Reliable sources have informed us that the first costume fitting for the unsullied extras in Split will take place during next week, which means that shooting there is just around the corner. The juiciest bit of news from Croatia is connected to Dubrovnik, though.
Click through to get to that part of the post. Given the spoilery nature of the content, you do not have to use spoiler tags in the comments.
Before the break I would like to extend you my personal welcome to WotW. A new name for us to get used to, but with all the familiar people and content, by the fans for the fans. It is a privilege to be part of it all. HmR signing off đ
Here goes. We heard that HBO asked the Dubrovnik city council to allow filming of a scene in which a naked actress walks from the Dubrovnik cathedral to the Sponza Palace entrance (readers of course know who that is). The scene will require about 500 extras. As the map (courtesy of Sue) shows, the two locations are set at opposite ends of the old city’s main thoroughfare, Stradun.
Marko says:Â Excited yet? I know I am. There are some great scenes from books four and five coming up next year.
I wonder how they’ve approached that scene.
With the history of accessibility of open shoots in Dubrovnik I wonder how they’re going to keep the public from snapping pictures of the scene. Although it’s some ways off from the Wall around Dubrovnik…
Looking forward to that scene! Impressed by how far they’re going to make it accurate–hope she doesn’t get cold!
You just made my day.
Holy shit that is going to be such a profound/terrifying scene, idk if spoiler code is working so I’ll just say that actress, is very very brave
They haven’t filmed any scenes in Sponza Palace yet, right? They’ll walk right outside the similar Rector’s Palace, where Daenerys asked the Spice Merchant for ships.
Wow that means they’re really getting to the end of ADWD as far as the Kings Landing storyline is concerned. I’m ok with that as long as we will get some juicy incompent Cersei scenes in the first episodes. Given the lack of any Kettlebacks, I’m very curious how they will handle the Cersei-Margaery plot (I just don’t think Meryn Trant has it in him to seduce the young and the old Queen). With the walk scene confirmed, I’m also hopeful that we will finally get Ser Kevan back. Any news on that???
On the one hand I feel bad for Lena actually walking naked in public. However, putting her actually in the situation Cersei is in probably helps her as an actress.
Although it may not be her walking the whole way. I’m sure a body double will be doing some of this. I’m sure it will take both makeup and digital work to hide her tattoos and a body double will help out.
I love the clip of Lena talking about how her mother is excited to see her make this walk! Too funny.
I love this side
Wow. Poor Lena, but this could potentially be a pretty cool scene. I agree with some of those above me who have wondered how they will keep the 500+ people from snapping photos, but for Lena’s sake I hope they have a pretty good plan in place. Looking forward to the entire Cersei arc in season 5. Keep up the good work HmR!
fuelpagan,
Why do you feel sorry for Lena? From interviews she is absolutely excited/revved up about doing that scene. She has awaited it from he very beginning
Canis Dirus,
I don’t think the extras will manage to sneak cameras onto the set, but I also don’t think HBO can stop people from going up to windows, roofs etc.
Maybe the will use a full-body suit or leggings?
Not related to this new but I’d love if we’d get a confirmation of Lady Waynwood and Lord Royce return. Especially Ayna Waynwood, I loved the actress playing her and we’re due to some politics at the Vale next season !
I wonder if they’ll shave her head/wig and give her a bald cap for the scene.
Lena for the Emmy in 2015!
“Given the spoilery nature of the content, you do not have to use spoiler tags in the comments.”
From the post. No spoiler coding needed in these comments.
Turncloak,
That’s true, and it could potentially be a fun experience for someone who has he badass attitude on life that Lena has, but I just find it hard to believe that walking in front of 500 strangers completely naked would be all too enjoyable.
jentario,
Lena might win back to back Emmys if she wins this year as an underdog
I’m most excited about Cersei putting the proud facade when she begins the walk only to completely fall apart in tears. Will be a powerful moment indeed. As long as they don’t take away the moment in which she breaks. A very small part of me sees them making Cersei do the whole walk with her head held high but I’m more confident they’ll stay completely faithful to the source material with this one.
It would be awesome is they did this scene in one take without any cuts. Considering they have an entire street to film on it wouldn’t be impossible.
I assume there will be some pretty extensive use of a body double. Not only does Lena H have a bunch of tattoos, she’s also very 21st century thin. I always imagined one of the many facets of the shame that the Walk of Punishment inflicted on Cersei came from the fact that she’d gained a bit of weight (references to her dresses not fitting properly) so I imagine a “softer” body might be required.
Dreading/excited about this scene. But wow D&D are really moving fast.
Johan Sporre,
You just show off, as someone who knows the stuff, don t you? đ đ
(just joking)
You re right, I told Sue yesterday that they HAVE to close the Walls for couple of hours because of this scene if they don t it would be madness.
As for Sponza palace I think they filmed there a couple of interior scenes – like Loras and Cersei talking at the window in the night scene. Also some extracts of Tyrion s and Sansa s wedding could have been filmed in there…I am not sure – we were not inside after all.
Damn, now you have me wishing hard as hell that this scene will be a sequence shot ! If it ever happens (which I doubt), it could become one of the greatest performances ever !
They’ve really removed Cersei’s ‘sleeping-with-people-to-get-what-she-wants’ side from the show, so I imagine they won’t bother with the Kettleblack seduction or any equivalent. More likely she’ll just secretly order or pay someone to kill the High Septon and then have them falsely confess to sleeping with Margaery. My money is on Olyvar. I can imagine him seducing and then smothering the High Septon, given he seduced Loras in season 3 to inform on the Tyrells for Baelish.
As for Kevan, I really hope they do bring him back, and Lancel too for that matter, given it’s the High Septon knowing about their affair that spurs Cersei to have him killed in the first place. A couple of years ago, I would’ve thought it was impossible to not have them back by now, but given the omissions of Coldhands, Lady Stoneheart, and now Arianne by the look of it, I wouldn’t be surprised if we never see them again either.
Also, I’m predicting that the show’s version of Meryn Trant will come to a ‘merciful’ end in season 6 outside of a theatre.
wow. you think they are planning one long take for the scene?
Arkash,
Like this, but with Cersei naked and 500 people throwing stuff and cursing her.
Carne,
Well, I dont think the 100% PoV shot would work, but semi-PoV (behind her shoulder) for some moments of the walk could be awesome !
Arkash,
Yeah, I was more thinking have the camera behind her or in front of her. If they have just one steadicam they can move around as well. Throw in some somber music and badabing you have an Emmy award.
