from the pit in Mereen.
Apollo,
Lol, I agree. I don’t like criticizing the CGI on GoT too much because it’s usually pretty incredible, but the scene with the NK on top of Viserion looked REALLY bad. It looks like a cartoon. I’m not sure what happened there.
Try these links to Maisie’s play, “I and You.”
I and You, Parts 1 & 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2OQiqiVq_w
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGgoi7gbRFs
If they’re the same videos that had only been available for 72 hours that commenter Tron59? alerted me to a while back, the production values were top-notch.
Part 1 is okay; it introduces the two characters. In Part 2, she really gets to shine.
I can’t vouch for these videos; I have not watched them yet. But they seem to be the same that were aired from the Hampstead Theatre.
Dark Sister,
Reply with links to Maisie’s play stuck in moderation. Try back later?
Jack Bauer 24,
F*ck the CGI. I’d rather watch the Hound insult people than watch dragons burn more stuff. As much as I appreciate the technical wizardry, personally, I have reached my DSP.*
I’m not excited about big battle scenes either – unless it’s Arya going full-on ASNAWP and cutting down multiple bad guys Arthur Dayne-style (Needle in one hand + VS dagger in the other.)
Let Dany lounge around in her white winter bathrobe, have a smirkathon with Sansa, or get horizontal with her nephew. I prefer to see Brienne & Jaime finally consummate their relationship, whether by words or by physical intimacy.
* Dragon Saturation Point.
What was wrong with the Dazak Pit CGI? I think it was pretty good considering it was the first time Dany rode Drogon. They definitely refined it in The Spoils of War where it looks much better though.
As for NK/Viserion, I think it looked better the more I watched. The Wall coming down looks great to me.
Ten Bears,
Thanks for the links! They came through! I remember it was mentioned in a previous post that Maisie’s play would be available online, however I thought it was only for a limited time.
Very true. I have no doubt the final product will be fantastic. Can’t wait to see more footage!
I didn’t get that sense from his comments – not least because other GoT actors, such as Maisie Williams, have also said how much they are looking forward to working something more like 9-5 for a while.
I found the little bit of acting I did at University enjoyable, but very stressful. I can’t imagine what it would be like to act for a living, especially in a high-profile role. My anxiety would be off the charts.
A lot of stuff have visual effects added on. We think of just the big battle stuff and dragons, but watching some of the behind the scenes effects videos sometimes it’s something like just adding onto a location like King’s Landing and sprucing it up.
Matthew,
I didn’t get that from Kit. You have to understand that after an experience that almost broke you physically, you’re going to want to distance yourself for awhile so it doesn’t become “contempt”. He likely wants to make sure he’s ready for the promo run because that’ll surely be extensive and exhausting going into this final season. If he sounds disconnected it’s because it’s had to be a major player in this series for over 9 years. That’ll tire anyone out.
Aside from that, I can’t imagine this last season being anything aside from exceptional. I truly feel like we’re in for something special.
Just once, I want someone to be interviewed like this:
Reporter or whatever:
“So! Tell us your impression of the FINAL season EVER of Game of Throooooooooonnnnnnes!!!!!!!”
Actor/Writer/Oogama: “….meh.”
Edward,
The sense I got from Kit – and other actors – is that after being locked into GoT eight months a year every year, you yearn to have time to yourself and the ability to do something else.
Maisie has a good outlook. She’s grateful for the financial security she’s been afforded, which gives her the freedom to do whatever she wants or nothing at all for the next few years, if not the rest of her life. All of us should be so fortunate.
As for Kit: he’s forever going to be Jon Snow whether he likes it or not. He should embrace it, and exploit his fame. There are second acts. William Shatner was Captain James T. Kirk for decades – and then became Denny Crane.
On a completely inappropriate side-note: Kit H. wearing glasses, and without the long wavy hair and beard. looks like a total dork. Then again. he got Rose Leslie to love him, so you know nothing, Ten Bears.
Pigeon,
Pigeon, my avian friend: I’ve been waiting for the appropriate post subject matter to pose one of several questions that have perplexed me – and you’d understand and appreciate it because to explain what I mean I had to borrow extensively from a scene from Monty Python & the Holy Grail.
