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122-454: The Night King was portrayed by British-American actor Richard Brake in seasons 4 and 5 and then by Slovak actor and stuntman Vladimir Furdik in seasons 6 to 8. In Game of Thrones , the Night King is physically distinguished from the other White Walkers by his "crown" of pointy, frosty horns. The "Night King", as presented in the show, has not appeared in A Song of Ice and Fire . In

244-491: A fictional world , primarily on a continent called Westeros , and additionally on a large landmass to the east, known as Essos . Three main story lines become increasingly interwoven: a dynastic civil war for control of Westeros among several competing families; the rising threat of the Others , who dwell beyond the immense wall of ice that forms Westeros's northern border; and the ambitions of Daenerys Targaryen , exiled daughter of

366-489: A "true perversion" that "all of this illicitness [in the TV series] has been tossed in as a little something for the ladies, out of a justifiable fear, perhaps, that no woman alive would watch otherwise". Although there may be women who read books like the Ice and Fire series, Bellafante said to never have "met a single woman who has stood up in indignation at her book club and refused to read

488-631: A bar patron in the semi-biographical drama Set Fire to the Stars , which premiered at the Edinburgh International Film Festival on 23 June 2014. In 2015, he appeared on the FX historical fiction drama The Bastard Executioner as Baron Edwin Pryce. Due to scheduling conflicts with The Bastard Executioner , Brake was unable to reprise as The Night King for the sixth season of Game of Thrones and

610-836: A contract killer who participates in the annual titular game by murdering a group of victims who are kidnapped by goons. The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on 23 January 2016. Despite mixed reviews from critics, Brake received enormous praise for his performance and was nominated for the Fangoria Chainsaw Award for Best Supporting Actor, losing to Stephen Lang for Don't Breathe . In 2017, Brake appeared as Medved in Bitter Harvest and as Tarasov in The Death of Stalin . Although both films focused on Soviet revolutionary and dictator Joseph Stalin ,

732-480: A fight between good and evil. The novels are to reflect that wars have substantial death rates. The novels' attitude toward war is shaped by Martin's experiences with the controversies of the Vietnam War. As Martin was against the Vietnam War, the books reflect some of his views on war and violence and their costs, though he endeavors to avoid using his characters as mouthpieces for his own personal diatribes. Among

854-763: A formalized priestly caste, the Children of the Forest revered Weirwood trees (white trees with red leaves and red sap), which eventually became the center of their worship. When the First Men (human beings) came to Westeros from Essos, they accepted the Old Gods until the Andal Invasion converted the southern population of Westeros to the Faith of the Seven. Their descendants in the north still worship

976-473: A giant war that rips the world apart, but no one that we know is ever really seriously inconvenienced by this. ... The heroes just breeze through [devastated villages], killing people at every hand, surviving those dire situations. There's a falsehood to that that troubles me." —George R. R. Martin in an interview with Science Fiction Weekly in 2000 When picking characters to die in battle scenes, Martin chooses secondary or tertiary characters from

1098-438: A hallmark of the series, leading "fans to throw their books across the room—only to go pick them up again". Bill Sheehan of The Washington Post noted that the characters' vulnerability and possibly impending death "lends a welcome sense of uncertainty to the proceedings and helps keep the level of suspense consistently high throughout". Although fantasy comes from an imaginative realm, Martin sees an honest necessity to reflect

1220-555: A head mold of Brake being created in order to accurately mold the prosthetic to his face. In the sixth season he was portrayed by Vladimir Furdik after Brake was forced to drop out due to scheduling conflicts stemming from his participation in the TV series The Bastard Executioner . The White Walker army was first shot in front of a green screen in Magheramorne quarry, and according to a piece in The Hollywood Reporter "A scan

1342-409: A historical setting as window dressing for prurient depictions of rape". The idea of who people are and what makes them who they are is a prominent theme throughout the series, becoming more prominent as the series goes on. Point of view characters change their names, even to a point where they lose their identity in the chapter title. This is best exemplified in the character of Arya, who goes through

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1464-566: A nomination for the Academy Award for Best Cinematography, losing to Pan's Labyrinth . In 2007, he had a supporting role in Hannibal Rising , which was based on the 2006 novel of the same name by Thomas Harris . He played Enrikas Dortlich, one of the war criminals who murders Mischa Lecter, the younger sister of psychiatrist-turned-cannibalistic killer Hannibal Lecter (played by Gaspard Ulliel ) . In 2008, he played ex-Marine Prior in

1586-554: A number of identity changes as she makes her way from King's Landing to Braavos: Arry, Nymeria, Nan, Salty and Cat of the Canals, among others. (Her chapters in A Dance with Dragons see her called 'The Blind Girl' and 'The Ugly Little Girl'.) Martin says "Arya has gone through a dozen different identities, even getting to Braavos—where the ultimate goal of the Faceless Men is to become no-one, and to be able to assume identities as one assumes

1708-502: A number of years or even a decade or longer. During this time, thousands if not millions may die from starvation or the ravages of war and violence that often coincide with mass starvation. The White Walkers or others represent the personification of this threat. Yet, despite the nature of the threat as an existential danger to the very survival of the human race, many of the powerful in Westeros choose to deny its existence or ignore it. This

1830-485: A paradigm for Martin's writing; Faulkner said that only the human heart in conflict with itself was worth writing about. Just like people's capacity for good and for evil in real life, Martin explores the questions of redemption and character change in the Ice and Fire series. Laura Miller of The New Yorker summarized that "Characters who initially seem likable commit reprehensible acts, and apparent villains become sympathetic over time", and The Atlantic said that even

