Did HBO Drop A Major Spoiler with The Latest Game of Thrones Casting News?

[Brittany Vincent]

Did HBO Drop A Major Spoiler with The Latest Game of Thrones Casting News?

The following contains information that could potentially spoil a major upcoming Game of Thrones plot point. Read at your own risk!

You finally made it down here, after the above spoiler warning, so it must be assumed you really don't mind if you read about any Game of Thrones spoilers. If that's not the case, turn back now. This is your last chance!

First, the news: Game of Thrones, as you know, is a huge hit for HBO, which makes it extremely likely that the show will make to the end of its planned planned 7-season arc. That's great news for people afraid that the show could end up going the way of Rome or Deadwood and be cancelled long before it could have a chance of reaching its full potential. But it's a headache for the network, who at the show's inception only contracted the show's stars for only 6 seasons. To keep them around, HBO has just renegotiated the contracts for the actors in question to lock them down through season seven.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, in exchange for an option to keep them around through season 7, the new contracts give each actor a big boost in pay starting with next year's season 5 that will make them the highest paid on (cable) television. So rest easy, Game of Thrones fans: HBO plans to fully invest in seeing your favorite characters unceremoniously murdered off when you're least expecting it.

Or are they? Here's the list of actors the Hollywood Reporter says have extended their stay in Westeros:



Peter Dinklage (Tyrion Lannister)
Emilia Clarke (Daenerys Targaryen)
Kit Harrington (Jon Snow)
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jaime Lannister)
Natalie Dormer (Margaery Tyrell)
Sophie Turner (Sansa Stark)
Maisie Williams (Arya Stark)
Lena Headey (Cersei Lannister)



Of course, season 5 will essentially be a condensed combining of A Feast For Crows and a A Dance With Dragons, the 4th and 5th books in A Song of Ice and Fire. And leaked set photos and plot synopses are pointing toward events in season 5 that did not happen in either book. We've also seen how the show was willing to make controversial changes to key moments during season 4. It's possible that the writers of the TV show may take matters into their own hands and create a new continuity entirely by the end of the show's run.

The thing is, however, George R. R. Martin has already filled in the creators of Game of Thrones with the broad-strokes details of the still-unreleased 6th and 7th books in the series, just in case they make it to season 7 before he manages to finish the series. Further, the known - and assumed - changes for the most part don't actually derail the main plot of the series. Yet, anyway. So it's not a stretch to assume that foreknowledge of what's to come factored into these contract extensions.

Which brings us to the spoiler:

Spoiler

At the very end of A Dance With Dragons, Jon Snow, in charge of The Night's Watch since Book 3, is treated to a Julius Caesar-style coup d'etat by several disgruntled underlings who disagree with certain decisions he's made. The book ends right as Jon Snow has been stabbed 4 times and passes out, suggesting very, very strongly that he'd just been killed.

Fans of the series noted, however, that no viewpoint character has ever been killed off from their own point of view, leading most people to conclude he survives the assassination attempt. Even so, GRRM is merciless about killing characters, especially beloved characters off, and so people have been debating the meaning of the scene since the book came out.

Obviously, we can also now assume every other character lister here has plot armor until at least the final season.

If these contract extensions are based on information given to the show by GRRM about the direction of the final two books, it appears that question of what exactly happened has been answered definitively. Damn, HBO, that's how you spoil something.

Incidentally, for those of you wondering about beloved secondary characters like Brienne of Tarth, THR says that contracts for many supporting actors have also been renegotiated for the same purpose, though they don't name them. Care to guess who makes it to the final season?

Source: <a href=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/game-thrones-cast-signs-season-744314>The Hollywood Reporter



Permalink

 

[martyrdrebel27]

i convinced myself i was okay to see the spoiler, even clicked the spoiler link, then immediately scrolled away. I couldn't do it... Although, I did allow myself to see the list of characters and actors returning, and was happy with that.

