[Sixty]

Has there been any news on when they plan to start filming? This is getting very interesting.

[Macros]

october this year was the last shout I heard for the set up for the pilot.

[Werthead]

Sixty, on Jul 20 2009, 08:57 PM, said:

Has there been any news on when they plan to start filming? This is getting very interesting.

The pilot is currently booked to be filmed from 12 October to 6 November 2009 at the Paint Hall Studios in Belfast, with location filming in other locations in Northern Ireland, with possibly some plate shots (establishing shots etc) in Scotland and the Republic. The Dany/Drogo/Viserys/Ilyrio scenes in Pentos will be filmed at an as-yet-unannounced studio and locations in Morocco in that same time period.

HBO will likely decide within 1-2 months on to go to series, so before the end of the year is possible, otherwise after the Christmas break.

[Werthead]

Jennifer Ehle - best known for playing Elizabeth Bennett in the BBC's definitive version of PRIDE & PREJUDICE (the Colin Firth one) - has been cast as Catelyn Stark in the adaptation.

Excellent choice. Ehle is one of our top-tier actresses with a very strong and varied career. I'm pretty sure she'll do brilliantly in the role.

[Morgoth]

HBO really is making this their next big thing. I never would've believed it

[The Swordbearer]

Aptorian, on Dec 4 2008, 11:19 PM, said:

I think Peter Dinklage would be an awesome choice for Tyrion:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0227759/

QuickTidal, on Jun 8 2009, 11:32 PM, said:

I'm hella excited about this.....ESPECIALLY if the casting rumour of Tricia Helfer as Cersei comes true....that would be kickass casting choice!

Werthead, on Jul 20 2009, 05:19 PM, said:

I did a post elsewhere about the major new casting announcements today so thought I'd re-post it here.

And yes, Sean Bean IS Ned Stak.

Quote

We've been following this for a while in the book forum, but the latest round of casting news seems a good time to put the news up here in the TV forum.

HBO's A Game of Thrones, based on the Song of Ice and Fire novel series by George RR Martin, enters production at the Paint Hall Studios in Belfast in October. The huge-budget production, which will be a lavish series on the scale of Rome, will be HBO's first out-and-out epic fantasy TV series. It is being co-funded by the BBC.

The book series consists of seven books (four written, the fifth just about done and due early next year, two more to come). HBO is adapting each book as a television season. Season 1 will consist of twelve 60-minute episodes. However, at the moment only a pilot has been confirmed. If HBO like what they see, a full season will be commissioned.

If the project goes to series, it will most likely air in early 2011.

The pilot is written by David Benioff (screenplays for Troy, The Kite Runner, The 25th Hour, the unused first draft of Wolverine and the recent novel City of Thieves) and D.B. Weiss (not a lot as yet) and will be directed by Thomas McCarthy, the BAFTA award-winning writer/director of The Station Agent and The Visitor. He is also an actor, best known for his turn as journalist Scott Templeton in the final season of The Wire.

The cast currently consists of:

Sean Bean
Bean, who needs no introduction, is playing Lord Eddard Stark, the lead character. Eddard is the Lord of the North, which he rules from the rambling, Gormenghast-esque castle of Winterfell. He is known for a strong sense of justice, honour and honesty, and mislikes politics. He is married to the Lady Catelyn of House Tully (casting not announced yet) and has five legitimate children and a bastard son, Jon Snow, whose presence in Winterfell Catelyn barely tolerates. Eddard is a close friend of the King, Robert Baratheon.

Peter Dinklage
Dinklage, recently seen in Threshold and as Trumpkin in Prince Caspian and the forthcoming Voyage of the Dawn Treader, is playing Tyrion Lannister. Tyrion is the youngest son of Lord Tywin, the strict and militaristic Lord of Casterly Rock and the Westerlands. Tyrion was born a misshapen dwarf, and his mother died in childbirth. Tywin hates and resents his son for these weaknesses. Tyrion paradoxically hates his father but remains anxious to please and impress him. Unable to win valour and glory in tournaments and battle, Tyrion has developed a taste for political intrigue and a sense of cunning and wit. He is probably the most popular character in the books.

Mark Addy
Known for more comedic roles such as in The Fully Monty and his turn in A Knight's Tale, Addy is playing King Robert Baratheon. Once a great warrior who led the rebellion against the Mad King Aerys, Robert has now gone to seed and is fat and indolent. When the King's Hand (essentially his prime minister who sees to the day-to-day running of the kingdom) dies, Robert asks his friend Eddard to step up to the role. Robert is married to Cersei Lannister (not cast yet), Tyrion's scheming sister, with whom he has three children.

Harry Lloyd
Lloyd will be familiar to Doctor Who fans from his turn as Jeremy Baines in Family of Blood and Human Nature. He also played Will Scarlett in Robin Hood and was Prince Rupert in The Devil's Whore. Lloyd is playing the role of Viserys Targaryen. Viserys is the son and legal heir of King Aerys, whom Robert Baratheon supplanted as King of Westeros. Viserys and his young sister Daenerys fled to the continent of Essos and were given sanctuary by a powerful merchant lord. As the series opens Viserys has arranged to sell his teenage sister in marriage to Khal Drogo, the leader of an immense army of Dothraki blood-riders, in return for his help in invading Westeros.

Jack Gleeson
Gleeson is a young actor whose only major role to date has been in Batman Begins (as 'Young Boy'). He will be playing Joffrey Baratheon, Robert's eldest son and heir. To strengthen the alliance between the Starks and Baratheons, Eddard agrees that his daughter Sansa should marry Joffrey. Joffrey is vain, arrogant and entirely lacking in martial ability, but likes to boast of his elite swordfighting skills. He is usually accompanied by his bodyguard, the scarred and threatening Sandor Clegane (uncast as yet).