1952-739: A section of the Wall, allowing the White Walkers and their wight army to finally invade the Seven Kingdoms while the Night King flies overhead towards the North. Led by the Night King, the dead quickly advance south and attack Last Hearth, massacring the population and adding them to their army, before marching on Winterfell. Bran, knowing that the Night King intends to destroy him, plans to hide in Winterfell's Godswood as bait, with Jon and Daenerys lying in wait with

2074-406: A single living soul in the land of Westeros that Martin does not have insight into, from the highest king to the lowest petty thief. ... It is a world of high stakes, where the winners prosper and the losers are mercilessly ground under heel. Against this tapestry every one of Martin's characters is forced to choose between their love for those close to them and the greater interests of honor, duty and

2196-507: A sociopathic element in the incestuous relationship of the twins Cersei and Jaime Lannister, whose strong bonding inhibits their pairing with others whom they regard as inferior. Martin wrote the novels' sex scenes in detail, "whether it's a great transcendent, exciting, mind blowing sex, or whether it's disturbing, twisted, dark sex, or disappointing perfunctory sex". Martin blamed the American attitudes towards sex for some readers' offense with

2318-567: A startling resemblance between Westeros and England in the period of the Wars of the Roses , where "One throne unifies the land but great houses fight over who will sit upon it. With no true king the land is beset with corrupt, money-grubbing lords whose only interest is their own prestige. Two loose alliances of power pit a poor but honorable North against a rich and cunning South. And the small folk must suffer through it all, regardless of which side wins." As in

2440-455: A story of politics than one of heroism, a story about humanity wrestling with its baser obsessions than fulfilling its glorious potential" where the emergent power struggle stems from the feudal system's repression and not from the fight between good and evil (see section § Moral ambiguity ). Damien G. Walter saw Martin's strength in "his compendious understanding of the human stories driving the grand political narrative. There does not seem to be

2562-455: A suit of clothes." Arya is not the only character to change her name or have her name changed for her. Her sister Sansa Stark assumes the identity of Alayne Stone. Tyrion Lannister travels under the names Yollo and Hugor Hill. Catelyn Stark becomes Lady Stoneheart. And Theon Greyjoy's chapters in A Dance with Dragons are titled: Reek, The Prince of Winterfell, The Turncloak, A Ghost in Winterfell, and finally, Theon again. Martin says: "Identity

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2684-401: A transformative experience of the character. The body may be moving, but some aspect of the spirit is changed or lost. One of the characters who has come back repeatedly from death is Beric Dondarrion , The Lightning Lord, and what has happened with him echoes with some of the other revived characters; bits of his humanity and his past lives are lost every time he comes back from death, his flesh

2806-636: A world map by the end of the series. The fictional history of Westeros stretches back some twelve thousand years. The Ice and Fire story can be considered to be set in a post-magic world where people no longer believe in dragons and the Others. The characters understand only the natural aspects of their world, and the magical elements like the Others are not within their understanding. Coming from an impoverished family background of former wealth, Martin always felt attracted to stories of fallen civilizations and lost empires. The lost empire of Valyria in Ice and Fire

2928-693: Is a Welsh actor. Following his film debut in Death Machine (1994), Brake had a supporting role as Joe Chill in Batman Begins (2005). He subsequently appeared in numerous horror films such as Doom (2005), Hannibal Rising (2007), Mandy (2018), and Barbarian (2022), as well as his first lead role in Perfect Skin (2018). A frequent collaborator of Rob Zombie , Brake has appeared in four of his films: Halloween II (2009), 31 (2016), 3 from Hell (2019), and The Munsters (2022). Brake

3050-420: Is a supernatural fantasy explanation instead of a scientific one. Martin rather enjoyed the symbolism of the seasons, with summer as a time of growth and plenty and joy and winter is a dark time where one has to struggle for survival. The world of A Song of Ice and Fire is primarily populated by humans, although giants , the so-called "Others" and the Children of the Forest appear as other sentient species in

3172-618: Is best known for his recurring roles as the Night King on the fourth and fifth seasons of the HBO fantasy drama series Game of Thrones (2014–15), Vlad on the fourth season of the Showtime crime drama series Ray Donovan (2016), and Merle Callahan on the third season of the Paramount+ crime thriller series Mayor of Kingstown (2024–present). He is also known for his lead role as Conrad Harlow on

3294-623: Is dead may never die, but rises again harder and stronger". In a ritual that Martin compared to baptism , people are drowned in sea water and revived. R'hllor, also known as the Red God and the Lord of Light, is a god worshipped primarily across the Narrow Sea, and his priests have only had a small presence in the Seven Kingdoms at the beginning of A Game of Thrones . This religion has a strong focus on prophecy and on ecstatic visions. The antithesis of R'hllor

3416-489: Is falling away from him, but he remembers the mission he was sent to do before death. Considering sexuality an important driving force in human life that should not be excluded from the narrative, Martin equipped many of the Ice and Fire characters with a sex drive. Martin was also fascinated by medieval contrasts where knights venerated their ladies with poems and wore their favors in tournaments while their armies raped women in wartime. The nonexistence of adolescence in

3538-469: Is more akin to wyverns ) also appear or are mentioned. Children of the Forest are presented as the original inhabitants of Westeros, but unseen for thousands of years. They are thought to be diminutive humanoid creatures, dark and beautiful, with mysterious powers over dreams and nature. They were graceful, quick and agile, able to move with quiet swiftness on land as well as through mountains and trees. George R. R. Martin has said: "The children are ... well,

3660-576: Is most prominently seen in the conflict between the Starks and the Lannisters that forms the basis for the story in A Song of Ice and Fire . The Starks (along with their patronage of the Night's Watch) defend all of Westeros against the threat of winter. They acknowledge its inevitability and do everything in their power to prepare for and prevent the disasters that may come from a prolonged winter and open warfare with