I hesitate to go too far off-topic lest I be accused of thread derailment.* Maybe in the next couple of days there will be a post that’s relevant.
* Exception: Arya is never too far off topic. Eventually, all threads lead to ASNAWP.
April is less then 3 months from now, so 2 months would be next month. True Detective Season 3 finale is February 24th so maybe late February/early March for the trailer.
Ten Bears,
I think Vampire Dairies is more your style.
Because a lot of folks don’t feel comfortable clicking on an outside link, and because the author’s name is just too damn rich to not bring it to your attention, the history book I cited earlier, “Shrewsbury 1403: Struggle for a Fragile Crown,” was written by one Dickon Whitewood.
To assuage my guilt for making fun of his name (and the book sounds mighty interesting) I ordered a copy from Osprey Publishing. Here’s hoping Bronn will do the same.
Don’t they film scenes out of order?
Jack Bauer 24, Supposedly
I saw Maisie’s when she had it streaming on Instagram for a limited time–it was quite good. The ending really got me.
Already entered Kit’s Omaze. 😉
Dany & Jon as co-rulers would be an obvious “happy ending” that many of us would like, so it’s easy for people to pull out when asked what they’d want to see…of course I’m about certain that it won’t happen. At least not without loads of other unbearable tragedy to outweigh it. ><
Maybe the issue with the NK/Viserion CG was just because the NK with his B-| face looks kind of comically awkward bobbing atop the dragon? xD
I reckon the CEO watched the in-CGId raw versions a while ago. If he’s watched them twice, there must have been time in between – unless he sat and watched them back to back, which seems a bit odd. They must be a fair way into CGI by now as it is so time consuming and as others have said, we’re only three-ish months away from premiere (does that seem surreal to anyone else? Is the long wait finally nearly over?!)
Also, I can understand Kit’s feelings on being done with Thrones. Feeling relieved a huge undertaking (no matter how rewarding) is over, especially after this last outing seems to have been absolutely exhausting for the cast/crew, doesn’t make him sound ungrateful to me. I find it perfectly natural that they want to move on to other things. All the GOT actors speak to fondly and proudly of their show (as they should – they’ve created something groundbreaking and amazing), I can’t inagine any of them badmouthing it in years to come.
I am so excited for a trailer now. I keep comin by several times a day just to see if it’s dropped.
Jack Bauer 24,
Yep, they probably just needed to fix up a scene that needed tweaking with cgi
Richard has always being on the Jon and Dany team from when he was in the show, he also liked the thought of Jon, Dany and Arya being a team
Ten Bears,
I understand the broad strokes of what you are saying here- I also prefer the tension of the dialog filled moments between all the characters we have grown to love, and the actors who by and large do a fine job of portraying them.
But- dragon saturation point? Already? Gonna be a rough season, my friend. Cuz it’s fucking go-time
Its easy to be cynical, but I am expecting TV unlike anything we’ve ever seen.
Today is 100 days until Easter Sunday April 21st 2019 – I hope season 8 premieres on Easter Sunday if not sooner!
Get Ready to fire up the final countdown clock for the final Game of Thrones premiere episode
I think it’ll be the 14th or 28th.
I am too, and that’s considering that it is already the show that every network is trying/wanting to emulate and have the “next GoT.” They’ve set their own bar with this show, raising it notch by notch like an Olympic high jumper. One would think they’d have hit their highest point, but then they go out and film for about three times the usual length, put up enormous green screens, enlarge current sets, build a gigantic KL set at the studio, and then give themselves about ten months of post-production time.
I’ve dropped my certainty for the 21st from about 95% to closer to 50% between the 14th and 21st. I think the 28th is like a 1% chance. imo
Been away from the site for a while, and wow, what a plethora of articles!
Thanks for the link to the GQ Kit Harington piece, very nice reading. I can imagine many of the principal cast having similar feelings: proud of what they’ve done, grateful for what GoT did for their careers (and bank balance – didn’t Liam Cunningham once joke that his accountant is sadder than he that GoT is ending 😀 ), yet feeling like convicts at the very end of their sentence… soon, ah, so very soon they’ll be free! Free to pursue other interests and projects.