Awesome, I can’t wait to see this scene and I’m certain Lena will absolutely kill it.
Awesome! But I feel really scared for Lena, brave brave lady if she walks naked down a street with 500 people staring and shouting abuse at her. Even though it’s acting that would be impossibly tough for anyone.
Perhaps they should bring in Fukunaga to do another six minute single take tracking shot đ Just kidding, that kind of directorial brilliance will probably not appear on GoT
As to Lena’s emmy chances, I wouldn’t get my hopes up. She was brilliant in season 2 and didn’t even get nominated IIRC. And now it’s a nude scene, I think a lot of the old prudes would never vote for her.
Wow! I was wondering if Lena would be up to this scene, can’t wait! ADWD material is coming fast
I’m surprised they’re filming this in the first week. I’m sure the actress is gonna be fantastic in this scene, it’s such a big moment but she has never failed before.
Schrödinger’s Cat,
That’s a pretty logical theory, I haven’t even considered Olyvar but he could do the job. The fact that he is apparently not interested in women doesn’t mean anything here, because as you said he could just make false claims about seducing Margaery (like Kettleback did). I can also totally picture him being investigated by the High Sparrow and some septas (He is well enough known for the audience to care about).
Wether we’ll get Kevan or not will depend on how the show’s going to handle Varys and the Griffs I guess. He wouldn’t need much screentime though, he could just take over in episodes 8-9 and people could still get the feeling that this guy is actually making good for Cersei’s failures, only to be killed off by Varys in episode 10. It would be typical Thrones and a scene to brilliant to be taken away from the viewers.
Wait did I read this right? Are you suggesting that Olyvar will seduce the high septon? The chances of that happening are 0. The Hugh Septon is played by Jonathan Price for gods sake. He’s above doing sex scenes especially at his age.
Turncloak,
I assumed he meant the outgoing High Septon, not Pryce’s High Sparrow
Turncloak,
Hahaha I think he actually meant Margaery not the High Sparrow, though it would add something to the plot. Seriously aside from Pycelle we haven’t seen something similar on Thrones…
Just kidding of course!
Jospeh,
The current High Septon must be near as old as Pryce, so that’s off the table as well.
Sheepstealer,
I do realise its HBO and everything but surely you can have a scene of the seduction, without it actually being a sex scene. To note though I don’t see this happening anyway, I think it more likely the High Septon will just die/be killed off screen
No, I meant the High Septon we have at the moment, given that him dying is what enables the High Sparrow to come into play. Sure I’m extrapolating that the current High Septon is secretly gay, but that’s hardly far-fetched.
Given Cersei’s suspicions in the book about Margaery and her cousins having wild orgies behind closed doors, and even that Loras might have been a part of that (thus mirroring Cersei and Jaime’s relationship), she could even get Olyvar to claim he had a threesome with Margaery and Loras, given that’s sort of half true, and that would help get Cersei out of marrying Loras as well.
Sex scenes can happen off-screen. If Daenerys and Daario can do it, so can a septon and a male prostitute.
fuelpagan,
There is no need to feel sorry for Lena Headey. The woman has been a professional actor for years and IIRC is absolutely ok with the scene. I’m sure she can handle the situation just fine.
Also, 500 extras! Is that the highest number GOT every had in one scene?
Schrödinger’s Cat,
Jospeh,
I guess it’s possible. Using Olyvar to get rid of the High Septon and to seduce Margaery would in any case once again illuminate Cersei’s stupidity and carelessness and connect both crimes in a believable way.
Btw I don’t think Cersei needs much of an excuse to not marry Loras now that Tywin is dead.
Schrödinger’s Cat,
Ahh I see. I thought you were talking about the High Sparrow and not the High Septon. However, in your arguments you are assuming that Cersei is a reliable narrator which I think she is not. Her accusations of Margaery came off as paranoia in my opinion. Especially after her descent into madness with her fathers death, Tyrions escape, the Maggy the frog business, her burning the tower of the hand, etc.
So I guess Season 5 will officially be both Dance with Dragons and Feast for Crows, but I don’t think the Greyjoys will fit in this season despite the fact it seems like an absolute necessity. Maybe next season?
This season is going to be an epic one for Lena. And she’s already so goddamned fantastic on this show.
Alright great, but I hope they do show her as a villain before this. Her character in the show is a lot more understandable, a lot of her actions are given to Joffrey. She needs to get really crazy, paranoid and evil before the High Septon captures her… I have my doubts they will do this to her in the show. I’m afraid they will portray her as a victim, paranoid after what has happened to her and nothing more.
Turncloak,
If she is excited then great! I’m glad she is wanting to walk buck naked in front of 500 extras instead of a green screen with the people added in separately.
I’m not sure why she wanted a body double in season one showing a part of her butt if she is okay with this…but whatever.
Oh, yeah, I don’t believe Cersei’s suspicions about Margaery are much more than paranoia either, nor would anyone watching the show, but it’s still something Cersei considers in the books, so it makes sense to use that in what she tells Olyvar to falsely confess to.
A few people believe some of ‘show’ Margaery’s lines hint that she is a lesbian or bisexual though.
For those who wonder : her tattoos aren’t a problem at all. You can cover that up with a bit of make-up :
vlad,
Thats a legitimate concern. Cersei does plenty awful things and her punishment is more than deserving. Delivering common females to Qyborn to be used in experiments, ordering Osney Kettleblack on a mission to kill Jon Snow, sending Loras on a mission that she hopes will result in his death, setting up a false case against Margaery in the hopes that she will be beheaded, issuing a huge ransom for Tyrion’s death resulting in the death of innocent dwarves, etc. Cersei is not a Saint. Really hope they address these things. It’s possible to feel bad for Cersei and at the same time believe she deserves her punishment. Hope the writers room agrees with me.
Probably because that doesn’t exactly make an important, mind blowing scene, that has a chance to be remembered for decades..
Turncloak,
I beg to differ. They weren’t punishing her for giving people to Qyburn or murdering babies. They were punishing her for having sex outside marriage. And what they did was disgusting, misogynistic and akin to sexual abuse. It would be like saying someone deserved to be raped for their crimes, or rather, someone who committed real crimes like murdering people, should get raped for the crime of sleeping around.
If they had convicted her for murder, torture etc. and executed her, I would have no problem with it and would consider it deserved.
If Lena is really going through with this with all those extras watching her she is quite possibly the bravest actor on earth.