3782-461: Is one of the things that I'm playing with in this series as a whole, and in this particular book—what is it that makes us who we are? Is it our birth, our blood, our position in the world? Or something more integral to us? Our values, our memories, et cetera." Martin provides a variety of female characters to explore some of the ramifications of the novels being set in a patriarchal society. Martin says that he wrote all characters as human beings with

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3904-469: Is pulled into the water, and the others are forced to flee on Drogon. Jon emerges from the water and is saved by Benjen Stark , who gives Jon his horse to ride to Eastwatch while sacrificing himself to hold off the wights. After their battle is over, the Night King reanimates Viserion. The undead army arrives at Eastwatch; when the Night King appears, riding Viserion, Tormund orders the defenders to evacuate. Breathing blue fire, Viserion destroys Eastwatch and

4026-522: Is the "Great Other": a god of ice, darkness, and death. According to Martin, this faith is roughly based upon Zoroastrianism , and on the Cathars of Medieval Europe (annihilated during the Albigensian Crusade ). In A Song of Ice and Fire , ancient prophecies suggest that the struggle between the two deities will come to a head when the messianic figure 'Azor Ahai' wields the sword Lightbringer against

4148-526: The Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy . Throughout 2016, Brake made guest appearances on several award-winning television shows such as Hawaii Five-0 and Peaky Blinders . He also had a recurring role as Russian mobster Vlad on the Showtime series Ray Donovan . In 2016, he starred as the main antagonist in Rob Zombie 's slasher horror film 31 . He played Doom-Head,

4270-426: The Ice and Fire story in an alternate version of Earth or a "secondary world". The story takes place primarily on a continent called Westeros , but also on another continent to the east, known as Essos . The style varies to fit each character and their setting; Daenerys's exotic realm may appear more colorful and fanciful than Westeros, which is more closely based on the familiar medieval history of Europe. Martin

4392-577: The Mother, Maiden, and Crone were inspired by mystic views of womanhood, while the Father, Smith, and Warrior as traditional Christian masculine elements were added later. The Stranger, neither male nor female, represents mystery and death . The Mother is invoked for healthy childbirth, the Warrior for strength in battle, etc. The symbol of the Faith is a septagram (continuously drawn seven-pointed star). Many of

4514-522: The Faith of the Seven during their invasion of Westeros. The Old Gods are nameless deities worshipped by the Northern population of Westeros, akin to " animism and traditional Pagan and various other Celtic systems and Norse systems ". The fictional backstory gives the Children of the Forest as the origin of this religion, who worshipped trees, rocks, and streams when Westeros was still populated by many non-human races. Instead of temples, scriptures, or

4636-509: The Haunted Forest, a White Walker retrieves the child. The Walker travels to the White Walkers' fortress in the Lands of Always Winter and lays the child on an altar made of ice. The Night King approaches and places his finger on the boy, transforming him into a White Walker. The Night King appears again when Jon Snow and Tormund Giantsbane are coordinating the evacuation of Hardhome. While loading

4758-504: The Lands Beyond the Wall in the extreme north. The direwolves adopted by the Stark children exhibit signs of being far more intelligent than common dogs or wolves. Each wolf pup grows to reflect the temperament of the child they bond with. Mythical creatures such as mermaids , unicorns , manticores , kraken , leviathans , basilisks , and most prominently dragons (although their description

4880-560: The Middle Ages served as a model for Daenerys's sexual activity at the age of 13 in the books. Many high-born women were married at or below that age because the onset of sexual maturity supposedly turned children into adults. With the Targaryens, the novels also allude to the incestuous practices in the Ptolemaic dynasty of ancient Egypt to keep its bloodlines pure; but Martin also portrayed

5002-471: The Middle Ages, and to suit the author's perception of himself as a lapsed Catholic with atheist or agnostic habits. To evade the difficulty of inventing religions, George R. R. Martin based the series' major religions on real religious systems. The fictional history of Westeros shows how each religion evolved. Each of the religions reflects its culture's temperament. According to James Poniewozik of Time magazine, no religion appears to be presented as

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5124-473: The Middle Ages, the characters define their alliances by their home towns or kinship, not by modern-day concepts like countries or nationalism. The king was seen as an avatar of God so that the legitimacy of kingship was very important. Martin wanted to show the possible consequences of the leaders' decisions, as general goodness does not automatically make competent leaders and vice versa. Adam Serwer of The Atlantic regarded A Song of Ice and Fire as "more

5246-550: The Middle Ages. Amber Taylor of The Atlantic saw the depiction of sex as one of the show's most distinctive aspects, "cheesy only insofar as sex is fundamentally absurd". Despite HBO's freedom to titillate viewers with sex and nudity, none of the show's sex scenes felt superfluous for her; some of Daenerys's TV scenes "make her vulnerability more real than any political exposition". Taylor also lauded HBO's "admirable choice ... that its nonconsensual sex scenes are deeply unarousing, in marked contrast with shows on other networks that use

5368-455: The Night King, but the Night King reanimates those killed in battle to protect him. The Night King and the White Walkers head to the Godswood for Bran, and are confronted by Theon Greyjoy , whom the Night King kills. However, before he can kill Bran, he is ambushed by Arya Stark , who destroys him by plunging a dagger made out of Valyrian steel into the Night King's chest. With the Night King dead,

5490-475: The Night King; as they know, killing a White Walker kills any and all wights it raised, so killing the Night King might destroy every such monster under his command, putting an end to the Great War before it truly begins. Jon dismisses the plan, however, arguing that trying to fight their way through the wights to reach the Night King would be suicide. When Daenerys Targaryen arrives and her dragons burn many wights,

