David Bradley (Walder Frey) had to do his Red Wedding speech “70 times”
By Dan Selcke
If you’re going to rank iconic Game of Thrones sequences, the Red Wedding absolutely has to be near the top, if not in the top spot itself. People were absolutely gob-smacked upon seeing this scene, which featured lead characters Robb and Catelyn Stark butchered by Walder Frey, who was angry that King Robb had broken his pact to marry one of his daughters. And if you ever forget how shocked people were, the internet has your back:
David Bradley, who played Walder Frey, knew the sequence was going to be big even as he was shooting it, as he recently told The Sun. “When the Red Wedding landed in my letterbox I thought ‘oh, this is going to be a little bit different!’” he laughed. “Even when we filmed it I thought this is going to stir up a few feelings, because I’m getting rid of a lot of favourite characters, but nothing prepared me for the reaction after it came out.”
To anybody still nursing lingering hurts after watching this scene, it may comfort you to know that the cast and crew had a hell of a time filming it, too. “All I had to do was remember a four page speech, which I had to do 70 times in one day, introducing everyone and welcoming everyone with bread and salt,” Bradley remembered. I’m guessing he’s exaggerating — I hope he’s exaggerating — because that is a lot of takes for a complicated scene.
However, once it came time to film the massacre itself, the crew and extras did the bulk of the heavy lifting. “After that I just had to sit back and drink fake wine while they got on with the business of massacring all those people, I just had to sit there and enjoy it. For Walder Frey it would be like watching a floor show. He just enjoyed it.”
Yeah, he would enjoy it. At least Arya paid him and his back a bit a few seasons later.
Will there ever be a sequence that smacks fans upside the head like the Red Wedding did? House of the Dragon, you have your mission:
Next. Game of Thrones prequel series gets release window. dark
To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.
Watch Game of Thrones for FREE with a no-risk, 7-day free trial of Amazon Channels