 

[Callate]

As far as that spoiler regarding the end of Book 5:

Spoiler

I find it highly unlikely that a priestess of a religion we know has revealed the power to bring back the dead just happens to be on the scene. And that's even assuming the rumors that Jon Snow

Spoiler

is actually the child of the Mad King, and thus heir to the throne, turn out to be false.

I'm still more than a little miffed at the idea of losing Lady Stoneheart, though. It seemed like her arc was shaping up to be pretty important.

 

[Braedan]

Obviously here be dragons (or if you follow the show, there may be at some possible point in the undetermined future be a slight chance of dragons after they finish eating)

Spoiler

At the point mentioned in the article the line goes: '"Ghost," he whispered. Pain washed over him. Stick them with the pointy end. When the third dagger took him between the shoulder blades, he gave a grunt and fell face first into the snow. He never felt the fourth knife. Only the cold....'

I think it's pretty obvious that he jumps into his wolf right before he dies, similar to the way the other warg does with his bird.

 

[Phasmal]

Spoiler

At the very end of A Dance With Dragons, Jon Snow, in charge of The Night's Watch since Book 3, is treated to a Julius Caesar-style coup d'etat by several disgruntled underlings who disagree with certain decisions he's made. The book ends right as Jon Snow has been stabbed 4 times and passes out, suggesting very, very strongly that he'd just been killed.

Fans of the series noted, however, that no viewpoint character has ever been killed off from their own point of view, leading most people to conclude he survives the assassination attempt. Even so, GRRM is merciless about killing characters, especially beloved characters off, and so people have been debating the meaning of the scene since the book came out.

Obviously, we can also now assume every other character lister here has plot armor until at least the final season.

Spoiler: Spoiler about the spoiler

I'm pretty sure Catelyn was in her viewpoint when she was killed, I know events after that may make it `not count` but unless I'm mistaken her death happened in her own viewpoint?

Either way, I'm looking forward to seeing how the show is going to go about the upcoming events and everything we don't yet know about. There is some stuff I was kinda disappointed they didn't include, but I still like the show.

 

[RonHiler]

My theory as regards the events of the end of book 5:

Spoiler

Jon was indeed killed by his brothers, but he's not gone forever. He is subsequently brought back to life by the red priestess. Having died, he is now released from his vows ("now my watch begins, it shall not end until my death" and all that). I'm not sure what George has planned for him in the remaining two books, but I'm quite sure he's done with the Wall.

Just my own personal theory, but I feel fairly confident that's it's true. I guess we find out in a couple of years, one way or another (either through George or through D&D).

 

[Baresark]

Spoiler: You can't spoil something that someone can find out on Wikipedia.

 

[Altorin]

As far as that spoiler regarding the end of Book 5:

Spoiler

I find it highly unlikely that a priestess of a religion we know has revealed the power to bring back the dead just happens to be on the scene. And that's even assuming the rumors that Jon Snow

Spoiler

is actually the child of the Mad King, and thus heir to the throne, turn out to be false.

I'm still more than a little miffed at the idea of losing Lady Stoneheart, though. It seemed like her arc was shaping up to be pretty important.

Spoiler

The rumors are that he's the son of Rhaegar, not the mad king.

As for the spoiler in this casting choice - Jon Snow is not dead. He might have died. He might have some serious story issues with being attacked, but he's not dead. He just cannot be.

most spoiler filled thread ever prolly.

 

[RossaLincoln]

As far as that spoiler regarding the end of Book 5:

Spoiler

I find it highly unlikely that a priestess of a religion we know has revealed the power to bring back the dead just happens to be on the scene. And that's even assuming the rumors that Jon Snow

Spoiler

is actually the child of the Mad King, and thus heir to the throne, turn out to be false.

I'm still more than a little miffed at the idea of losing Lady Stoneheart, though. It seemed like her arc was shaping up to be pretty important.

I agree that removing her is a dumb idea. IF that's what they're doing. I won't be shocked if it turns out they're being coy for stupid "don't spoil things for people who haven't read the books" reasons.

But seriously, take her out and you lose a significant number of other character arcs.