5612-570: The Old Gods, whereas the 'godswoods' of Southern noble houses remain as converted secular gardens. The worship of the Drowned God is a local religion of the Iron Islands. According to its belief, the Storm god submerged the Drowned God, which now lives in the sea, to which its worshippers' souls repair after death. The native 'Ironborn' therefore do not fear dying at sea or drowning; but argue that "What

5734-727: The Science of Acting and Directing in London , and Beatrice Straight , at the Michael Chekhov Studio in New York City . Despite growing up in the United States, Brake still considers himself Welsh. In 1993, he made his screen acting debut as a reporter on an episode of the British comedy series Jeeves and Wooster . In 1994, Brake and actress Rachel Weisz both made their film debuts in

5856-573: The Seven Kingdoms to warn of the threat. The Night King is present when the wights and White Walkers battle Jon Snow at the Wight Hunt, who traveled beyond the Wall with the Hound, Jorah, Beric, Thoros, Gendry, Tormund and several other Wildlings to attempt to capture a wight to use as proof for the gathered high lords of Westeros. Remembering their encounter from Hardhome, the Night King keeps his gaze on Jon for some time. Beric Dondarrion suggests trying to kill

5978-561: The Seven, often called simply "The Faith", is the predominant religion of the South of Westeros. Martin based the Faith on the medieval Roman Catholicism and the Christian doctrine of the Trinity . The Seven describe the seven aspects of one god, consisting of the Father, Mother, Maiden, Crone, Smith, Warrior, and Stranger (resembling Christianity's Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). According to Martin,

6100-429: The TV adaptation "does not present the viewer with an easily identifiable hero, but with an ensemble of characters with sometimes sympathetic, often imperfect motives". "What [marks Martin] as a major force for evolution in fantasy, is his refusal to embrace a vision of the world as a Manichaean struggle between Good and Evil . ... Martin's wars are multifaceted and ambiguous, as are the men and women who wage them and

6222-678: The White Walkers shatter and the Army of the Dead collapses. The Night King also makes a brief cameo as a spectator watching a basketball match in the live-action/animated film Space Jam: A New Legacy . Dark Horse produced a Night King bust in March 2016, which was followed by an 8-inch Night King figure by Dark Horse Deluxe in late 2016. Funko also released a "Night King" POP! figure that same year. Richard Brake Richard Colin Brake (born 30 November 1964)

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6344-430: The White Walkers. However, their attempts to warn others about the threat and rally the great houses to their cause are generally not successful. According to Ethan Sacks New York's Daily News found the story focus "more on Machiavellian political intrigue than Tolkien-esque sword and sorcery ". Since Martin drew on historical sources to build the Ice and Fire world, Damien G. Walter of London's The Guardian saw

6466-465: The White Walkers. She explains that they were at war with the First Men and had no choice. Later on, Bran decides to observe a vision without the Three-Eyed Raven. He witnesses a massive army of wights led by the Night King, who touches him whilst in the vision. Bran awakens to find a mark where he was touched, and the Three-Eyed Raven warns that he must leave, as the Night King is now able to bypass

6588-512: The army of the dead; as they sail to safety, they witness the Night King reviving the dead as wights. The Night King appears in a vision being observed by Bran and the Three-eyed Raven , where they witness him as a human being forcibly transformed into the first White Walker by the Children of the Forest by impaling him with a dragonglass dagger. Bran subsequently confronts Leaf about creating

6710-474: The backstory of A Song of Ice and Fire , Aegon the Conqueror brought three dragons to Westeros and used them to unify the Seven Kingdoms. His descendants bred them in captivity; but most were killed in a civil war between rival Targaryen heirs 150 years before the story begins. At the beginning of the story, they are considered extinct until late in A Game of Thrones when Daenerys hatches her three dragon eggs in

6832-790: The best of his career. He subsequently won the Best Actor award at the First Glance Film Festival and the Vancouver Badass Film Festival for his performance. Brake co-starred in the horror film Mandy , which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on 19 January 2018. He later appeared as Rex in the western The Sisters Brothers . The film had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on 2 September. In 2019, he portrayed Winslow Foxworth Coltrane in

6954-408: The book series was no children's literature with "a boy being thrown off a balcony, a woman having her face bitten off, a man having his nose cut off, a girl having her ear sliced off, multiple rapes, multiple massacres, multiple snarfings (devouring) of people by animals [and] multiple beheadings". James Hibberd of Entertainment Weekly saw Martin's ruthlessness about killing beloved characters as

7076-632: The books he is a legendary figure, akin to Lann the Clever and Brandon the Builder, and no more likely to have survived to the present day than they have." Makeup artist Barrie Gower said the Night King used mostly practical prosthetic, but also incorporates some visual effects (VFX) to create a more icy look and feel. Gower said about the character's eyes: "The effects department alters the eyes in post-production. They give them that blue-glowy hue to them, which we can't really achieve with contact lenses." With regard to

7198-452: The box office worldwide. Brake had a recurring role as mobster Terry Mandel on Frank Darabont 's neo-noir crime drama Mob City . In 2014, he made guest appearances on the crime drama Crossing Lines and the action thriller series Transporter: The Series , both roles he played were international criminals wanted for murder. From 2014 to 2015, Brake portrayed the Night King on the HBO fantasy series Game of Thrones , appearing in

7320-419: The character lists without giving much thought, as he sees these characters as hardly developed and in some cases just as names. However, the death and time of death of many major characters have been planned from the beginning, although these scenes may not always be easy to write. A scene called the "Red Wedding", which occurs about two thirds through A Storm of Swords and leaves several major characters dead,