Annara Snow,
Well, it was also for having the previous High Septon murdered, IIRC.
fuelpagan,
She was pregnant in season 1, it was probably a practical concern.
I agree. Cersei deserves to be punished for her crimes, not her sex life.
Annara Snow,
I agree, the punishment was horrible (although not shocking thinking this is a medieval world), but us as readers knew all that she did. All the unsullied viewers need to have the same knowledge. And than they can judge for themselves if they agree or not with the walk.
I’m quite surprised they are going to film Lena’s punishment walk in front of a huge crowd of extras. I would of expected them to shoot the naked part in private, then magically merge it in with the crowd afterwards.
I’m curious whether they focus on ‘villain’ Cersei, ‘paranoid’ Cersei or ‘stupid’ Cersei in the show. Killing the High Septon, dismissing the Iron Bank, reinstating the Faith Militant, and spending what money they have on a new fleet, which she then entrusts to someone who absconds with it, are all actions she takes which are integral to her downfall and the rising chaos in King’s Landing. But none of those actions are especially villainous necessarily, or paranoid exactly, just stupid. It’s important to show that she gets what’s coming to her, indirectly causes it in fact, not just because she’s horrible to others and going mad with suspicion, but because she’s nowhere near as smart as she thinks she is and is terrible at ruling compared with Tywin.
Note – when I say Cersei’s ‘downfall’, I don’t mean the punishment walk specifically, just the fact that she is removed from power, and rightly so.
This is exciting news… that I almost dread having to watch play out on screen.
Such a powerful and disturbing scene in the books ..
I expect cast and crew will execute it well and make it equally as profound!
My hope is body doubles will not be used as much as some think. Tattoos can be covered up easily and I’m not sure her body shape matters in any way whatsoever… The scene will speak to audiences whether Lena is trim and slim or soft and curvy. So much of that scene will be body language and I think Lena is capable of delivering a body and soul wrenching performance that could easily be lessened by use of a body double…
Ser who says Ni,
CGI is very expansive and takes time. If all people involved are ok doing it “for real” they can save a lot of money and time that way.
I think they have held off on doing nude scenes for Cersei to make her walk that much more impactful.
Ser who says Ni,
Nothing is certain. I could see them using a body double for wide angle shots and shooting Lena’s closeups as you suggest.
I’m glad Lena is a sport about the whole thing. It’s going to be a powerful sequence for her. Similar to Tyrion’s face during Oberyn’s speech.
the real issue is whether they’ll have Lena go bald for the scene
Thumbs up to Lena, it takes some courage to walk naked in front of 500 and more people. But I was thinking, if Cersei gets taken down by the High Sparrow, who will be in charge of King’s Landing? Margeary is confined in a cell and they’ve made zero references to Kevan Lannister.
It all goes down to who will be Hand of the King. I guess it’ll probably be Mace. A rose in charge of King’s Landing!
Schrödinger’s Cat,
I think they have it set up so that Cersei seems less stupid with her decisions in season 5. On the show, Casterly Rock’s gold mines have dried up. This gives her a credible reason to dismiss the Iron Bank and puts her in a desperate situation to reinstate the Faith militants to forgive the crowns debt. Now her decision to give Kings Landing a new fleet and hiring her “yes men” will be much harder to defend. They can remove the part in which Cersei buys a new fleet and give it to the Lyseni bastard with the surname of Waters(forget his name). Which I think they will do. I also think they will remove Cersei ordering the death of Lord Commandar Jon Snow which was stupid to begin with even for someone like Cersei. Also there are no Kettleblacks to send on that mission in the show.
Um, with tattoos they just use makeup, and being thin has been common for every actress doing a nude scene on this show, so I doubt that would be a consideration.
I imagine it would be rather awkward to do this (certainly much more public than most nude scenes filmed for TV/movies are), but in terms of keeping people from taking photos, I don’t think that meaningfully affects Lena’s privacy or whatever. In a few months the entire planet can take HD images of the scene regardless.
griffin,
Why is it an absolute necessity? In the show, I mean. Victarion’s mission is moot in the show; she already has a fleet that can take her whole army, the Meereenese Fleet. The Horns have not been introduced or particularly foreshadowed, and it seems the kind of thing they would cut from the adaptation. However, I’m pretty sure we will get some Greyjoy action in Westeros: Bryan Cogman DID say in an interview there will be consequences to Yara’s reputation as a result of her failed attack on the Dreadfort, so we’ll probably get some version of a Kingsmoot. Either she will fail (but to whom? It doesn’t seem they are casting more Greyjoys) or she will win and Yara will be the new Queen of the Iron Islands. And then she will be captured by Stannis. I don’t expect the Greyjoy storyline to expand any more than that, be it season 5 or 6.
Turncloak,
Yeah, well, all that makes sense, but I don’t really want them to remove the foolishness from her actions and just make it into desperation, because that’ll make her look more like a victim once everything goes down… white-washing characters etc. etc.
Schrödinger\’s Cat,
They can make her look foolish and at the same time give her proper motivation. Let’s say she has proper motivation to not pay the iron bank(no money). She can go about deciding to not pay them in an indignant way by arrogantly dismissing them. I hope they take this route
Maybe if Bronn gets back from his apparent trip from Dorne in time, he could take up the Kettleblack role.
Somewhat OT: Carice van Houten just tweeted out a picture of a suit of armor and a shield emblazoned with a fiery heart along with the message “Guess where I am?”. Considering that Kit Harington mentioned at the Comic-Con panel that he starts filming on Monday with “a really great scene”, I think that we may be able to put 2 and 2 together here …
https://twitter.com/caricevhouten/status/493792501590159360
Turncloak,
Fair enough.
Unlikely. Jerome Flynn and Lena Headey hate each other. By the sound of it, they have to be physically kept apart during filming. I doubt they’d be able to do those scenes together without something going awry.
I’m really not looking forward to seeing this scene on the screen. It was the most disturbing and heart-wrenching moment in the books by far for me.
Schrödinger’s Cat,
Where do people get this silly stuff from, honestly?
Jared,
That looks like Stannis
Could this scene be the Mance burning? Maybe the scene where Stannis sets off to war (since he’s using a shield). Anyway, that shield is awesome.
jentario,
It does indeed appear to be Stannis’s attire/armor, although I can’t tell if Stephen Dillane is actually wearing it at the moment.
I know that they don’t shoot in chronological order, but my guess for the scene would be either Stannis offering to make Jon the Lord of Winterfell, or the conversation that Jon has with Melisandre that precedes that scene. The burning scene is definitely a possibility, considering that it takes place outdoors, but I’m less confident that particular business will make it into the show (the whole glamor thing strikes me as something that would be difficult to pull off onscreen).
