Uncategorised3 min(s) read
Uncategorised3 min(s) read
celebrity3 min(s) read
Game of Thrones is currently filming its final season. Soon we'll finally find out who will sit on the Iron Throne, what happens with all those White Walkers, and which character is Azor Ahai, The Prince That Was Promised. (I hope it's Hot Pie.) Of course, it won't be super soon, since the release date is April 2019. But hey, that just gives you more time to rewatch the first seven seasons.
The last season will be six episodes long, which doesn't seem like a lot of time to resolve all nine billion characters' storylines. But the good news is, these episodes may be much longer than sixty minutes. What happens is anyone's guess. HBO has gone to great lengths to keep the production under wraps. Reportedly they've filmed multiple fake endings so nothing will be spoiled by a paparazzi photo or a talkative member of the cast and crew.
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Still, fans are hungry for information, pouring over social media for clues. Jason Momao, who played Khal Drogo in season one, shared a photo of himself on Instagram that has caused a lot of speculation. In the picture, he's grabbing a Guinness in Ireland with the Game of Thrones showrunners, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss. And in the caption, he writes a cryptic message:
"Layovers. Where we going ? What are we doing ? What’s the score here.? What’s next?? Aloha j #motherland #paymyrespects #payhomage #somebodyordersomefuckinggolfshoes."
Yeah, I don't know what that means either. Maybe the trio is just catching up over some Guinness. But some fans have wondered if this means Khal Drogo is coming back in season 8. That would be pretty surprising, since he died in season 1.
In case you don't remember, Drogo suffered from a festering battle wound, so his bae, Daenerys sacrificed her unborn child to revive him (as you do). Unfortunately, he came back in a catatonic, corpse-like state, so Dany smothered him to end his suffering and burned his body. But hey, dead doesn't always mean in this crazy fantasy world. When Dany asked the witch if she'd ever see Drogo again, she said:
"When the sun rises in the west and sets in the east, when the seas go dry and the mountains blow in the wind like leaves. When your womb quickens again, and you bear a living child. Then he will return, and not before."
So, maybe Drogo will be resurrected through magic, or Dany will die and see him in the afterlife, or she'll see him in a trippy vision like in season 2.
It's possible that Jason Momoa was discussing a totally different project with David Benioff and D.B. Weiss. Disney recently announced that David and D.B. will write and produce an all-new series of Star Wars movies. Maybe Jason is part of that project. After all, Emilia Clarke, who plays Daenerys, is already in that universe, playing Qi'ra in Solo: A Star Wars Story. Or maybe, since Jason plays Aquaman in the D.C. Universe, they're doing something with that? Who knows? Maybe just like Guinness.
film & tv1 min(s) read
All us Game of Thrones fans (Throners? Throneys?) are eagerly anticipating the final season of the show, with the wait being pretty unbearable this time around. It was bound to happen, with the amount of story they have to get through in the eighth season, but waiting until 2019 feels like far too long to be sat around speculating.
But speculating is what we do, and some of the most intensely-dedicated fans out there will pick up on every detail of the production in case they uncover a clue. Similarly, all of the cast and crew have to be careful with what they say at the moment. It doesn't matter if they are starring in a hot new blockbuster or a fascinating play - journalists are going to want to hear about the fantasy show they're best known for, and they have to make sure they don't give too much away.
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So far, they've all been pretty good with keeping secrets - and sometimes they may even be throwing us off the scent by telling us that there are multiple endings being filmed to avoid spoilers. The fact is, we're pretty clueless for the most part. However, to satisfy those of us who just have to find out something, there are people taking photos of the studio in which the show is filmed.
Photos have been taken of the Belfast studios where the hit HBO series is currently being shot, and they may just give us some insight into the final episodes. One photo, taken on the 20th May and shared by Irish Thrones, shows part of Daenerys' green screen dragon rig outside of Titanic Studios - where many of the King's Landing scenes are filmed.
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Over the last week, the lot has been taken up with what appears to be smashed up parts of the architecture of King's Landing. Irish Thrones reports seeing "broken pillars, ornaments and King's Landing remnants" around the studios, as well as ceiling tile props.
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This seems to imply that King's Landing will come under attack, and Daenerys and her dragon may make an appearance - possibly to reign down destruction from above.
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There have also been various stars spotted together in the area, some who are not meant to be in the fantasy series anymore. The production is in the final stages of filming at the moment, so it stood out when Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (who plays Jaime Lannister) and Sean Bean (who played Ned Stark) were seen hanging outside a hotel in the area.