It seems to me that most of the cast and crew and production staff have loved working on GoT, loved Got, but it’s time to move on. As it should be. Hopefully towards new, exciting challenges – like Richard Madden has done. I haven’t seen The Bodyguard yet, but chuffed for all the acclaim and the award RM won. I’m sure that show will soon be available on freeview in my country, really looking forward to it.
Mostly, though, I’m looking forward to S8 of GoT! Only about 3 and a bit months! Then 5 frantic weeks and it’ll be all over for ever. An era of TV history, which I’ve been a part of as a fan, will have passed. I’m already dreading the feeling of emptiness, feeling at a loose end, and I’m only a fan – imagine how the people who made GoT feel!
The HBO CEO’s comments about the rough cut are encouraging. Ok, his comments have to be taken with a grain of salt, of course he’ll hype his company’s product, but comparing it to six movies sounds promising as to pacing, character arcs, character interaction – he saw the rough cut without cgi so it must’ve been non-cgi bits that impressed him so much.
As to the cgi, it’s not just the huge battle scenes, dragons etc. Establishing shots have cgi to create the background, the weather etc. And the cgi teams start working as soon as they get the scripts, like doing the backgrounds and designing complicated 3-D gci models for “moving parts”, such as the dragons, so they have a template for when they get the storyboards, then refine the 3-D designs (like angles the cgi’d thing is going to be shown from) and then, when they get the actual practical footage, make all that previous work fit with the cinematographic work to create what we see on our screens. So, cgi teams have been working for something like two years by now, and still working to refine the final output.
The HBO head honcho saw the bare bones dramaturgical verion and was impressed. Imagine how much enhanced it’s going to be with excellent, realistic cgi! Yay! I’m very positively excited for the last season!
I try to stay away from too much fervent fan speculation – it could besmirch my mind, sway or bias me one way or another; I like ALL the main and sub-main characters left, I want to see how they resolve their various “human heart in conflict with itself” -dilemmas – GRRM’s stated aim with the book series, which D&D have tried to follow with the show.
Being open to anything, I’ll enjoy the show ending the most. Appreciate and celebrate the show for what it is, with hopefully a satisfying ending to years of my emotional investment in it.
The show won’t do my favourite fan fic fantasy (Brienne, the heir to Tarth, going back home to assume her rule as Lady of Tarth, with a soiled and attainted – but alive – knight as her consort). The show won’t go there, the books probably won’t either, but my out for this, my personal fan fic fantasy, is that the book series will never be finished so I can keep my alternative ending, haha! Thank you, GRRM, in advance.
Jaime will, of course, die in the show. 🙁
Yeah, sorry for the long post. This is what happens when you stay away from WotW for a long time and then have lots to say, haha.
That’s why I have so much hope for the prequel where as some people don’t really care. Reading and participating online for this show every day has become something I enjoy so much. There has to be something to carry it forward. If it’s not the prequel(s) then hopefully one of the developing fantasy programs can give us that; The Witcher, The Wheel of Time, The Chronicles of Narnia, His Dark Materials, The Lord of the Rings, Conan…
I don’t see GoT premiering on Easter, which is a BIG holiday in Europe, families and people go on vacation that weekend/whole week. My $$$ on either 14th or 7th with the finale the week before Memorial weekend.
Seen this floating around on Twitter. I know it’s random and not sure who the guy is but I guess we’ll find out tomorrow
https://twitter.com/rosveltdindane/status/1083484395024072707
@rosveltdindane: @GameOfThrones don’t wait the trailer;
– january 11 : etched in stone (sigils)
– january 23 : official poster
– february 14&15 : promo photo (jonerys)
– march 10 : first trailer
– april 4 : second trailer
– april 20-25 : new season https://t.co/xyCCVWjQHz
When you click into the link there’s a stone statue of Sansa that’s supposedly part of the “Etched in Stone” promo.
Ten Bears,
Crane was Shatner’s Third Act. TJ Hooker was his second.
Sister Kisser,
Well, I should qualify that comment about reaching my Dragon Saturation Point.