Arkash,
Another great long take (which also stars Tobias Menzies and Nonso Anozie) done on a low budget. I believe this scene was done for ÂŁ1 million and included 1000 extras.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/10693120/Game-of-Thrones-stars-Lena-Headey-and-Jerome-Flynn-not-on-speaking-terms.html
Can’t wait to see how much they fuck up this scene.
They could just use a bald cap. I think Conleth Hill has been rocking one for Varys for years. Lena Headey could pull off bald if she wanted to go for it for real, though.
Even though the scene will be even harder for me to watch than it was to read–and reading it was no picnic–I think it’s going to be amazing. Go, Lena!
aurane waters,
You must be so fun at parties. This is precisely the kind of powerful scene they tend to completely stick to, except for minor changes that make it even more powerful in places (i.e. Tyrion’s trial.) Whatever you think of the major cuts of whole storylines that are coming up, or the seamingly unexplainable changes they sometimes make, I don’t see how you can argue that they will probably fuck this scene up. It’s exactly the kind of thing they know how to adapt wonderfully.
Nope, Conleth Hill shaves his head for the role.
This has potential to be one of the most iconic scenes in the whole series. People are going to remember this and be talking about it for a very long time.
This will be Lena’s Emmy scene!!! đ
No, he doesn’t.
MM,
She is a pretty known actress, i doubt she would want to mess up other roles just so she can be bald on GOT. Also i’m glad the braindead morons who thought ending the season with her being imprisoned was a good idea were proven wrong , it was a terrible end to her AFFC arc, imo it should have ended with the walk and i think it was supposed to end that way but Martin or his editor decided it would be a good for some reason to cut two of her most important chapters and put in the next book, awful idea and glad they fixed that .
aurane waters,
Is westeros.org not enough for you to act like a child ?
Abyss,
The cost of CGI depends on what you are doing. Something that is extremely complex and time consuming, which in this series would be a dragon or battle scene, is obviously very expensive. However, using CGI for more basic things can actually be cheaper than ‘real’ filming. Check out the recent CGI reel for GOT, where you see things like the Bloody Gate were completely computer generated. For something like Cersei’s walk, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was cheaper to film it in the way I suggested – though I imagine respect for Lena Headey would of come first!
Of course, there is something to be said about an overuse of CGI detracting from the actors performances, and removing a sense of realism. If Lena is really prepared to shoot the scene in public, then this scene could be perfect.
I have high hopes for this scene and hope they do it right. The nudity should absolutely not be depicted as sexy.
Also, putting it in digitally would not be anywhere near as impactful. If Lena feels uncomfortable and vulnerable the scene will be that much more powerful. Actors ok with feeling that way sometimes. It’s part of the craft.
LukaNieto,
probably because like a lot of the fandom they probably think that cersei deserves the walk because of the evil things she’s done. hell i wouldn’t be surprised at all if they make this scene all about her getting her comeuppance for having people tortured by qyburn. the walk of shame is a powerful scene in the book because its the point where cersei realizes that she can no longer use her sexuality to achieve her goals. its similar to jaime getting his hand cut off. the cersei before the walk of shame and after are two different people in the sense that after the walk cersei has lost a major part of her IDENTITY.
considering they haven’t focused on cersei using sex as a bribe and they’re havent been any casting announcements for kettleblacks or lancel coming back, it wont have the same effect and its a huge fuck up imo.
hell i’ll be surprised if they even film this scen from her POV. D&D are pure trash. after how they changed the sept scene into a rape, i dont understand how anyone can have hopes of them doing any complex cersei scene justice
aurane waters,
I think you greatly misunderstood the point of Cersei’s walk of shame if you think it’s just about Cersei’s loss of sexual control
Turncloak,
i realize that its also about her losing her power and her public image of the “beautiful golden queen” being stripped away from her. but it was a punishment given to her because of adultery and sleeping with other men after robert’s death. if the D&D decide to change that (which it seems like they 99% will) then fuck this scene tbh
Lena’s talked about this scene before:
http://www.blastr.com/2014-3-6/exclusive-lena-headey-game-thrones-and-shooting-cersei-scene
Nah.
Hexonx,
it’s nice to see that Lena gets it even though those hacks D&D probably don’t
aurane waters,
And GRRM is a fat fuck, see, i can make insults too, doesn’t mean what i’m doing is being mature .
Sunfyre,
-changing a consensual sex scene into a rape
-taking away Catelyn’s agency to make Robb a bigger character
-killing off Shae in a way that make us feel sorry for Tyrion
-cutting Arianne and making Trystane the heir of Dorne
-taking away Cersei’s sexual agency
-added sexual violence against women from the books
-shooting the sexual violence in a tilltilating way
-sexualizing the hell out of Sansa
-having Margaery seduce Tommen
and the examples just go on and on…….make them gutter trash in my eyes
TaviColen123,
ok
do you want a pat on the back??
Lena Headey’s hair is very short right now. I imagine it won’t be hard for them to use a bald cap. Unless she wants them to really shave it. I imagine it wouldn’t take but a few months for it to grow back to it’s current length.
aurane waters,
I’m, not saying that all of your points aren’t comprehensible (some of them are total bullshit imo), but if you find so many things in the show that you hate, just stop watching, it is as simple as that.
aurane waters,
I could ask the same to you. Hacks? Gutter trash? Grow up, Linda.
aurane waters,
Sansa will be sexualized in the Winds of Winter. That’s most likely the controversial Sansa scene that GRRM held back for 2 books. My money is that she will start sleeping with Littlefinger. Cersei’s influence has taught her well
Abyss,
please do elaborate on which of my points are bullshit
aurane waters,
You kinda undermine your own arguments when you throw around insults like “gutter trash”. Why so hostile?
Sunfyre,
just channeling my inner cersei since this post is about her
Tyrion Pimpslap,
please do not associate with that stupid bitch who thinks that robert didn’t rape cersei and that dorne is white
aurane waters,
Also, GRRM sexualized the hell out of Arya in his TWOW sample chapter. Had her fiercely making out with Raff the sweetling. That’s much more disturbing than the show putting Sansa in Sith clothing
That is an inordinate amount of assumptions about a wide swath of the Game of Thrones fandom. I completely disagree with your logic. Benioff and Weiss have written Cersei as a complex, thoroughly human character worthy of our sympathy despite her actions, and Lena Headeyâs tremendous performance have given the character a great deal of depth. Suggesting that they will use the moment to condemn her and ridicule beyond the intention of the scene as Martin originally wrote it is, in my opinion, nonsense.