We also recently saw Jason Momoa very publicly share his night out with the cast and crew on Instagram. He did insist he was only in Belfast "for kisses and hugs and the black stuff," but he could be just throwing us off.
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Apparently, these final six episodes could each be the length of a movie, so there's plenty of room for a couple of flashbacks here and there. So maybe we will be seeing Ned and Drogo return for a scene or two, before Daenerys brings the roof down.
film & tv1 min(s) read
If you're a Game of Thrones fan, you may be wondering why you feel like something is missing from your life. That feeling is the gap where a new season of Game of Thrones usually goes, one that we haven't seen this year. Normally you can bet on a new season being completed and released to the public within a year, but this time we weren't so lucky.
Seeing as next year's season will be the last, they are taking even longer to perfect the undoubtedly action-packed finale to the hit fantasy series. Adding that much time between seasons means that obsessive fans have even more time to concoct fan theories or get a hold of what's being kept secret on set, so the production is justifiably playing it as safe as possible.
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With the second annual Con of Thrones happening in Texas, some cast members have been on hand for interviews, including the likes of Joe Dempsie (Gendry) and Hannah Murray (Gilly). One of the topics broached recently was the idea that Game of Thrones may be filming multiple endings to avoid spoilers getting out into the world.
When Murray was asked about it, she said that she "was not under the impression that there were multiple endings," but admitted that she "could be being fooled".
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Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, who plays Jaime Lannister, has expressed his doubts over potential multiple endings in the past. In an interview with Marie Claire, he said:
"It seems really stupid to me. I mean if it’s true I don’t believe it, but I don’t know, maybe. I mean, I haven’t read the script, so unless they will show several endings that could be a twist, they’re not going to waste that money.
"They know how expensive it is to shoot. You’re not going to waste $100,000 a day to shoot something you’re not going to use. It’s not going to happen."
When he puts it that way, it doesn't sound too believable, does it?
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However, there are definitely ways in which the production is amping up their security, according to the actor.
Coster-Waldau was recently in France, where he was attending the Cannes Film Festival. It was at Cannes that he had an interview about the show, explaining that the response to previous scripts being leaked online before the episode airs is even stricter rules.
"They’re very very strict. It’s reached a crazy level this year. We actually get the scripts, and then when we’ve shot the scene — and we only have it digitally — and then when you’ve done the scene, it just vanishes. It’s like Mission: Impossible. 'This will self-destruct.'"
So, it's like Snapchat for scripts? Sounds like a smart idea to me.
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"I also know that we end the right way and the show ends on its own terms. When I read the scripts for the last season, I was like, ‘Wow, they really pulled it off.’ It’s one story from season 1 to 9 and it makes sense."
Coster-Waldau has been involved with the Game of Thrones project longer than most, filming an eventually-unused pilot for the show all the way back in 2009. I'm sure he'll be happy to leave it all behind, even if he'll still have fans shouting "Jamie!" at him in the street.
film & tv4 min(s) read
Sorry, fans of the books. I love A Song Of Ice And Fire too, but it looks unlikely that George R.R. Martin will ever finish the series. He's busy working on more important things, like washing his beard and swimming in a giant pile of money. But the good news is, we will finally get an ending to the television adaptation. Martin told the producers how he believes the story will end, so we will all get some closure.
The final season of Game of Thrones premieres in April 2019. I know, that's so far away. By then, we'll be as old as Aemon Targaryen! But there's no need to despair and splash some Tears of Lys into your morning coffee. Thanks to production leaks, interviews with the cast and crew, and a raven from Samwell Tarly, we know a bit of information about the final season. (Don't worry. No major spoilers.)
Showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss said the final season will consist of six episodes, which might be longer than the usual one-hour format. At Comic-Con, sound designer Paula Fairfield let it slip that some episodes may end up being feature-length (which means at least eighty minutes). The previous season consisted of only seven episodes, and many fans criticized it for its breakneck pace. However, Nathalie Emmanuel, who plays Missandei, says the final season won't feel so rushed. She told Metro U.K., "They’ve taken the exact number of hours to tell the story they want to tell and it will be brilliant." And I assume after that, she said, "it is known."
In Season 7, we saw some the most spectacular scenes in the show's history, with Jon Snow's suicide squad meeting the Night King, Daenerys Targaryen and Jaime Lannister’s armies coming face to face, and the epic reveal of the zombie ice dragon. For season 8, the production will be even more grandiose. Kit Harrington told The Huffington Post, "They spent an increasing amount of money on less episodes, so it’s gonna be much bigger in scale. We’re trying new things, experimenting with new camera techniques. I think we’re trying to break boundaries and push past boundaries in these final two seasons." Wow, Jon Snow finally knows something.