What I’d really love to see is a nighttime fireworks display of intersecting plumes of orange and blue dragon fire; volleys of flaming arrows; green wildfire explosions; flaming cannonballs☄️; fluorescent Scorpion bolts; bursts of magnesium + pulverized dragonglass grenades 💥*; shooting stars💫; Beric’s ignited sword; shrieking wights-on-fire; and burning chickens launched from catapults. 🐓🐓🐓
A real light show. 🌃🌅🎆🎇☄️
Show! Mel’s prophecy recital said “the stars will bleed.” I’m waiting…
* Samwell the Wizard: Make it so! At least discover the recipe for the CotF’s hand grenades.
Sister Kisser,
Sister Kisser
I do not want to get too much into an off-thread topic. However, I want to acknowledge your flagging me on Jaime as Azor Ahai on a post during the holidays. I was on family holidays that included a social media “diet”. Everyone in our little band refrained from posting although a few minutes (15 or less) of reading each day was Ok. I will comment further on your remarks as soon as it seems relevant to a thread.
talvikorppi,
Hejhej, talvikorppi, back again!
I can’t stop laughing at this comment, Shelle. 😂 That’s exactly how I picture the NK’s face. B-| Lol.
Jack Bauer 24, That’s a bust:
http://massivevoodoo.blogspot.com/2016/11/mu90-queen-of-north-nutsplanet.html
talvikorppi,
“Been away from the site for a while, and wow, what a plethora of articles!”
……….
Oh good. You’re back! You know what that means…
👸🏻 🚂⚠️
Pigeon,
“I can’t stop laughing at this comment, Shelle. 😂 That’s exactly how I picture the NK’s face. B-| Lol.
______
What does “B-|” mean? I want in on the joke. 😕
Edit
Yeah I figured. Thanks for the heads up. March 10th sounded about right for a trailer though. Season 6 premiered April 24th and the first trailer dropped March 8th. Season 7 premiered July 16th and the first trailer dropped May 24th. So 46 days and 53 days before premiere respectively. So if we’re figuring late April premiere this time around then early March sounds about right.
I’ve created a monster with ASNAWP, haha! 😀
And I’ve reached my ASNAWP fan saturation point. It’s making me dislike Arya, which is unfair. She, as a character, is much fairer than some of her fans.
West of Westeros… I hope that’ll be her fate, something she chooses for herself.
I like Arya as a character but fanatical ASNAWP fanboys are almost turning me against the character. I mean, she’s great but not that great or infallible. I hope she’ll get off her high horse and her god-complex and become a more rounded, real, human character. You know, grow, like.
One thing I find interesting to explore is Arya’s loyalty. Is it to her House, the Starks, the North, the honourable way – or to her favourite brother Jon; which might go against House Stark interests and ideals.
And what if her favourite brother does something she wouldn’t approve of? Like conceding the North for no reason except luuurve? Heart in conflict with itself, GRRM’s stated ideal to write about, and D&D will not have missed that.
Arya needs to get rid of her black-and-white (haha, gettid?) morality, let go of her murderous desires, vengeance; let go of her god-complex; let go of selfish desires, to help in the great war. And she will, I’m confident on that. She has so much to give. Her revenge arc should be done by now. Reverting back to it would be backsliding, detrimental to her character, her character development, her arc. Unless you’re an uncritical rah-rah ASNAWP fan, in which case all and everythig Arya does and thinks is perfect. Meh.
I hope Kit & Rose sail into the sunset and get some much deserved rest. I wouldn’t blame them at all if they avoid the spotlight after this year.
Jack Bauer 24,
Those dates came out as a so-called leak about two weeks ago, except for the last date. Someone, perhaps this Twitterer, added the April 20-25 bit as well as “sigils” and “Jonerys”. I suspect he’s merely piggybacking the original and speculating about the additions. The busty of Sansa is a commercially available product.
talvikorppi,
Welcome back. I agree–it’s going to feel empty once the show is over. Since I have no interest in prequels, it might be liberating after nearly two decades.
About Arya, I’m confident her old revenge is over. If she kills Cersei or the Mountain, the only names left on the List, it’s almost sure to be out of military necessity. After all, Cersei is full-press trying to defeat the Starks in the wars. And the work Lady Crane started in bringing Arya back to herself will be completed by the presence of Jon, Gendry, and Sandor and the AotD. But I’m curious about “god complex”. Her giving Walder and sons the punishment of the Old Gods for their Guest Right violation is the only thing I can think of. And it won’t happen in the books. What were you referring to?