7442-455: The characters losing their names and very identities are Arya Stark and Theon Greyjoy ; Arya goes through several different identities before joining the Faceless Men with the ultimate goal to become no-one so as to be able to freely assume other identities. On the other hand, Quentyn Martell and his companions deliberately mask their identity by assuming false names, although it never really affects who they are in private. A common theme in

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7564-515: The children. Elves have been done to death". In the background of the series, the Children of the Forest fought a series of wars against the First Men (a civilization of primitive warriors wielding bronze weapons and riding horses), until the Pact of the Isle of Faces, wherein the First Men obtained control of the open lands and the Children that of the forests. The Pact was weakened after four thousand years by

7686-594: The deposed king, to return to Westeros and claim her throne. Martin has said he believes in "judicious use of magic " in epic fantasy. "I wanted to keep the magic in my book subtle and keep our sense of it growing, and it stops being magical if you see too much of it." Effective magic in literature, Martin claims, needs to be "unknowable and strange and dangerous with forces that can't be predicted or controlled." Before A Song of Ice and Fire , Martin initially considered writing an alternate historical novel without any magic. He therefore avoided overtly magical elements in

7808-430: The discussions whether the series is feminist or anti-feminist, and is very gratified of the many female readers and how much they like at least some of the female characters. He says that he does not presume to make feminist statements in either way. Martin's books frequently depict and refer to rape and humiliation, most cases of which are perpetrated upon women. The Atlantic noted that Daenerys and Queen Cersei share

7930-469: The dragons to ambush him. However, Jon and Daenerys leave their position to attack the wights when they begin overwhelming Winterfell's defenders, and the Night King engages them with Viserion, resulting in Jon and the Night King being dismounted. Daenerys attempts to burn the Night King with dragonfire, but he emerges unharmed, and she flees when the Night King attempts to kill her dragon Drogon. Jon attempts to fight

8052-401: The emergence of the Others, who were vanquished by the combined use of obsidian , fire, the magic of the old gods, and the building of the Wall. In the following centuries the Children gradually disappeared, and it was presumed that they left Westeros or became extinct. Little of their legacy is present in the series beyond their worship of nameless gods, still practiced by some in the North, and

8174-415: The extreme North of Westeros, beyond the Wall. In addition to ordinary animals such as dogs, cats, and horses, some species of animals inhabiting Martin's world are similar to real-world Pleistocene megafauna such as aurochs , direwolves , and mammoths . Of these megafauna, only aurochs are commonly encountered throughout Westeros, as a domesticated herd animal. Direwolves and mammoths are only found in

8296-472: The fantasy genre is the battle between good and evil , although Martin deliberately defied the conventions and assumptions of neo-Tolkienian fantasy. Whereas The Lord of the Rings had succeeded with externalizing villainy through ugliness, Martin felt that Tolkien's imitators oversimplified the struggle between good and evil into stereotypical clichés. William Faulkner's 1950 Nobel Prize speech rather serves as

8418-727: The first season of the Amazon Prime Video crime thriller series Absentia (2017). Brake was born in Ystrad Mynach , Wales. In 1967, he and his family migrated to the United States, where they first settled in Atlanta . He then grew up in the states of North Carolina , Tennessee , and Ohio , attending Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, Ohio, and Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. Brake studied acting under Sam Kogan , at his Academy of

8540-435: The former was more preoccupied with the Holodomor . While the former was panned by critics, the latter received widespread praise. Brake had a recurring role on the crime thriller series Absentia as Conrad Harlow, a wealthy banker who is released from prison after FBI agent Emily Byrne (played by Stana Katic ), who was hunting him down for the murders of several women, is found alive. In 2018, he got his first lead role in

8662-428: The front two being wings. Martin first considered having the Targaryens use a pyrotechnic effect to feign dragon powers, but decided on living dragons instead, though he refused to give them human speech. Comparing the dragons to modern-day nuclear arsenals, Martin questions whether supreme power enables the user to reform, improve, or build society. It's kind of ironic because I started writing Game of Thrones all

8784-407: The funeral pyre of Khal Drogo. The dragons in the story are scaled, fire-spewing, reptilian creatures with animal-level intelligence. Though some accompanying artwork for A Song of Ice and Fire portrays them with four legs and a detached set of wings, George R.R. Martin insists that this is incorrect. His dragons are serpentine and slender, and they have four (not six) limbs (similar to a wyvern ),

8906-460: The genre. He thus tried to give the story a little more historical fiction feel than a fantastic feel like previous authors' books, with less emphasis on magic and sorcery and more emphasis on swordplay and battles and political intrigue. The Atlantic noted that the series attempts to mash together fantasy and realism as two seemingly contradictory genres of literature, and Martin's books are generally praised for their realism. The Atlantic saw

9028-414: The gods who watch them and chortle, and somehow that makes them mean more." — Lev Grossman of Time in 2005 Attracted to gray characters instead of orcs and angels, Martin regards the hero as the villain on the other side. The Wall's Night's Watch, whom Martin described as "criminal scum [who] are also heroes and they wear black", was a deliberate twist on fantasy stereotypes. Furthermore,

9150-430: The good and evil side in real life, as some of the darkest villains in history had some good things about them, the greatest heroes had weaknesses and flaws. However, according to Martin, Tyrion Lannister is the most morally neutral main character in the book, which, along with his cynicism, is what makes him his favorite character. David Orr of The New York Times praised Martin as "unapologetically coldblooded", saying

9272-456: The hills." Bauer also noted that VFX were used to create the weather conditions in the scene, noting "It's wind, mist, fog and heavy atmosphere that you'd get in a marine layer. The dramatic value is to say something's wrong; it's a mystery what they are facing. The temperature drops, and our characters can see their breath. The weather obscures their vision." Spain-based El Ranchito, one of several special effects companies used by Game of Thrones ,