It would be hard for me to disagree with every word youâve written here more strongly than I do. I think the scene will be filmed from Cerseiâs point of view. I think that Benioff and Weiss are strong writers handling an extremely difficult task. Despite the backlash, I had no problem with how the sept scene was handled, and I have every confidence that Benioff and Weiss, the director, and Headey will pull Cersei’s Walk of Shame off brilliantly.
I don’t care how passionate or genuine your anger is – calling Benioff and Weiss “gutter trash” weakens your argument immensely. Most people here who have issues with the way that show is being handled are able to express their opinions without those opinions devolving into indiscriminate insults. By punctuating your criticisms with petulant name-calling and reductive logic, you reduce your own credibility and the chances that people here are going to listen to anything that you have to say.
zod,
You can see the line in some still photos. Definitely a bald cap.
Its exciting to see they will be moving through Feast and Dance at this pace. If they are planning on wrapping the story up in 7 or possibly 8 seasons it would surely be important to have a good 20 to 30 episodes to move towards and then produce the endgame so Im all for them getting through Feast and Dance in this next season.
Jared,
you really had no problem with how the sept scene was handled??? REALLY?? it was flat out rape, took away Cersei’s agency and ruined Jaime’s character. then that moron Alex Graves had the nerve to say “it became consensual by the end”.
anyways i disagree with you about D&D being strong writers (Bran in Craster’s Keep, Robb and Talisa, the sept scene, Tyrion’s scenes in season 4 finale, Dany in season 2 and more) strongly prove otherwise.
lmao why does me calling them “gutter trash” reduce my credibility. it’s my opinion and i’m allowed to voice it.
aurane waters,
Mh… Do I really have to? I have the feeling no matter what I say you will never agree on anything I say. – But we give it a try. I will focus on the ones that are simply false, and leave out the ones that are highly debatable.
-taking away Cerseiâs sexual agency
Her agency has not been taken away. In the books Tywin wants her to marry Willas, in the show it is Loras. Nothing was taken away there. And if you mean choosing her sex partners by “sexual agency” that isn’t true either. She still sleeps with Jaime and Lancel in the show, because she wants to, even though it could cost her everything.
-shooting the sexual violence in a titillating way
It wasn’t. Frankly, I don’t even know how you could pull that off.
-sexualizing the hell out of Sansa
They haven’t. They showed her getting awareness of her own sexuality in the last scenes with LF. That isn’t sexualizing somebody. If anything I would argue that Sansa has been more sexualized in the books.
Abyss,
they had Jaime rape her and the Kettleblack brothers have been cut. Cersei using sex as a bribe isn’t focused on at all. It’s only been mentioned once in the Blackwater episode and that’s no surprise since GRRM wrote it. they didn’t have tyrion tell jaime that she’s been sleeping around since he left KL. they also removed her trying to seduce Ned as well as Oberyn’s line and thinking that Cersei is going to seduce him too in favor of that cringeworthy scene of her crying over Myrcella. furthermore show!cersei just isn’t as flirtatious and sexually alluring like book!cersei is. they’ve made in to The Mother. her sexual agency has been greatly removed from the books
They’ve definitely sexualized Sansa with that godawful Maleficient dress, and her telling LF “i know what you want”. plus Sophie saying that she’ll be using her sexuality to manipulate next season. that’s definitely sexualizing Sansa
and the way the Craster’s keep rape was filmed with the emphasis on woman’s breast jiggling and full pan on Ros’s body with her sexual violence death…thats shooting sexual violence in a titillating way
OT, but it’s nice to see some known community names in here. Glad some of you are back.
I wonder what episode will this be in, and what it means when it comes to the books.
aurane waters,
I blame the Sept scene on Alex Graves since from his comments you get the impression that he had no idea what he was filming. During post production D&D probably had no choice but to include it as they have a minimum time quota to fill per episode.
aurane waters,
We are not talking about the rape scene here (which I think was probably the lowest point of this season), but there are arguments that Jaime raped her in the books as well.
And to say that D&D made Cersei simple “the mother” is nonsense. Yes, she loves her children, but she also wants to be/stay queen, be excepted as a ruler in a paternalistic society and control her own life.
And regarding Sansa: Just because someone uses his or her sexuality doesn’t mean that he or she is “sexualized”, at least not in the negative objectifying why that you seem to mean it. People do that all the time (especially teenagers in the age of Sansa, it is part of growing up) and that isn’t a bad thing in anyway. In fact, it is totally normal and I would find it pretty strange if Sansa wouldn’t try that with LF.
I cannot wait to see this scene, i am about to read (or listen to it) quite soon again, since i am almost done with my re-read (or re-listening) đ
Turncloak,
D&D still wrote the scene and they decided to exclude Cersei enjoying the sex and saying “yes” for some reason. in the “inside the episode”, D&D also pretty much say the scene was a rape with their words of “cersei is saying no and jaime is forcing himself on her”
aurane waters,
I donât want to stray off-topic, especially because I think that this particular issue has been beaten to death. But Jaime and Cerseiâs relationship is extremely twisted in both the books and the show. The scene reflected that, and when I read the scene in ASOS â which is written from Jaimeâs POV â I didnât find it to be any less disturbing. Regardless, the show exists as its own entity, so any criticisms that draw their primary anger from the sentiment that âit was different and/or better in the books!â hold little weight with me.
Lena Headey herself has stated in an interview with Gold Derby that she has no problems with how the scene was written and shot, and that she does not believe that it was a rape. You are free to put as little stock into the actorsâ opinions regarding the intentions of a scene as you wish, but as someone who is interested in the creative process and the intentions of the artists making the work, I value her opinion and give it a significant amount of credence. I agree that Gravesâ comments on the scene were extremely tone-deaf, and inflamed a situation that certainly didnât need any additional fuel to feed the fire. But I have no problems with how the scene was written. The way that Graves filmed it and the way that it was edited are separate matter. That could have been handled better.
Your opinion on the strength of Benioff and Weissâs writing is your opinion, and you are certainly entitled to it. I wonât attempt to dissuade you, but I happened to like all of the scenes that you cited as examples of poor writing. So when you say that you canât comprehend how âanyoneâ could think that Benioff and Weiss could do a good job with Cerseiâs Walk of Shame, Iâm going to disagree with you because I can easily comprehend how they could handle that scene successfully, and I donât want my silence to be taken as me acceding to your hypothetical silent majority.