Loved Kit’s interview! The whole thing ❤️ Totally went dawww at the end when he said what he was most grateful about and how they noticed how he plays with his wedding ring like a newbie lol
I’m sure I’ll get to see him in other works but I will be surprised to see a crew cut and clean shaven that’s for sure.
Had no idea he’s the last one to film. Or one of the lasts. That actually is a bit dramatic even though obviously it’s not filmed in order or anything like that. It would have been too cool and amazing for the last shot filmed to be the last shot of the series. 😳 I did wish for it, even though I have no idea what that scene could be.
The Frey massacre is the most recent and most blatant example in the show of how Arya thinks she has the right to decide who lives, who dies, like a god. In the books, Daereon the black brother is another example.
She does this (i.e. kills) regardless of any actual legal power. She sees herself above any temporal law. A vigilante at best, an instrument of the gods – that she doesn’t believe in – at worst. And I mean worst, because she isn’t doing gods’ work, she is a little ball of revenge. She’s killing for personal reasons and perhaps justifying her murders with religion. That’s not a good way to be. I hope she grows out of it.
As to the Freys, I hope that in the future books they implode, it’s been set up. The family turning on itself and destroying themselves is much more like a punishment from the gods than some Stark girl to poisoning the men – but not the women or children because that woulld’ve painted Arya in a bad light. What does she think the young sons and their mothers will do a few years down the line, anyway. Not smart thinking. Short-term thinking, clouded by a desire for personal revenge.
The Freys imploding, destroying themselves, would be so much more satisfying. The books might go there, the show obviously did not.
Haha, it’s an emoji (sideways) representing his facial expression. 😉
Kind of Squidward-like. xD
Anyways…sadly it does feel quite possible that the books may never be completed. But I’m praying for April 7 or 14 as the season premiere, of course…
Actually, speaking of premiere, this is weirdly the first time I’ve paid such close attention to the news as it ekes out…I remember watching the different premieres for the final Hunger Games film in different cities as they were streamed live online. Does anything like that happen for the GoT red-carpet premiere? Or will we probably just get photos & video that day or the day after? I’m not even sure when that’s going to be; evidently I didn’t win the Omaze no matter how many entries I racked up. *sob*
Also as I’ve said, I have less than no problem with Arya and think that I’d have acted just about exactly the same as she did in her situations. She’s created justice where there otherwise would’ve been none, and improved the world a little by eliminating individuals who were extremely detrimental to humanity. I’m certain she’ll aid in the great war and unsure why anyone would doubt that. She’s obviously not become a blind, bloodthirsty murder-machine. She kills those who deserve it. No legal system was going to step in to punish the evil people who cold-bloodedly, indefensibly butchered her friends and family. I don’t know what else she was ever supposed to have done. I think it’s only a “god complex” re: deciding who lives and dies if you’re killing random/innocent people. When they’re clearly horribly guilty and have “played god” themselves in the first place, then it’s only right to get rid of them and ensure that they at least can’t do the same to anyone else.
TormundsWoman,
My guess is, you won’t be surprised, because if you don’t know it’s him, you will struggle to recognize him 😉 He really looks completely different with short hair and clean shaven. But that doesn’t matter anyway, because he is one hell of an actor and you will enjoy the performance anyway…
I suggest you have a look at Testament of Youth, but make sure you have enough tissues…
She may partly be justifying her murders with religion (the God of Death), but it’s just as much about justifying them by what she was taught by Ned about justice and doing something about all the unfairness she’s been witness to. Regarding the religious aspect of it though, that’s more the hypocrisy of Jaqen/HoB&W, not Arya. In the show we see this with Lady Crane, and in the books she’s beginning to question their ways.
What I also find interesting is that when she’s at Harrenhal in the books, she feels weak and ashamed that she can’t do anything to help those being tortured and brutalized. Her killings are in a way an extension of this feeling of helplessness she had at Harrenhal. And yes, personal reasons as well, which is as I’ve said before a manifestation of the pain and trauma she has suffered.
