What we know about Game of Thrones Season 5
By rowankaiser
Do you have questions about the upcoming fifth season of Game of Thrones? This is what we at Winter Is Coming know—and we’ll be updating this regularly as Season 5 approaches.
Last Update: February 24th, with news of Theon, our guide to the Great Houses of Game of Thrones, and George R.R. Martin’s promises of surprise deaths.
When does Season 5 air?
The season premiere of Season 5 of Game of Thrones in the United States will be April 12, 2015. It will air weekly after that. If HBO takes Memorial Day weekend off, as they have the past two seasons, the finale will be June 21st. If not, June 14th.
Where’s the trailer?
The first full trailer was released on January 30th alongside the IMAX release of the final two episodes of Season 4. Watch it here!
HBO has also released a series of mini-teasers via their Three-Eyed Raven site, and included some clips of Season 5 in their 2014 year-end video.
The network also aired a special on the filming of Season 5 called “Game of Thrones: A Day In The Life” on February 8th. See its trailer here, and our live-blog here.
What parts of George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire novels are being adapted?
It appears that Season 5 of Game of Thrones will be primarily adapting the entirety of the fourth and fifth books in the series, A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons. This may sound like a lot, but the situation is complicated….
Read more after the jump….
These two novels take place in roughly the same chronological period but focus on different characters—for example, Jaime and Brienne are in Feast, while Jon and Tyrion are in Dance. Dance extends slightly past Feast, and finishes some of its plot threads.
There are still small parts of the third book, A Storm of Swords, that have yet to be adapted (primarily in Jon’s story) while portions of the fourth book (particularly involving Brienne and Sansa) and fifth book (Bran) have already appeared on the show.
Check our spoiler-heavy page for more details on what’s known about the plot and adaptation details.
One already-excerpted chapter from the unpublished sixth book, The Winds of Winter, seems like it’s being adapted.
There are major changes to the storylines involving Jaime, Brienne, and Sansa particularly.
What’s changing with the cast?
Nathalie Emmanuel (Missandei) and Michiel Huisman (Daario Naharis) have been promoted to the main credits. Isaac Hempstead-Wright (Bran Stark), Kristian Nairn (Hodor), and Ellie Kendrick (Meera Reed) will not be appearing this season. Princess Myrcella Baratheon, last seen in Season 2, will be reappearing but has been recast with actress Nell Tiger Free.
What new actors are joining the show?
The major new additions include:
- Jonathan Pryce as The High Sparrow, a religious leader
- Alexander Siddig as Prince Doran Martell, the leader of Dorne and brother to Oberyn Martell
- Keisha Castle-Hughes, Jessica Henwick, and Rosabell Laurenti Sellers as the Sand Snakes, Oberyn’s bastard daughters
- Toby Sebastian as Trystane Martell, Doran’s son
- DeObia Oparei as Areo Hotah, captain of Doran’s guard
- Enzo Cilenti as Yezzan, a former slave trader
Other new actors include Hannah Waddingham, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Michael Condron, Nell Williams, and Jodhi May.
What new locations will we be seeing in the fifth season?
As should be clear from the last couple answers, the most important new location is Dorne, the southernmost of the Seven Kingdoms. Dorne is a desert land, based on a mixture of Spain, North Africa, and Israel. Filming for Dorne took place in Sevilla, Spain.
We’ll also be seeing much more of Braavos, one of the Free Cities on the western shore of Essos. It appeared briefly in Season 4 when Stannis and Davos recruited aid from the Iron Bank. Outdoor scenes in Braavos were filmed in Dubrovnik, Croatia, which is also where King’s Landing is filmed. Another of the Free Cities, Pentos, will also be appearing in Season 5, and likewise filmed scenes in Croatia.
What else is different about production?
Game of Thrones is breaking its “no flashbacks” rule. A young Cersei Lannister has been cast for a scene important to the queen’s psyche.
For the first time, George R.R. Martin will not be contributing a script to the season, as he wants to focus on finishing the sixth book, The Winds of Winter.
The directorial stable is almost completely new this time. David Nutter, who’s directing the last two episodes of the season, is the only carry-over from previous seasons. Michael Slovis, Mark Mylod, Jeremy Podeswa, and Miguel Sapochnik are the new directors.
Can you talk about what’s going on without spoilers from the books?
Next: What we know, for non-readers