So we disagree. That disagreement is valid, and it should be sufficient. Good debaters are able to call out people with whom they have a problem without ascribing pejorative terms to them that make overly simplistic assumptions about their moral character. Calling D&D âpoor writersâ is acceptable. Calling them âgutter trashâ or accusing them of misogyny, sexism, or hating women based solely on the way that they write a television show isnât. Unless youâve met them, you have absolutely no valid way of drawing such assumptions about them. That doesnât have to stop you from having that opinion, but nor does it have to stop me from refusing to view your opinion on the issue as credible. We all have freedom of speech, but that isnât the same as the freedom to say whatever you want without providing sufficient support or being immune to the consequences. If you angrily insult someone in a public forum, you can expect people to call you out on it.
aurane waters,
We are not talking about the rape scene here (which I think was probably the lowest point of this season), but there are arguments that Jaime raped her in the books as well.
And to say that D&D made Cersei simple âthe motherâ is nonsense. Yes, she loves her children, but she also wants to be/stay queen, be excepted as a ruler in a paternalisticsociety and control her own life.
And regarding Sansa: Just because someone uses his or her sexuality doesnât mean that he or she is âsexualizedâ, at least not in the negative objectifying way that you seem to mean it. People do that all the time (especially teenagers in the age of Sansa, it’s part of growing up) and that isnât a bad thing in anyway. In fact, it is totally normal and I would find it pretty strange if Sansa wouldnât try that with LF.
We get it. You hate men in general and you especially hate D&D. Of course you are welcome to your opinion which you’ve made quite clear. So the question remains, why are you still watching? I’m not asking facetiously, I’m genuinely curious.
aurane waters,
I donât want to stray off-topic, especially because this particular issue has been beaten to death. But Jaime and Cerseiâs relationship is extremely twisted in both the books and the show. The scene reflected that, and when I read the scene in ASOS â which is written from Jaimeâs POV â I donât find it to be any less dark. Regardless, the show exists as its own entity, so any criticisms that draw their primary anger from the sentiment that âit was different and/or better in the books!â hold little weight with me.
Lena Headey herself has stated in an interview with Gold Derby that she has no problems with how the scene was written and shot, and that she does not believe that it was a rape. You are free to put as little stock into the actorsâ opinions regarding the intentions of a scene as you wish, but as someone who is interested in the creative process and the intentions of the artists making the work, I value her opinion and give it a significant amount of credence. I agree that Gravesâ comments on the scene were extremely tone-deaf, and inflamed a situation that certainly didnât need any additional fuel to feed the fire. But I have no problems with how the scene was written. How Graves filmed it and how it was edited is a separate matter. That probably could have been edited better.
Your opinion on the strength of Benioff and Weissâs writing is your opinion, and you are certainly entitled to it. I wonât attempt to dissuade you, but I happened to like all of the scenes that you cited as examples of poor writing. So when you say that you canât comprehend how âanyoneâ could think that Benioff and Weiss could do a good job with Cerseiâs Walk of Shame, Iâm going to disagree with you because I can easily comprehend how they could handle that scene successfully, and I donât want my silence to be taken as me acceding to your hypothetical silent majority.
So we disagree. That disagreement is valid, and it should be sufficient. Good debaters are able to call out people with whom they have a problem without ascribing pejorative terms to them that make overly simplistic assumptions about their moral character. Calling D&D âpoor writersâ is acceptable. Calling them âgutter trashâ or accusing them of misogyny, sexism, or hating women based solely on the way that they write a television show isnât. Unless youâve met them, you have absolutely no valid way of drawing such assumptions about them. That doesnât have to stop you from having that opinion, but nor does it have to stop me from refusing to view your opinion as credible. We all have freedom of speech, but that isnât the same as the freedom to say whatever you want without providing sufficient support or being immune to the consequences. If you angrily insult someone in a public forum, you can expect people to call you out on it.
Abyss,
Jaime DID NOT RAPE Cersei in the book. The only issue that Cersei had in the book was the location. She was afraid that she and Jaime were going to get caught. And GRRM himself has said that. That is only made clearly obvious when Cersei agrees to the sex in a matter of seconds and enjoys it. She consents to it before actual penetration and helps Jaime remove his pants. That is not how the scene played out like in the show at all
aurane waters,
No need to write in capitals… I didn’t say that I think he did, I said there are arguments about it… And just as a side note: An author can have one view of something he or she wrote and some readers of his/her work can have another. What an author says about his work isn’t necessarily the last word on the subject.
Abyss,
well we get Cersei’s POV from the books and not once does she think that Jaime went out of bounds with her let alone rape her. while she clearly sees Robert as a rapist because he did in fact rape her. Cersei knows what its like to be sexually abused and she knows what sexual abuse is.
aurane waters,
Don’t know what to say about that. I never once said that I disagree with you on that point. All I wanted to do is give you an idea why people still have discussions about it…
But as I said in the beginning, the rape scene wasn’t listed as one of my “bullshit points” anyway…
I hated the sept scene in the show. I was very critical of it during the week the episode aired and have not discussed it much since. My interpretation is that it was a poorly executed scene, and most of the blame should go to the director. However, the dialogue could have been handled better. If you’ll notice, the “I don’t care” that Jaime repeats in the sept scene was repeated by Cersei to Jaime when she was seducing him in the Lord Commander’s solar in the finale and he was worried about being caught. D&D tried to tie the two scenes together, but it didn’t work, IMO. I wish they would have avoided the sept scene all together.
Well it’s either they say that or they throw Graves under the bus for screwing up the directing. If you read Elios review of the episode he does a in depth break down of the scene and noticed that Cersei does kiss back but it’s incredibly ambiguous and impossible to tell unless you play the scene in slow motion which is why the whole scene was a disaster. You shouldn’t need a magnifying glass to find out what’s going on. Here’s Elio’s comments:
“For some, the simple question will be, âDid Jaime just rape Cersei?â For a few, it wonât even be a question, it will be obvious one way or another. But it seems clear that what the writers aimed for was ambiguity, an ambiguity that serves to remind viewers that however Jaime and Cersei interact, the romantic and sexual component of that relationship is perverse, and even dangerous.”