I definitely agree that it’s not a good way to be and she has to grow out of it. That’s what her season 8 arc will be, I’m sure of it. Ultimately, using revenge as a driving force in your life is not healthy. That’s the whole point of the Faceless Men’s role in Arya’s arc, showing that revenge can cause you to lose yourself — your identity and purpose — and to become a blank instrument of death. That’s what’s so brilliant about how GRRM is writing Arya’s arc, how he introduced this original fresh idea into what could have been a fairly cliche “revenge story”. What I love about her as well is that beneath the assassin’s guise is still a good and compassionate, but lost, confused, and traumatized girl.
I always come back to a quote from Maisie a couple of years back when asked what she wanted for Arya’s ending, and she said she “hoped she would learn to let go of the anger and violence that she’s lived with for so long and find her true self.” That fits pretty well with what I think will be her arc.
HBO twitter just said the GoT premiere date will be announced before the True Detective Season 3 premiere on Sunday! The GoT Twitter retweeted it.
Enharmony1625,
I think Arya’s arc will come full circle by the end, both on the revenge front and on a personal front.
She couldn’t stop her father from getting killed in KL, but maybe, just maybe, she can stop someone else from getting killed in KL the same way, such as Jon, if he goes to KL and gets captured by Cersei, which some people think may happen. Perhaps she can do for Jon what she couldn’t do for Ned.
I think once she’s done with her list, she’ll be done with killing too and go see what’s West of Westeros.
One would think that about Easter but it hasn’t been true for GoT. I did a bit of a research & write-up post in one of our threads a couple of months ago. HBO has never avoided Easter or (US) Mother’s Day for seasons that aired in the window they occur. Season 3 premiered on Easter, seasons 1, 2 and 4 all aired episodes on Easter. Seasons 5 & 6 were in years with an early Easter so they premiered after the dates.
The only holiday weekend they’ve skipped a couple of times is the (US) Memorial Day weekend. However, they have also aired on that weekend so it hasn’t been a “will not air” Sunday.
We’ll know on Sunday! Looks like they’re trying to give the TD premiere a ratings bump by announcing the GoT premiere date before.
I saw that. It totally makes sense since TD is their first drama premiere of the year… and they probably would like to pull as many viewers on to watch it. What better way than to entice the GoT hordes to tune in? TD3 has to recover from that awful second effort. I’m going on a little weekend trip so I don’t know if I’ll be home in time. I’ll be checking my phone for the date though… and hopefully a trailer accompanies it. 😀
Hibberd just did an article on it and said don’t expect the trailer with the premiere date. He said don’t expect 2 big GoT things at once lol. I’d link the article, but everytime I do my posts stay in moderation.
Kit always comes across as such a sincere, grounded fellow in his interviews. I wish him well in his career. He is quite lucky so far in his life to enjoy early career success, financial security and a content marriage. Good for him!
Honestly these interviews just feel like a repeat of what was said already, I’m sure the movie comment will encourage more discussion on duration but my take is the scale of production and values of the show will feel like a movie, especially episode three.
Anyway we look like we are finally getting the trailer this Sunday so I’m excited:)
No trailer, probably a short tease with the exact premiere date. Something like the Hall of Faces tease from Season 6.
Mr Derp,
I can see that! Arya’s had one of the most (if not the most) personal journey of all the characters, so I’m very confident it will (and must) end on a personal note that ties in with the identity theme that has been so strong in her arc.
That all feels super late to me Jack especially when the HBO president said he thought we would get the trailer in 2018 and James Hibberd recently teased the trailer is not far away. I think we will either get it this Sunday or as a last resort during the super bowl. Remember the premiere is only 3 months away now.
Hope you are wrong Jack, I just can’t be bothered with any more teases at this point but I do recognise they may make us wait until the Superbowl for the first proper trailer.
I want the trailer as soon as possible as well just remember for Season 6 premiered April 24th 2016 and the first trailer dropped March 8th. Season 7 premiered July 16th 2017 and the first trailer dropped May 24th. So last two times the trailer was less then 2 months from premiere.
Catspaw Assassin,
Priceless!!!
talvikorppi,
ALL OF THIS.