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While fans are eager to see how the story ends, no spoilers have leaked. The President of HBO said they will be shooting multiple fake endings, with multiple fake scripts. However, Maisie Williams, who plays Arya Stark, threw water on that rumor. "I don't think we've got the budget to shoot lots of different endings," she told Jimmy Kimmel. "As we know, sometimes presidents don't always tell the truth." Ha! Daenerys burns people with her dragons, while Arya burns them with her wit.
We do know which characters will be returning. Obsessed stalkers - I mean, fans - combed through Carice van Houten's Instagram, and discovered she was driving on a route near a Game of Thrones set. So you can probably count on seeing The Red Woman Melisandre again. The last time we saw everyone's favorite ginger, Wilding Tormund Giantsbane, he was at The Wall being attacked by the ice dragon, Viserion. The Wall collapsed, and Tormund's fate was left unknown, but the actor has been spotted at Belfast and at table reads. So there's still a chance he and Brienne will live happily ever after.
However, if you're shipping for Tyrion and Daenerys to become a couple, don't count on it. In the season 7 finale, we saw Tyrion lurking outside the door as Daenerys and Jon had sex. This led some fans to speculate that Tyrion was harboring romantic feelings for the Queen of Dragons. But the finale director, Jeremy Podeswa, told The Daily Beast that's not the case.
"I think there’s jealousy, but it’s maybe not romantic jealousy, in the way that it is for Jorah...it’s more complicated. I think he has a very special relationship with Dany and he really believes in her as a true leader and has invested a lot in her. I think for him, with Jon and Dany getting together, this represents a possible undermining of his position with her and also a monkey wrench thrown into what the master plan really is meant to be around this entire alliance."
Filming for the final season starts in October. According to casting updates, new characters will include "Northern Sentry," "Northern Girl," "Sarra," "Golden Company commander Harry Strickland," and "a boy who has to fight to make his way in the world." According to eagle-eyed fans, who've been poring through production photos, the Dragonpit will be back, the Unsullied will fight in the snow at Winterfell, and there will be a battle at the gates of King's Landing. But all of that is just speculation.
So, now you're caught up, and you have plenty of time to rewatch the previous seasons. And feel free to taunt those poor book fans. They've been waiting for an ending since the first book was published in 1996. (Not so smug now, are they?)
In related news, here's how Game of Thrones characters would look if Disney illustrated them...
film & tv1 min(s) read
It's been a hot minute since the last time we visited Westeros, with the two-year break between seasons stretching our patience to its limits. Now the wait is just that little bit easier, as we know that we're at least in the same year as the fantasy series' final season.
In fact, the feeling was so good, HBO knew it could throw that news out there like we all achieved something special:
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It's definitely easier looking forward to the show now it's only a few months out - not just because we're edging closer to the airdate (April can't come soon enough), but because this means we'll start seeing more and more of it in the marketing. We're still hoping that a full-length trailer will drop sometime soon, but in the meantime we have to make do with what we have, and it's still very exciting.
Earlier this week we got a brief snippet of a look at the upcoming season, as a part of a reel showing off all HBO has to offer in 2019. The short clip is only a few seconds long, but shows off a major moment for fans of the series: Daenerys Targaryen meeting Sansa Stark. Knowing the way the eldest Stark daughter was feeling last season, it looks to be a tense moment.
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The final season is only meant to be six episodes long, but according to multiple sources they're set to be much longer and far more intense than anything we've seen before. We could be seeing episodes over 90 minutes long according to some rumours, and from what HBO chief Richard Plepler has been saying recently, these rumours may be on the right track.
Speaking with Variety at the Golden Globes awards, Plepler was of course asked about the upcoming season of Game of Thrones. Promising a grand scale for the end of the show, he explained that these episodes were more akin to movies than television.
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In addition to this , he said that the showrunners behind this gargantuan task, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, raised the stakes for the final instalments of the show.
“It’s a spectacle. The guys have done six movies. The reaction I had while watching them was, ‘I’m watching a movie'
“They 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."
He's not the only person behind the project to be hyping up the drama on the way to our screens in the Spring either. Gwendoline Christie, who is best known for playing Brienne of Tarth, warned fans that they're really in for it come April.
"You're going to need therapy," Christie said in an interview with E! News. "I think just the show ending is going to send all of the world into professional help. I think it's going to make me incredibly emotional. We're all emotional about the fact that this is the end, and this is the end of something incredibly significant for all of us, and it's been a truly incredible thing to be a part of."