Kristofer Hivju has played the murderous-but-jolly wildling Tormund Giantsbane for five seasons of Game of Thrones. Initially a threatening presence in the life of Jon Snow, Tormund has developed into a staunch ally and fan favorite.
But in the season 7, it looked like Tormund’s time may have run out when the Night King, riding an undead Viserion, attacked Eastwatch-by-the-Sea. Did the jovial ginger meet his doom atop the Wall? Hivju talked to The Hollywood Reporter about it. “I don’t know,” he said. “Realistically speaking, if you’re on top of an ice wall and it’s many hundreds of meters tall … I was a competitive climber when I was younger, and that fall, I must say, it doesn’t look good, man. It really doesn’t look good.”
"If this is my way out … well, it’s the huge cliffhanger of the season…If I was [showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss], and I wanted to kill Tormund and Beric off, I wouldn’t end the season with the death. I would end it with the cliffhanger. So, I understand that. But I wish he could have whispered something into one of those crows’ ears before it happened. But, you know, when the Wall is down, they won’t need the Night’s Watch or the Free Folk at the Wall anymore. It’s a hell of an ending."
What might Tormund have chosen to whisper into the ear of the crow? “Tell the big woman I love her”?
As for the scene itself, Hivju revealed that, as written, it was pretty short. “You came to the end of the script and it was like: ‘And then Tormund and Beric see the Army of the Dead. The dragon takes down the Wall.” And it was like, ‘What?'”
“Practically, we had real crows, and not just Night’s Watch people. We had real, actual birds. So, “Bran” was there,” Tormund said of filming the final scene of the episode. “That was amazing. They built an enormous set. It felt like really being at Eastwatch. Of course, everything was surrounded by green screens, but I had seen the Army of the Dead, so it was very easy for me to imagine what was coming our way, what was going on down there.”
By this point, Tormund has had multiple encounters with the army of the dead, including at Hardhome and when he was nearly torn to pieces in “Beyond the Wall.” But the Night King riding an undead dragon represents a different kind of threat. “To see the Army of the Dead coming to the Wall is one thing,” he said. “But to see a zombie dragon with the Night King upon it? That’s something you have nightmares about. It’s really frightening.”
"If I can analyze that moment, it’s hopelessness in the highest degree. I don’t think Tormund, when he sees it, thinks that they’re going to have a chance at all. When Cersei pulls her army [from the agreement], they won’t have the numbers at all. It’s going to get interesting."
As for the criticism that Viserion appeared to decimate the Wall a bit too easily, Hivju notes that “in the books, there’s a kind of curse . I don’t think David and Dan have included that element, the curse on the Wall. But now, it’s actual. The zombie army is burning this thing down.” Benjen Stark did reference the spells built into the Wall’s foundations, so it is a thing on the show — no word on whether they held up to dragonbreath, though.
Should Tormund survived the destruction of the Wall, Hivju will be forced to deal with a new reality: Jon Snow is not simply King in the North, but rather the heir to the Iron Throne. In typical Tormund fashion though, Hivju doesn’t think his character will care much.
"If they should meet again, I don’t think it would change Tormund’s view of Jon. I don’t think bloodlines giving you the right to the throne is a concept Tormund will embrace. But, that said, I think if Tormund has to choose a king, he would choose Jon. There was a line in [the penultimate episode] where Tormund asks, “How many people had to sacrifice their lives and die because Mance Rayder didn’t bend the knee? How many people died because of his pride?” I don’t think Tormund is a knee-bender, but if he had to bend the knee, he would bend it to Jon. But then Jon has bent the knee to Daenerys. So, who knows? I don’t think he believes in the concept. Tormund believes in a good handshake!"
And on the other hand, if “The Dragon and the Wolf” indeed marked Tormund’s last appearance on Game of Thrones, Hivju is grateful for his time on the series.
"It’s been life-changing in many ways. Of course, it has brought an extreme amount of attention. But for me personally, to have the possibility to play a character I love so much and have been able to explore and has gone in so many unexpected directions and has become a more and more three-dimensional figure, that has been a huge pleasure. To share so much fun with all of my colleagues has been a fantastic experience. I have so many new good friends and so many fantastic experiences. It’s been such a bond to do this with so many actors who just enjoy the work. My main priority has never been the fame. It’s been the craft of acting. Many of the actors on Thrones have theater backgrounds, so they are all so good. It’s been fantastic to be part of it."
Speaking to Vulture, Hivju also briefly touched on Tormund’s feelings for Brienne, which provide some levity in the bleakness. “In all this horror and the threat they are facing, and as it gets more and more tense, when there’s a hint of love, it gives everybody a bit of life! [Laughs.] What’s more important in the end than love, right?”
Love is something Tormund lives by — he’s willing to forgive Jon Snow the fact that he used to belong to an organization that opposed the wildlings, and is all for uniting the disparate peoples of Westeros if it means the survival of the human race.
"It’s something my mother said to me today, actually: “Forgiveness is the most difficult way to go forward, but it’s still the only way.” You have to turn the page and let bygones be bygones. It’s nice to play a character who has that ability, because there’s so much revenge and the wish to kill each other in this show. It’s nice to have a character that’s able to turn the page and get the overall view. And it’s a skill of necessity, because you have to adapt or else you’re lost."
Here’s hoping Tormund lives to exercise that skill.
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