9394-487: The horror film 3 From Hell . He also co-starred in the thriller film The Rhythm Section , which was released on 31 January 2020. He played Valin Hess, an Imperial officer, in the seventh episode of the second season of The Mandalorian . Children of the Forest A Song of Ice and Fire is an ongoing series of epic fantasy novels by American novelist and screenwriter George R. R. Martin . The first installment of

9516-470: The horror film Outpost . In 2009, following a guest appearance on the crime drama Cold Case and a supporting role as the titular character in Perkins' 14 , he appeared in Rob Zombie 's Halloween II , the sequel to his remake of Halloween . He plays Gary Scott, a sleazy and perverted coroner who is brutally decapitated by Michael Myers following a car crash that kills his co-worker. Brake garnered

9638-583: The key to Ice and Fire 's story future lies sixteen years in the fictional past of which each volume reveals more. Events planned from the beginning are foreshadowed, although Martin heeds story developments to not be predictable. The viewpoint characters, who serve as unreliable narrators , may clarify or provide different perspectives on past events. What the readers believe to be true may therefore not necessarily be true. Martin intentionally avoids most overt fantasy elements in Ice and Fire , preferring to instead have "carefully rationed magic". He set

9760-516: The latest from Lorrie Moore unless everyone agreed to The Hobbit first". The article received so many responses that the New York Times had to close down the comments section. Ilana Teitelbaum of The Huffington Post responded in an article called "Dear New York Times : A Game of Thrones Is Not Just for Boys", claiming that Bellafante's piece was not only rife with inaccuracies, but also patronizing to female readers. Teitelbaum defended

9882-511: The leader of the Urban Maulerz crew. In 2006, Brake appeared in the music video for Muse 's Knights of Cydonia , playing a villainous sheriff in a strange futuristic western. Brake played paroled convict Bobby DeWitt in Brian De Palma 's The Black Dahlia , a fictional account of the murder of actress Elizabeth Short . Despite being a critical and commercial failure, the film received

10004-440: The magic protecting the Three-Eyed Raven's lair. The Night King and his army quickly arrive and the Night King kills the Three-Eyed Raven, but Bran and Meera Reed are able to escape. The Night King is shown leading his army south. Through ravens' eyes, Bran locates the Night King's army beyond the Wall. When the Night King looks up, the ravens disperse, and Bran is pulled out of the warging. He requests that ravens be sent throughout

10126-454: The many sex scenes in the TV series because the books as a source sprawl with them. She encouraged discussion of the Ice and Fire books and the fantasy genre from a feminist perspective, but rejected Bellafante's point that only men are interested in fantasy, considering Bellafante's characterization of fantasy as "boy fiction" as a promotion of gender stereotyping offensive to the genre as well as to women. Scott Meslow of The Atlantic noted

10248-425: The men try to evacuate on Drogon but the wights continue their attack; using an ice javelin, the Night King kills Viserion. The Night King keeps his gaze on an enraged Jon, who appears on the verge of calling him down to fight directly, but his lieutenant hands him another spear. The Night King throws it at Drogon, but the dragon takes flight and dodges in time. Jon stays on the ground to cover the others' departure, but

10370-486: The need to differentiate between depicting misogyny and endorsing misogyny, as the series is set in a world in which sex is the primary means by which women can assert their power. Meslow states that although the TV series may sometimes toe the line between Skinimax-style exploitation and genuine plot advancement, the sexual scenes also invite the viewers to sympathize with the series' women. The novels show several competing religions, in imitation of religion's centrality to

10492-464: The north. The size, length and magical powers of the wall were adjusted for genre demands. Similarly the Titan, an extremely large statue in the city of Braavos, is comparable to the historical Colossus of Rhodes . One of the most conspicuous aspects of the world of Westeros is the long and random nature of the seasons. Fans have developed lengthy scientific theories for the seasons, but Martin insists there

10614-463: The novels leave it to the reader to decide about who is good and evil. Characters are explored from many sides through the multiple viewpoint structure so that, unlike in a lot of other fantasy, the supposed villains can provide their viewpoint. This is necessary since in the real world throughout history, most human beings have justified their deeds as the right thing and the opponent's as villainous. It may not always be easy to determine who represents

10736-402: The novels' sex scenes, on grounds that only a strong double standard explains the aversion to coitus in people undisturbed by descriptions of war. He also argued that the purpose of his narrative was rather to immerse the reader in the characters' experience, than to advance the plot. Because of child pornography laws, the television adaptation was forced to either extenuate the sex scenes for

10858-500: The novels, the title "Night's King" is given to the long-ago legendary 13th Lord Commander of the Night's Watch (generations after the Long Night), who supposedly married a female White Walker and led the Night's Watch to commit atrocities. Regarding whether the character in the television series is the same as the one in the novels, Martin said, "As for the Night's King (the form I prefer), in

10980-572: The objects and titles of the Faith draw their names from the Latin septem : a temple or edifice of the faith is called a sept ; and a priest of the Seven is called a septon (male) or septa (female). The Faith's hierarchy is also drawn from Catholicism. The Faith also has monks and nuns of various orders, of whom the Silent Sisters are the most prominent. In the fictional backstory, the Andals introduced

11102-424: The overall prosthetic, "they've added this sort of icy layer over the top of him to create this—it's something incredibly difficult to achieve practically, prosthetics are cast in a translucent rubber, which can only give you so much of that icy quality, so visual effects help augment it a little bit further to give it more dimension." In the fourth and fifth season, the Night King was portrayed by Richard Brake , with

