One of the best things about HBO's Game of Thrones is the cast. The actors deliver such wonderful performances and they were perfectly chosen for the characters they are bringing to life. There are strokes of genius in casting Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Jaime, Michelle Fairley as Catelyn Stark and Charles Dance as Tywin Lannister. As fantastic as the story is, it needs talent and dedication to be properly adapted. And everyone in the show is doing tremendous job.With all of that I must note some choices weren't exactly in accordance with books. Through no fault (Martin's) of anyone. The way he described the Mountain made it pretty damn impossible to find an actor who would look exactly like him. Also Martin goes out of his way in reminding us how ugly Tyrion and Brienne are, while in the show Peter Dinklage and Gwendoline Christe are pretty damn far from it.
As we travel with characters we will meet the new players in Game of Thrones. Some of them come from the house that is going to be properly introduced in season 4, some are mentioned by others, some have their own chapters and some are always with us in spirit although they are long dead. Here are my dream casting choices for 5 (6) characters:
She was baseborn and unwed, and had home two bastard daughters for the prince, but she did not fear to look even the queen in the eye.
Ellaria Sand is the lover of Oberyn Martell, and the mother of the four youngest Sand Snakes, Oberyn's bastard daughters. Ellaria herself is the bastard daughter which makes Oberyn parading her around quite scandalous, especially among high born ladies. Ellaria is referred to as worshiping a Lysene love goddess, and was described as being sexually adventurous and potentially bisexual.
Although not accounted as a beautiful woman, she is regarded as attractive and eye-catching, with an exotic, sensuous flair. She has black hair. I think Sarah Shahi is the perfect choice for Ellaria as she is lovely and very sexy. She wouldn't have a problem with some of the spicy scenes (I'm sure HBO will not pass on that opportunity) as she did plenty of those in The L Word.
If you die before you say her name, ser, I will hunt you through all seven hells.
Prince Oberyn Martell, known as the Red Viper, is Doran Martell's hot-headed younger brother. He has eight bastard daughters, called the Sand Snakes, the four youngest of which by his current paramour Ellaria Sand. Some rumors hold that he is bisexual. Oberyn is a forceful, lusty man with a quick wit and barbed tongue. He had traveled the world, and even founded his own mercenary company. He had a very close relationship with his sister Elia and they were inseparable as children. Elia was raped and murdered by The Mountain and as Oberyn comes to King's Landing for Joffrey and Margaery's wedding he demands to have The Mountain brought to him so he could have his vengeance.
Oberyn has a lined face with thin eyebrows, black "viper" eyes and a sharp nose. His hair is lustrous and black with only a few silver streaks and recedes from his brow into a widow's peak. Since Oberyn is most likely the most incredible character to appear in season 4 and he appears in what will probably be one of the show's most amazing scenes, HBO could make Bardem an offer. He would be in 4-5 episodes and I think he would be excellent in the part.
You never knew Lyanna as I did, Robert. You saw her beauty, but not the iron underneath.
Though Lyanna is long dead before the events of Game of Thrones, her spirit is always with us. The Blue Rose of Winterfell was the younger sister of Lord Eddard Stark and was betrothed to Ned's childhood friend Robert Baratheon. Her abduction by Rhaegar Targaryen was the event that ultimately triggered Robert's Rebellion and led to the downfall of the Targaryen Dynasty.
The details about her relationship to Rheagar are still unknown but I believe their love (?) is what holds the key to one of the series's most important (the most important?) mysteries. If you follow Martin's words carefully you know that her last gift to the world may just be the answer to the question "who wins in the end?"
Lyanna is described by all who knew her as beautiful, with the dark hair, grey eyes and long face that characterize the Starks. Robert never stopped loving her, which throws a gigantic shade over his marriage to Cersei and dooms it. If the prequel ever gets made, Eva Green is a fan favorite to play Lyanna. The Internet is riddled with artwork depicting her as the woman who ended the Targaryens with her love and the revenge of those who loved her. Green has experience with costume movies, having starred in Golden Compass and Kingdom of Heaven. She also wouldn't be opposed to doing TV as quite recently she starred in the show Merlin.
A foolish willful girl playing the games of Thrones. That was before, when I was just a girl, she told herself. I am a woman now, my father’s daughter. I have learned that lesson.
Arianne Martell is the eldest daughter of the ruling Prince of Dorne, Prince Doran of House Martell. According to Dornish Customs, she is the future ruling Princess of Dorne. She is beautiful, with olive skin, large dark eyes, and long black hair that falls in ringlets to the middle of her back. She is short, standing at five foot two. Arianne is calculating, adventurous and fierce-tempered. When she sees something she desires, she strives to obtain it at all costs. Despite her beauty and perhaps because of her high station, Arianne is still unmarried at the age of 23.
Arianne who is one of the hottest women in Westeros has to be played by a great beauty. While I adore Natalie Dormer HBO dropped a ball there as Maergery is breathtakingly beautiful and Dormer well, while attractive, isn't exactly breathtaking. So they need to get it right this time. Nina Dobrev is stunning and very talented - she did wonders with Perks of being a Wallflower and I think her talent and looks deserve something much better than The Vampire Dairies, though I imagine her Arianne to be much like Katherine from that show.
I dislike Greyjoys a great deal, but when you have Freys and Boltons running around in Westeros you can't exactly hate Geyjoys. We have two important Greyjoys to appear and they both could be played by Armitage. It's funny because he would be great choice for both, and though these characters are brothers, they hate each other as Euron seduced Victarion's wife for which he beat her to death (while she was pregnant with Euron's child). Yeah, Geyjoys are not nice people. |
| (x) |
I am the storm, my lord. The first storm, and the last.
Euron Greyjoy is a younger brother of Balon (Theon's douche of a father) and is known as "Crow's Eye". He is captain of the Silence, a ship crewed entirely by mutes whose tongues Euron ripped out.
Euron is pale (Armitage!) and handsome (Armitage!) with black hair (Armitage!) and a dark beard. He wears a patch over his left eye, and is nicknamed "Crow's Eye". According to his nephew, Theon, the patch conceals a "black eye shining with malice". His right eye is as blue as summer sky (Armitage!) and is regarded as his "smiling eye". In addition, his lips are a pale blue, due to his propensity to drink shade of the evening.
He is a wildly unpredictable man, known for his delight in playing vicious mind games and waging psychological warfare on anyone around him. He is hated by all his brothers for this reason. He is a skilled warrior and manipulator, and is cunning, shrewd and ruthless.
 |
| (x) |
"Come!" he roared back. "Come kill me, if you can".
Victarion Greyjoy is a brother of Balon Greyjoy and Lord Captain of the Iron Fleet, his flagship is Iron Victory. He is a capable commander and a fierce warrior in battle, but has a calm demeanor outside of it, thinking of enemies with great respect. He is a religious man and wears full plate armor while sailing because he has no fear of drowning. Victarion is a large and powerful man, wearing plate armor in combat and wielding a cruel axe. He wears a helm in the shape of a kraken (the sigil of Greyjoys).
As you can see we have a great deal more of similarities to Euron but seeing how Victarion is POV character in the books I feature him here, especially after discovering that kick ass depiction of Amitage as him on tumblr. He is actually fan favorite for both, with Mads Mikkelsen being close second, for these two characters too. Seeing how one is insane and the other is difficult to like, HBO will do wisely to hire such charismatic actors for the part.
(character drawings and parts of descriptions - http://awoiaf.westeros.org/)
What do you think of these choices?
Who would you like to see on Game of Thrones?