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER UNSLIED DONT READ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4C8-e1zD7Y
this is an old interview with the “actress” when the host told her as a joke I saw your butt in game of thrones she said it wasnt her but another lady who got paid very well >
so i think she wont be the one who is going to made the walk but another actress well do all the scene and then maybe will add her face ? i dont know
NYM SAND,
Lena was pregnant during season 1 filming. That is why she used a double for that scene.
Well it’s either D&D say that or they throw Graves under the bus for bad directing, which they wouldn’t do. Also, the scene was intended to be consensual but Graves fucked it up. He even says it’s consensual in the end. D&D could have added lines of Cersei screaming “yes!” but they probably thought that Graves would be competent enough to get the consensual point across without the laugh inducing dialogue
^
Tyrion Pimpslap
aha ! I didn`t know that ! I think its going to be difficult for her to do that scene
This scene is going to be absolutely incredible. Regardless of how much Cersei may or may not deserve justice or punishment, I bet it’s still going to be difficult and uncomfortable, even painful to watch. Go Lena!
zod,
That was really striking! Thanks for the link!
Maester Lauren,
I don’t think they’d use a “softer” body model because she is clearly thin in the show and it would create a continuity problem. I mean if her face is so thin and then they cut to her body and it’s more zaftig it will be so obvious that they’ve used someone else’s body. I don’t think they’ll risk that because they don’t have to.
In the books we don’t really see Cersei (GRRM’s descriptive skills notwithstanding) and we get that POV where we get to hear her worry about her having gained weight. This helps in the book because for women, all that really matters is how they feel about themselves in their own head. Even skinny women can feel “fat” and no objective view will change that.
And since the show can’t do POV they have had to express how she feels about her body in other ways. They’ve done it by her clothing and her attitude toward others. Cersei is always covered up (except in sex scenes with Jaime but even then she’s always been fully dressed or only party en dĂ©shabillĂ©). They’ve made a point of showing how much she despises Margaery for exposing so much of her body. She has been very negative about the use of the body as a tool (whether it be Margaery or prostitutes or well, anyone). I mean, just about every outfit she has worn has covered her shoulders, and often all the way up to her neck, so no cleavage. Even the sleeves have been mostly if not all long. And the skirts are always long and of a heavy material, no diaphanous or thinly layered skirts for her. On top of that they’ve often had bits of heavier fabric, metal panels, etc to make her clothes like armor (I seem to recall one of the costume designers mentioning this in an interview as well). Also, Cersei has said repeatedly that she wishes she had been born male. She desperately wants to be considered an equal to her brothers and wants to wield power like a man. Covering up her body is part of that attempt. Modern women who want to do well in male dominated professions often do this too. They dress to avoid people looking at them as sexual beings in order to gain respect and to be treated the same as their male colleagues. This is all purposeful so that when she is forced to do the walk naked, we will instinctively know that Cersei is very protective of her body and has a deep sense of shame about its exposure. So the need for a softer body double isn’t really needed.
Also, the thought of Cersei pondering out loud about her body being heavier and how that embarrasses her feels like it would not come across well on screen. How the heck could they have her express that and to whom? Neither in the books or on the show would Cersei ever express that to anyone and show her vulnerability.
I think for all these reasons it will be Lena’s own thinner frame or a body double that more closely matches Lena’s thin frame. Including her concerns about being fatter is unnecessary and I think D&D planned for this from the very beginning of the show.
If Lena really wanted to “get into character” she may “soften” up herself. Although in this day and age of social media she would probably receive a lot of vulgar insults. I can already see the controversy this scene is going to cause when it airs anyway. As far as using a body double, I don’t see why they would. Lena hasn’t had a problem disrobing for previous roles and she seems genuinely interested in what this event means for her character. And as others have said tattoos can be easily covered.
I remember seeing in an interview once a director explaining why Cersei has never had a real nude scene before, to the point that even during sex scenes she keeps her clothes on: it was all to prepare for this moment. Well in Season 1 it was to hide that she was pregnant, but notice that she had no subsequent seduction scenes (Lancel or the Kettleblacks or Moonboy) or when they absolutely had to have one in the plot, such as with Jaime in Season 4, she still keeps her clothes on. Since Season 1, they’ve wanted to maintain the shock of this — Lena has done nude scenes before, in “300” and stuff, but they wanted to emphasize the pure humiliation and shock of the queen being stripped naked and forced on a naked penance walk — it wouldn’t have the same impact if we the audience had seen her naked before.
I wonder if they are going to show mound
There’s a post about Lena’s tenacity that’s been making its way around Tumblr and this thread just reminded me of it. Lena really is a trooper, and her cast-mates couldn’t agree more. I’m sure everyone involved with the Walk will do their best to make the set a safe, comfortable place for her on shooting day.
http://aureliacamargo.tumblr.com/post/93119892898/who-are-the-badass-women-that-inspire-you-lena
hot pieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Ser who says Ni,
Admittedly my knowledge is very limited when it comes to CGI, but my understanding is that static CGI is fairly cheap, while animated things are not and that is what a large crowd scene would be.
Lena has 80lb. balls.
Abyss,
Actually they don’t need animation. They could be using the 500 extras to shoot the Walk scene without Lena. The extras would be jeering, yelling at, throwing things at no one or a stand in or a place marker. Then in Belfast, against the massive green screen you’d have Lena do the actual nude walk with the extras playing on the screen behind.
BUT if they do want to extend the 500 into thousands isn’t all that hard as far as animation goes….it involves copying and pasting groups of the real extras, changing their size to match distance away from the camera, then a little bit of timing offset so their physical motions are not in synch with the original/real extras and voila, you now have 1000’s instead of just 500.
That all being said, I don’t see them doing that. I’m betting that Lena will do the Walk in situ with the 500 extras and then later they pad the crowd as described above in post production.
I have to admit, I’m a bit worried. I’m sure the scene will be remembered. But if it goes down wrong, it might also have the potential to turn into a jump-the-shark moment for GoT – or even HBO style television in general.
Tibatonk,
Interesting. Are you worried they’ll make it titillating or is it something else?
I’m just so happy to be reading this story and the comments! I miss GoT so much.
Lena is incomparable and I’m glad she is receiving attention for her acting chops. Love the reminder links, comments, and speculation about her role in “The Walk.” Thanks for this great new website, WatchersontheWall!
In my mind’s eye, I see Cercei talking to herself throughout the walk, denigrating the peasants, telling herself they couldn’t possibly understand her, thinking of her accusers and their ineptitude and dimness, then thinking of herself, maybe her children, succumbing to paranoia. Something like that, a kind of three-part descent into a personal madness & psychological hell.