Kit Harrington
Newcomer Harrington has done some theatre work but nothing on television yet. The producers were apparently blown away by his audition. Harrington will be playing the key role of Jon Snow, Eddard Stark's bastard son who finds his place at Winterfell increasingly uncomfortable due to the attitude of his step-mother and eventually decides to 'take the black' and join the sworn brotherhood of the Night's Watch. The Watch guards the Wall, a colossal fortification of ice stretching for 300 miles across Westeros' northern border built thousands of years ago to defend against an ancient threat. That threat has long since vanished (cough) but the Watch still has to guard against the wildlings or 'free folk' who live beyond and occasionally seek to cross the Wall and raid the lands beyond.

Further casting announcements, including some possibly more recognisable SF&F figures, are due shortly.

Looking forward to this Hope they do a good job of the Starke's Dire Wolves and not make em just big dogs.

And this could open the way for A Malazan Movie Hmmmm

[Slum]

Werthead, on Aug 3 2009, 11:45 PM, said:

Jennifer Ehle - best known for playing Elizabeth Bennett in the BBC's definitive version of PRIDE & PREJUDICE (the Colin Firth one) - has been cast as Catelyn Stark in the adaptation.

Excellent choice. Ehle is one of our top-tier actresses with a very strong and varied career. I'm pretty sure she'll do brilliantly in the role.

Googled her. Looks like a very good choice to play Catelyn - just how I pictured her. This show really can't come soon enough. Not that it'll hold a candle to The Legend of the Seeker or anything though...

[Hetan]

I have to say I am not a Martin fan but I'm so excited about this now. If they can pull a cast like this together to shoot a pilot from this series of books then there's hope for other series to be seriously considered as future contenders. This is a quality cast and that can only be a good thing.

[Tiste Simeon]

Sean Bean... Utter legend, I cannot wait for this show!

[Werthead]

HBO have announced that an additional seven castmembers have been added to A GAME OF THRONES.

Rising Danish actor Nikolaj Coster-Waldau has been cast as Jaime Lannister. Coster-Waldau was most recently seen in the lead role in Ronald D. Moore's VIRTUALITY.

Tamzin Merchant as Daenerys Targaryen. Merchant has just been starring as Katherine Howard in THE TUDORS.

Richard Madden as Robb Stark. Madden is an up-and-coming Scottish stage actor.

Iain Glen as Jorah Mormont. Glen is a veteran actor who recently played the role of Orestes in THE LAST LEGION (not a great film, but he was good in it) and King Richard in KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. A very sold and reliable choice.

Alfie Allen (brother of Lily) as Theon Greyjoy. Alfie Allen is another stage actor and the brother of British pop singer Lily Allen. He got some unwanted attention after his sister penned a humourous song about him on her first album, but has come into his own with some solid reviews after taking over the stage role of EQUUS from Daniel Radcliffe earlier this year.

Sophie Turner as Sansa Stark & Maisie Williams as Arya Stark. Newcomers.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/conten...09a5c3b4bb8e30e

This post has been edited by Werthead: 21 August 2009 - 03:36 AM

[Volkh]

Awesome news, Thank you so much Wert! Man I am so pumped for this.

[Raymond Luxury Yacht]

Odd, it looks like this isn't even up on Martin's page. Sweet.

[Volkh]

martin is giving out as much vieled info as possible so he can play spoil sport at the con's. it's his baby so he has all the rights to do that lol

[cauthon]

Tiste Simeon, on Aug 4 2009, 03:51 PM, said:

Sean Bean... Utter legend, I cannot wait for this show!

And of course, he dies soon :-)

[LadyMTL]

Wow...if this is actually finally happening I think I'll finally cave and get HBO, I was able to resist the Sopranos and (thanks to the Internets) I can still keep up with True Blood but there's no way I'll be able to sit idly by and NOT watch ASOIAF.

Woo hoo! Can't wait!

[Tiste Simeon]

Thanks Wert. Does anyone know if they will have this on BBC (ala Rome) at all?

[stone monkey]

Rome was a co-production deal, so if HBO have got some dosh out of the Beeb that might well be the case...

[Werthead]

Tiste Simeon, on Aug 21 2009, 03:21 PM, said:

Thanks Wert. Does anyone know if they will have this on BBC (ala Rome) at all?

Yes, and hopefully quite close to the US transmission date, although given that the BBC has suddenly dropped the ball on this (showing THE TUDORS substantially later than in America and apparently not planning to show the new season of HEROES until the New Year although it starts in America in September) that may not be the case. But the BBC is bank-rolling part of the project and may be involved in some production capacity as well.

This post has been edited by Werthead: 21 August 2009 - 04:39 PM

[stone monkey]

If the Beeb are bankrolling some of this that means they'll almost definitely have first dibs on showing it in the UK. Given the number of British actors in it too, and reading between the lines, it does look as if some sort of co-production deal might be in place too. In which case "Yay!!"

All we need now is for the script to be good enough to get a Rome level sense of conviction out of the actors. As we know from some of their previous output HBO are not afraid to go to some very dark places with their material and if the BBC are co-producing there may also be that grimness that we Brits like to bring to our escapism - if you don't believe me on this, take a look at Doctor Who and tell me that a purely US made kids tv show would go to the kind of unpleasant places that goes on occasion and have the body count it does...

[Tiste Simeon]

Fantastic news. Now, if I can get my non-nerd friends excited about it too...