If you haven't seen last night's Beyond the Wall episode of Game of Thrones yet, there will be SPOILERS below, so read on at your own risk. One character, who has been a presence on the hit fantasy series since the third season, was killed off in last night's episode, and now we have a new interview from this star, discussing this pivotal death in great detail. This is your final warning to avoid any SPOILERS from last night's Game of Thrones episode, so read on at your own risk.
The character who passed away was none other than Thoros of Myr (Paul Kaye), who, ironically, is one of the few characters who has the power to bring others back to life, as one of the "red priests" who follow the Lord of Light. Beric Dondarrion (Richard Dormer) revealed earlier on in this episode, during a conversation with Jon Snow (Kit Harington) that he has been brought back to life six times by Thoros of Myr, but apparently the red priest cannot prevent his own death. The actor revealed that he got the news sometime last summer that his character was going to be killed off, but he also added in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that he was just grateful to be brought back in the first place, since it was originally looking like his character may not be needed after Season 3, where he appeared in six of that season's 10 episodes. Here's what he had to say below.
"It looked like they weren't following Lady Stoneheart's storyline in the show, so I prepared myself not to re-emerge. So it was great to get back and have this adventure. Just staying alive for six seasons is an achievement in itself on this show."
In the George R.R. Martin novels, after being killed in the infamous Red Wedding, Lady Catelyn Stark's (Michelle Fairley) body was thrown into the river, where it was ultimately rescued by the Brotherhood Without Banners. The Brotherhood's leader, Beric Dondarrion, gave his life for hers, and she was ultimately resurrected, leading the Brotherhood Without Banners on a quest for vengeance. While fans had hoped this Lady Stoneheart story would ultimately emerge in later seasons, that didn't happen. Still, Thoros of Myr and Beric Dondarrion made a surprising return in Season 6, where they come across Sandor "The Hound" Clegane (Rory McCann), who joins them on their journey north to defeat the White Walkers, and we saw them all in the Season 7 premiere, Dragonstone, and last week's Eastwatch before Thoros was killed in Beyond the Wall, when he was mauled by a massive zombie polar bear. Here's what Paul Kaye had to say about his character's death.
"It's glorious, really. And I like the fact I get [cremated] with my own booze as well, there's a message there somewhere."
Throughout the episode, Thoros of Myr is seen drinking said "booze," while even commenting on his drunken ways in a conversation with Jorah Mormont (Iain Glen), stating that he doesn't even remember a battle that Jorah saw, where he thought Thoros was the bravest man he'd ever see, to which Thoros replied, "Just the drunkest." When he passed away, Beric Dondarrion used some of Thoros' booze to set his sword ablaze, cremating the red priest. As for the rest of the characters who made it out alive after this thrilling battle north of The Wall, we'll find out what happens in their stories when the Game of Thrones Season 7 finale, which will be the longest in the entire series at 80 minutes long, airs Sunday, August 27 at 9 PM ET on HBO.