OMG, bring it on, Lena! She will be brilliant.
Sunfyre,
Hmm, I just think the scene, if put on screen, has the potential to come over as cheap, tacky, and/or over the top. HBO has a reputation of mixing high production values with cheap thrills, and a scene in which an actress is shown fully nude among 500 extras for an extended amount of time might be seen as taking this formula to the extreme, or even beyond.
But even if they manage to pull the scene off right and in a dignified manner, it will still appear on a show and on a network that have repeatedly used gratuitous nudity for titillating purposes. So the scene does not exist in a vacuum and the whole history of the show and HBO might also play part in how it will be received.
I also have to admit that I never quite thought the scene very realistic. Penance walks did exist in medieval times, I know, but all the examples I’ve heard about, at least as far as nobility was concerned, mentioned rags or some such clothing, not full nudity. Thus, I think it quite possible that some might think the nudity an unnecessary addition to a scene that would also work otherwise.
In the end, I guess all I’m saying is, I don’t envy the director of that episode…
Tibatonk,
I remember the scene in ROME where Servilla had a not-that-dissimilar “walk of shame” and I felt it was handled quite well. Motivations were somewhat different, and there was rags of clothing, but I think the scene will resonate whether or not Cersei is bald and naked or in rags and with hair… I can see the concern, but I think the team well pull it off and Lena will kill it.
Darquemode,
Never watched much of Rome, actually. But I will try to locate the scene and watch it. GoT is much more high-profile than Rome, tough, so the reaction to Lena’s scene will be much stronger, one way or the other.
I hope they manage to pull it off well, too. At this point, I’m just not sure whether what is gained by having the nudity weighs up the risks that might come with it.
Tibatonk,
I had to look up the scene to recall details like the actress’s name and saw this clip. I think the full scene is longer but you can get the idea..
http://ancensored.com/clip/Rome/Lindsay-Duncan/40726
Do you think they’ll shave her head? The reason I ask is because the show has definitely toned down certain hair aspects present in the books before (e.g. the fanciful facial hair of Daario, the colored hairstyles of the Free Cities) and I know that the situation here is definitely different, as in it’s not as if they would be trying to protect something considered normal in the books from looking foolish on screen, but do you think they’ll go all the way with this? Again, probably not that big a deal either way but I’m just curious what you all think…
Darquemode,
Well, those 17 seconds certainly weren’t all that titillating. But that’s probably in part due to the fact that it is sudden, short, and shocking. Several minutes of the same thing focusing less on the disrobing and more on the extended state of nudity might be a completely different story…
I guess we’ll have to wait and see.
At no point will it be necessary to show full frontal nudity. In fact, I would argue by not showing it they could increase the tension and the horror. Sometimes in film not seeing all of something is better than actually seeing it. Like the “Blood Eagle” in Vikings (phenomenal bit of direction and editing there BTW and if you haven’t seen it, you should) or Hitchcock never showing the shower stabbing in Psycho, etc, etc. Music will be VERY important to the scene. In regards to crowd noise, I don’t know if I’d include it or not. (Minor VIKINGS SPOILER at bottom)
Here’s how I would shoot it. I would show the process of them cutting her hair off (they wouldn’t have to really shave her head but the effect would be a good way to show the cumulative effects of her punishment). I would show the process of her having to take her clothes off and her increasing horror at the realization that this is really happening. In these two prep scenes, the camera would show shoulders and face only. Then for the walk I would start to film her from behind, wide angled and high as if we are on the eaves of the St. Basil looking down on her because we need to see the scope of what she is dealing with…all those people, an entire city coming out to see her, jeer at her.
If I remember correctly she started out proud and arrogant but as it goes on she falls and starts to lose confidence, etc. So then I’d go from the wide, behind shot to her face and shoulders in order to show her arrogance. Then she starts to get nervous, again the face is most important here. All this interspersed with close ups of the people in the crowd. Then she falls and I would want to show her pain, maybe her skinned knee or feet, blood, her struggle to get up, at most from the side, slightly back but no full frontal nudity. Then as she rises her face again. Pull back the camera a little to show her chest which she is now covering with her hands, more falls, more stress from her face and her chest remains covered with her hands. Continue the process of going to the crowd, showing her face and changing posture, shoulders and changes in posture important here and the way the crowd seems to become bolder and meaner the more she cowers. Again the falls and injuries and the crowd worsening, throwing things, closing in even. As we get closer to the end we get closer and closer to her face, then extreme close up of her face to show how miserable she is. Then she falls the final time, film her face while she is struggling to get up. Then as she is crawling at the end up to the Red Keep stay on her face until she gets to the Red Keep gates, show her complete break down, then immediately go to camera in back and up, wide angle to show how ugly the crowd has become and so we can see her from behind, her sitting all alone just inside the outer courtyard as the Red Keep doors close, hiding her form from view.
Tibatonk,
I just checked my DVDs since I haven’t watched ROME in years. I was thinking that scene went on and Servilia walked down the street almost naked in an almost catatonic shock-fueled state, but it turns out that is the end of the scene. I must have combined in my mind it with another scene or maybe confused it with a scene from some other show or movie.
I think it can be done, but there are concerns like you said. I’m not sure it has to play out exactly as it does in the books to be effective, but who knows… Yep, wait and see…
I think you’re spot on here. While a little nudity may be necessary (a shot from the back as she’s about to begin, a panning shot, etc), less can definitely be more. I hope they do keep the scene from Cersei’s perspective as it would heighten the emotional impact.
Vikings is incredible, beautifully done (the music alone makes it worth watching). I wonder if the GoT and Vikings folks ever run into each other in Ireland?
Put me with the bunch who feels Lena is likely to see this scene as a great opportunity rather than a traumatic ordeal. She’s a pro; I don’t see why she’d be scared of nudity, especially when the nudity lends so much to the drama as it promises to do here. I bet a lot of great actresses would kill for the opportunity to shoot this scene.
Agreed Ms. D. and Isabelle
Best way to show this scene is to have a mature actress body double the role with false makeup and prosthetics to show the stretch marks and mature physique. But, the focus should be on her emotional response. This scene should leave us feeling angry and identifying with Cersei, not gawking at her with the rest of the crowd.
When did that happen? She sat on his bed and talked to him and pet the cat.
As far as the Cersei ‘was it rape’ – I think in this instance D&D would have done best to just copy what happened in the book. I don’t think it added anything to do it any other way. I have no opinion one way or another about what it was, I just wish we could move on from this thing.