11224-573: The parallels of being forced into marriage, having powerful strengths of will, and being utterly ruthless toward their enemies. As bloodline and succession are the quickest and surest way to assert strength in Westeros, Cersei takes advantage of motherhood by procreating with her brother Jaime and having children fathered by her hated husband Robert aborted, thereby leaving him without a true heir in revenge. Martin said that Cersei's walk of public penitence in A Dance with Dragons may be read as misogynistic or feminist. Jane Shore , mistress of Edward IV ,

11346-401: The plot twists are the death of apparently crucial characters and the reappearances of believed-to-be dead characters. However, Rachael Brown of The Atlantic said that Martin's penchant for unpredictability may make the reader grow increasingly skeptical of apparent deaths, alluding to Jon Snow 's fate in A Dance with Dragons . Martin believes that bringing back a dead character necessitates

11468-405: The psychological horror-thriller Perfect Skin , which premiered at Frightfest London on 25 August 2018. He played Bob Reid, a tattoo artist who, after the dissolution of his marriage as a result of being diagnosed with Parkinson's, kidnaps a Polish immigrant and tattoos her body in attempt to create one last piece of art before he dies. Brake's performance was critically acclaimed and was regarded as

11590-399: The real world where people die sometimes ugly deaths, even beloved people. The deaths of supernumerary extras or orcs have no major effect on readers, whereas a friend's death has much more emotional impact. Martin kills off main characters because he finds it very irritating to know early in the story who as the hero will come through unscathed. Martin dislikes this lack of realism, comparing

11712-494: The realist heart of the Ice and Fire books in that "magic lingers only on the periphery of the world in which the characters dwell, and is something more terrifying than wondrous. ... It's a fantasy story that defies expectations by ultimately being less about a world we'd like to escape, at times becoming uncomfortably familiar to the one we live in." The unresolved larger narrative arc of Ice and Fire encourages speculation about future story events. According to Martin, much of

11834-487: The realm. More often than not, those who make the noble choice pay with their lives." Writing in Foreign Affairs , Charli Carpenter noted that "leaders disregard ethical norms, the needs of their small-folk, and the natural world at their own peril. Jockeying for power by self-interested actors produces not a stable balance but sub-optimal chaos; gamesmanship and the pursuit of short-term objectives distracts players from

11956-680: The remaining Weirwoods through which the Children communicated telepathically. The Others (referred to as White Walkers in the television series ) are mysterious creatures that dwell in the northern regions of Westeros, beyond the Wall. The Others resurface at the beginning of A Game of Thrones after the War for the Dawn, which led to the construction of the Wall. They appear as tall, gaunt, graceful humanoids with glowing blue eyes and pale skin. They wear armor that shifts in color with every step, and wield thin crystal swords capable of shattering steel . In

12078-551: The role based on a personal recommendation to Zombie from actor Sid Haig . Brake made a cameo in the thriller Cuckoo , which premiered at the Cambridge Film Festival on 25 September 2009. In 2010, he co-starred with Idris Elba in the psychological thriller Legacy , which premiered at the Glasgow Film Festival on 28 February 2010. In 2011, he co-starred with Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson in

12200-479: The romantic drama Water for Elephants , which was based on Sara Gruen 's 2006 novel of the same name . The film was released on 22 April 2011, to positive reviews. Brake played Harry Green in the horror film The Incident , where he doesn't have any spoken dialogue throughout the film. The film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on 12 September 2011, where it

12322-519: The same basic needs, dreams and influences, and that his female characters are to cover the same wide spectrum of human traits like the males. Martin claims to identify with all point-of-view characters in the writing process despite significant differences to him, be it gender or age. He sees himself neither as misogynistic or a promoter of feminism, although he acknowledged that some values inoculated within childhood can never be fully abandoned, even those consciously rejected. He says that he appreciates

12444-494: The science-fiction horror film Death Machine , which starred Brad Dourif . Following supporting roles in a few low-budget films (including Subterfuge , co-starring Matt McColm ), Brake did not appear in a single film until six years later when he landed his first role by a major film distributor in Anthony Minghella 's civil war film Cold Mountain . He played the leader of a group of Union foragers who attempts to rape

12566-409: The series, A Game of Thrones , which was originally planned as a trilogy, was published in 1996. The series now consists of five published volumes, and two more volumes are planned. The series is told in the third-person through the eyes of a number of point of view characters. A television series adaptation, Game of Thrones , premiered on HBO in 2011. A Song of Ice and Fire takes place in

12688-423: The series. While the amount of magic gradually increases, Martin claims the series will end with less magic than many other fantasies have. Since all fiction is essentially untrue, Martin believes it needs to reflect reality at least in its core. He agrees with William Faulkner 's statement in his Nobel Prize speech that "the human heart in conflict with itself" is the only thing worth writing about, regardless of

12810-412: The ships with wildlings, Hardhome is attacked by an army of wights . While assisting in the defense of Hardhome, Jon and Tormund see the Night King observing the battle along with his generals. The Night King also observes Jon destroying a White Walker with his Valyrian steel sword Longclaw, appearing intrigued at the sign of resistance. Jon and his allies are forced to flee Hardhome after the walls fall to

12932-406: The show's fourth and fifth seasons, most notably in the fifth-season episode " Hardhome ", which received seven Emmy nominations. Brake appeared in the action comedy Kingsman: The Secret Service , where he plays an unnamed man who interrogates Eggsy Unwin (played by Taron Egerton ) character as part of his training to become a spy for the intelligence agency Kingsman. He made an appearance as

