Jerome Flynn has played the lovable rogue Bronn since the first season of Game of Thrones. During that time, he’s served both Lannister brothers (for the right price), and is currently hounding Jaime Lannister to give him the castle that was promised him back in season 5. During the Loot Train Attack in “The Spoils of War,” Bronn risked his life to save Jaime from Drogon’s flames, something that seemingly belies his selfish nature. But as Flynn told Variety, his seemingly heroic act had several layers:
"I think there’s a mixture of stuff that he finds hard to separate. There’s a complexity to Bronn. I think he denies the heart that he has in him, but it manages to get out. But would he have made that journey and run towards Jaime riding toward a dragon spitting fire if he was not owed a castle? I doubt that. Yet, I would say there’s something there as well."
Flynn also weighed in on the potential for a lasting peace between Cersei and Daenerys, something that would allow Bronn to finally enjoy that elusive castle. “I think it’s possible but I have to think with what’s fueling Cersei it’s probably unlikely,” he said. “And there’s a lot in play and a lot about to happen, and I’m not sure what does happen.”
Switching over to The Hollywood Reporter, Flynn went into greater detail about filming the Loot Train Attack, and compared it to his part in season 2’s Battle of the Blackwater:
"I’ve always found [the battles] to be thought about in deep detail, with a lot of time given to it. In terms of for me, personally, I wasn’t as involved in the heat of the battle with Blackwater. I had one sword fight, and then I happened to shoot the arrow that had a big effect on the whole thing…"
Of course, Flynn used a very different — and much bigger — type of bow-and-arrow during the Loot Train Attack: Qyburn’s scorpion. “It was great fun,” he said. “It was like this huge Gatling gun. I had a great time. What can I say?
"The whole experience. I was a bit hungry for some action, because Bronn hadn’t really had any in a while, apart from a little bit of sparring with Jaime, and yes, what happened in Dorne. In terms of getting involved in a proper scrap and battle? It was really nice to have that time. When I saw it, even though I knew what was coming, I was on the edge of my seat. In terms of how they brought that sequence together, it was one of the most exciting things."
If you believe Flynn, we could have even more elaborate battles to look forward to in season 8, as showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss try to raise the bar each year. “Maybe with a slight different tone, or a slightly different angle, because it’s always unique in itself. They want to be able to match or better it every time. That’s what they’re so incredible at doing, and I think they did that here.”
Outside of the battles, Bronn has found himself stuck in the middle of the two Lannister brothers, and served as an intermediary when Tyrion sought a meeting with Jaime. We saw the resulting Tyrion/Jaime scene, but according to Flynn, there may originally have been one between Tyrion and Bronn as well. “They decided not to go for it,” he said. “There’s something, I hope, that’s still to come, where Bronn and Tyrion might have a little bit of time for an exchange together, and shoot the breeze, as it were. Hopefully there will be some old Bronn and Tyrion dynamics coming up again.”
As to which Lannister brother Bronn prefers, Flynn definitely thinks it’s Tyrion.
"Sure, there’s a fondness [for Jaime], but it doesn’t come close to what he feels toward Tyrion. I really do think there’s a bond between himself and Tyrion. He sees an underdog and an outcast in Tyrion, and he sees some of himself in that. He enjoys the cleverness of the man and his humor. That’s where they really met."
Incidentally, if the time should ever come for Bronn to switch sides and work with Tyrion again, Flynn thinks Bronn would be “very prepared to bend the knee” to Daenerys, provided she didn’t kill him for shooting her precious Drogon. But Flynn thinks that Tyrion would vouch for him.
As for Jon Snow’s suicide mission north of the Wall, Flynn is feeling a bit left out.
"I would have loved [to be a part of] that. I would have loved it. I was watching the episode last night. I try to avoid scripts, so I didn’t know that was coming. I just read the bits that I need to read. I wasn’t thinking, “Oh, I wish I was with them!” I was just thinking, “Wow, this is a great mix of guys to throw together on that journey.” That’s where my focus was. But of course I would have loved to go out with them."
The Hound and Bronn hanging out together? That might be too much sarcasm for one scene.
Next: HBO releases official photos from Game of Thrones Episode 706, “Beyond the Wall”
As for what Bronn will get up to for the rest of the season, Flynn is understandably mum, although he does shoot down any hopes that Bronn will be doing more singing anytime soon. “I think the brevity of where we’ve got to in the storyline, perhaps the singing–we’re past the singing point.”
We’ll always have the memories.
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