Game of Thrones ended five years ago now, but cameras were rolling on HBO's fantasy epic for nearly a decade, and the cast and crew members surely have lots of photos saved on their phones no one has ever seen. What did the Starks, Lannisters, and creatures beyond the Wall get up to after the director called "cut"?
Maisie Williams, who played pint-sized assassin Arya Stark, gave us an idea the other day when she shared a picture on her Instagram. "are we still doing throwback thursday’s?" she asked.
That looks like actor Vladimir Furdik under those layers of makeup; he played the leader of the White Walkers in the later seasons of the show, although Richard Brake memorably played by him before that in episodes like "Hardhome."
I'm going to guess this photo was taken during filming for the season 8 episode "The Long Knight," when the Night King and his army of the dead attacked the castle of Winterfell. Williams and Furdik would have been on set around the same time for that. Remember that Arya Stark did kill the Night King, after all.
As for the photo itself, it's a little eerie. What if you turned around a saw a horned blue ice monster climbing in your window? I can't decide if the photo is more or less creepy after you notice that the Night King has brought his phone with him. What evildoers does he have in his contacts?
As for Williams, she's talked recently about rewatching Game of Thrones now that she's gotten from distance from the role that defined much of her formative years. "I just feel like when it was coming out, I was not even really, like, sentient yet," she said last month. "I sat down and watched the whole thing and finally now feel like I have perspective on it."
Does this mean Williams might be open to a spinoff series about Arya Stark one day? We'll put a pin in that. For now, you can see her in the historical drama The New Look on Apple TV+.
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