Kristofer Hivju talks Tormund and Brienne, and Natalie Dormer may have spoiled the finale

There could be a reckoning in the offing for Tormund Giantsbane come this Sunday, when he’ll fight in the Battle of the Bastards alongside Jon Snow. For now, though, actor Kristofer Hivju is keeping it light, talking to Vulture about the remarkably durable Brienne-Tormund pairing, which has endured in fans’ imaginations even though the two characters haven’t seen each other since “The Door.”

"[T]he funny thing with those characters, it works both ways, if you want to reverse the genders. He can hold her, or she can hold him, because if you get those two characters together, you don’t know who would be the more masculine of the two of them. In some ways, I feel like the feminine part of that relationship. It’s the peak of emancipation!"

With the relationship having those kinds of legs, Hivju thinks the pair should have a show of their own. “What we should do is make an internet series about Brienne and Tormund and their life together,” he said. “We need our own show.” If the two of them make it through this season alive, I’m all for it.

Hivju also talked about his other upcoming project, Scandinavian historical drama The Last King. Hivju plays a warrior charged with guarding the Norwegian king’s infant son from those who would do him harm, but as the actor points out, the movie has become informally known as “Vikings on skis.” Watch the trailer and you’ll see why.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsaiJvreByY

Elsewhere, Natalie Dormer (Margaery Tyrell) has been out in the press in the wake of receiving the Max Mara Face of the Future award. Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, she spoke out on a critique that Game of Thrones has gotten in the past: that it’s sexist and misogynistic. “I can tell you that [showrunners] D.B. Weiss and David Benioff are about as far away from misogynistic as you can get as individuals,” she said.

"And the fact that in their writing they occasionally portray misogyny or chauvinism is just being accurate to the different tones and colors that exist in society. So as for the more unsavory parts of Thrones, it’s good if it makes people have the conversation. That’s what good drama does."

She also talked about Margaery more generally, saying that she is “too clever” to want the Iron Throne for herself (“She knows that people who sit on the Iron Throne die.”), and defending the character against those who label her “Machiavellian or manipulative.”

"I’m like, “Why does political savviness have to be mutually exclusive with being a good person?” Surely, that’s what we want of our politicians — we want them to be able to navigate the international stage and be wily players and at the same time we hope that they’re good people and that they have a code of morality. That’s how I’ve always tried to play Margaery — that she walks that tightrope."

Concerning more concrete plot hints, Dormer dropped what may or may not have been a SPOILER while talking to Vanity Fair. If you’d rather not know more, please exit the post now. If you’re still here, you can decide for herself if there’s anything to what she said.

The pertinent quote came after Vanity Fair asked Dormer if there was any behind-the-scene ritual that occurred whenever a cast member learned that their character was going to die. “We normally get a phone call from Dan and David, the creators of the show,” she said. After Vanity Fair raised an eyebrow that she would lump herself into this group, Dormer glanced at her publicist and amended herself. “My understanding is that there is homage paid that way . . . but that’s as far as the ritual goes from my understanding.”

Seeing as Margaery is unlikely to show up in “Battle of the Bastards,” we’ll probably have to wait until “The Winds of Winter” to see if there’s anything to this.