 

[RossaLincoln]

Spoiler: Spoiler about the spoiler

I'm pretty sure Catelyn was in her viewpoint when she was killed, I know events after that may make it `not count` but unless I'm mistaken her death happened in her own viewpoint?

Either way, I'm looking forward to seeing how the show is going to go about the upcoming events and everything we don't yet know about. There is some stuff I was kinda disappointed they didn't include, but I still like the show.

Perhaps, except that

Spoiler

"killed off for real," is the distinction worth making, since she didn't stay dead and was back and alive and creepy by the end of the same book, though she came back wrong of course.

 

[gunny1993]

Wowowowowo

Who the fuck says Rome was cancelled before it reached it's full potential, that show overstayed its welcome by 1 series.


Also they're gona have to work some magic to get these series to be any good, books 4 and 5 were so convoluted and full of drab filler i could barley finish reading them.

 

[RossaLincoln]

Spoiler: You can't spoil something that someone can find out on Wikipedia.

And out of respect for people who haven't read the books and don't want to be spoiled and maybe have been purposefully *not* looking up spoilers on Wikipedia, we'll keep the spoilers hidden here.

 

[RossaLincoln]

Wowowowowo

Who the fuck says Rome was cancelled before it reached it's full potential, that show overstayed its welcome by 1 series.

The reason season 2 sucks so much is that they found out while filming episode 3 that the show had been cancelled, so they rewrote a the rest of the season to rush through to the end of the story they'd intended to tell, thus ruining it.

Had they just ended the season with the battle of philipi plus some text saying "and eventually Marcus Antonius and Caesar Octavianus fell out and went to war again blah blah blah, thus leaving the possibility open for a movie or something way later on, that season would have been so good.

Anyway, the point is season 2 sucked but mostly because of what they did to deal with being cancelled so soon.

 

[Baresark]

Wowowowowo

Who the fuck says Rome was cancelled before it reached it's full potential, that show overstayed its welcome by 1 series.

The reason season 2 sucks so much is that they found out while filming episode 3 that the show had been cancelled, so they rewrote a the rest of the season to rush through to the end of the story they'd intended to tell, thus ruining it.

Had they just ended the season with the battle of philipi plus some text saying "and eventually Marcus Antonius and Caesar Octavianus fell out and went to war again blah blah blah, thus leaving the possibility open for a movie or something way later on, that season would have been so good.

Anyway, the point is season 2 sucked but mostly because of what they did to deal with being cancelled so soon.

In that situation it's also reasonable not to post a story about the spoilers that may have been revealed.

Also, I was being facetious, not worries. I'm well aware that if people want to avoid spoilers they avoid Wikipedia articles about the books in general.

 

[mrgerry123]

Please do the gravedigger storyline HBO. I'd love for him to come back and I hope GRRM has some big plans for him, especially of the Robert Strong variety. As Thoros said "The lord of light is not done with you yet".

 

[Bat Vader]

Interesting but I kinda guessed what the spoiler was already going to be.

Spoiler

I feel that Jon is going to warg into Ghost and then get revived later. If he is the son of Lyanna and Rhaegar it means he should have that power since he has Stark blood in him.

 

[Azahul]

Spoiler

I really question whether anyone actually though Jon Snow had died at the end of A Dance with Dragons. There's just been so much foreshadowing for the aforementioned "son of Rhaegar and Lyanna" stuff that I can't see any writer letting go of that narrative.

 

[Fireprufe15]

Well I mean Jon Snow is supposed to be like the most important character, isn't he? "His is the song of ice and fire" and all that?

 

[L. Declis]

Please do the gravedigger storyline HBO. I'd love for him to come back and I hope GRRM has some big plans for him, especially of the Robert Strong variety. As Thoros said "The lord of light is not done with you yet".

They will.

I cannot see them giving up what will be the defining moment for the Little Brother. They decided to keep the Sir Strong part, so they need the other half to finish Cleganebowl.

Get hype.

 

[Imre Csete]

What, I thought they finally casted Victarion, meh.

For the Watch! Eheheheheh...