13054-423: The situation to a soldier scared the night before a battle. Martin wants his readers to feel that no one is safe as they turn the page. Martin prefers a hero's sacrifice to say something profound about human nature, and points readers not wanting to get upset or disturbed to the plenty of books for comfort reading. "There is an inherent dishonesty to the sort of fantasy that too many people have done, where there's

13176-479: The true faith, nor as the sole source of virtue. Implications stand that the different kinds of magic in the Ice and Fire world may be manifestations of the same forces, whereby readers can puzzle out the relation between the religions and the various magics; but the validity, teachings, and power of the competing religions in Ice and Fire , are left ambiguous, and Martin has said the series' gods are unlikely to appear as deus ex machina in Westeros. The Faith of

13298-508: The truly pressing issues of human survival and stability." The novels are to reflect the frictions of the medieval class structures, where people were brought up to know the duties and privileges of their class. Si Sheppard of Salon found this problematic, as it conformed to the prevailing trope in fantasy fiction whereby political agency is the exclusive right of a hierarchical elite. Martin also explores how far birth and social class, or values and memories determines people's identity. Among

13420-477: The use of black as the identifying color for the essentially good Night's Watch and the use of white for the much corrupted Kingsguard is another example of Martin subverting traditional fantasy which tends to link light colors with good and darker ones with evil. Considering universally adored or hated characters as too one-dimensional, Martin writes his characters with well-mixed natures so that readers will invest in and identify with them. The actions and politics in

13542-561: The warped and perverted space Marine Dean Portman in Doom , a live action adaptation of the video game series, with Karl Urban and Dwayne Johnson . He appeared as a hostile American man in Steven Spielberg 's Munich , a cinematic retelling of the Munich massacre in the midst of the 1972 Olympic Games . In that same year, Brake also provided the voicework in the video game Juiced as T. K.,

13664-421: The way back in 1991, long before anybody was talking about climate change. But there is — in a very broad sense — there’s a certain parallel there. George R. R. Martin, interview with The New York Times In the series, the threat of a global climate change is ever present. There are no regular seasons that occur at expected intervals. Winter and the accompanying cold temperatures it brings may last for

13786-464: The young widow Sara (played by Natalie Portman ). The film was released on Christmas Day 2003 and was a critical and commercial success, receiving seven Academy Award nominations. In 2005, Brake finally achieved recognition from mainstream audiences in Christopher Nolan 's Batman Begins . He played Joe Chill , the man responsible for murdering the parents of Bruce Wayne . Brake appeared as

13908-463: The younger characters or age all characters up. HBO preferred the latter, adding some sex scenes to the TV series while leaving out others. The premiere of Game of Thrones was followed by many debates about the depiction of sex, rape, and female agency in the franchise. USA Today ' s assessment that HBO added "so many buxom, naked prostitutes that TV's Westeros makes Vegas look like a convent" earned Martin's reply that there were many brothels in

14030-497: Was intentionally vague with the size of the Ice and Fire world, omitting a scale on the maps to discourage prediction of travel lengths based on measured distances, though the continent of Westeros may be considered of the size of South America. Complete world maps are deliberately not made available so that readers may better identify with people of the real Middle Ages who were unaware of distant places. As each new book has added one or two maps, readers may be able to piece together

14152-524: Was nominated for the Midnight Madness Award. In 2013, he had supporting roles in the action thriller The Numbers Station starring John Cusack and Malin Åkerman , and Ridley Scott 's crime thriller The Counselor , starring Michael Fassbender and Penélope Cruz . Brake appeared in the superhero film Thor: The Dark World , the sequel to Thor . The film became the biggest commercial success for Brake's career, earning $ 644.6 million at

14274-544: Was once a high civilization similar to Rome before the Dark Ages. These elements may give the story a poignant sadness. The Wall, which Martin believes to be unique in fantasy, was inspired by Martin's visit to Hadrian's Wall in the North of England close to the border with Scotland. Looking out over the hills, Martin wondered what a Roman centurion from the Mediterranean would feel, not knowing what threats might come from

14396-444: Was punished similarly after Edward's death. Cersei is defined by her pride, and this punishment was directed at women to break their pride, but was never inflicted on men. Critics addressed the series' portrayal of women after Game of Thrones began airing in 2011. Ginia Bellafante wrote in a piece from The New York Times that the series was "boy fiction patronizingly turned out to reach the population's other half" and considered it

14518-414: Was replaced by Vladimir Furdik , one of the shows main stunt performers. Brake guest-starred on an episode of Grimm as a hunter with a penchant for severing a foot from his victims. He co-starred with Melissa McCarthy and Jason Statham in the action comedy Spy , where he played Solsa Dudaev, a Chechen terrorist in pursuit of a nuclear weapon. The film was universally praised and was nominated for

14640-535: Was responsible for the White Walker army shots. The Night King's first appearance is through a vision Bran Stark has with a Weirwood Heart tree. He experiences a flood of images from the past, present, and future, many of which he was not physically present for. He does not comprehend what all of these images are but, in retrospect, one of them is an image of the Night King picking up the last of Craster's sons off an ice altar. After Rast leaves Craster's final son in

14762-452: Was taken from a drone and used as the basis for a CG model of the location, which was augmented with VFX and joined with volcanic hills that were photographed in Iceland." Crowd replication was used to create the 1,000-man army, with special effects supervisor Joe Bauer saying "It's scans of those actors in the makeup and costumes, with variations we used to make a digital army that extends up onto

14884-426: Was the hardest scene Martin had ever written. He repeatedly skipped writing the chapter and eventually wrote it last for A Storm of Swords . Readership response ranged from praise to condemnation, but Martin said the chapter "was painful to write, it should be painful to read, it should be a scene that rips your heart out, and fills you with terror and grief." The wars in the novels are much more morally complex than

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