
Melbourne
March 29-30, 2025
Melbourne Showgrounds
Written by Chris Daniel
Filming for the eighth and final season of Game Of Thrones wrapped last week, and though its 2019 release feels as if it’s within arm’s reach, we are left with nothing but teasers and fan theories.
Unaware of the instant classic it would become, HBO’s release of Game Of Thrones began a worldwide phenomenon. As new storylines coalesced and characters began to crossover, we have watched the show progress from a cautious and calculated competition of kingship to a kingdom-wide catastrophe of cataclysmic consequences, with dragons, zombies, and demons being tossed into the calamity.
Eager fans have been analysing the theories a little closer, trying to pin together what is about to happen in the next six feature-length episodes, attempting to answer some of the burning questions the show has narrowly avoided, and summing up everything that has happened thus far that has led to this moment.
Naturally, some of the possibilities that have been purported are positively preposterous, but the more plausible ones have us questioning the intentions of everyone, both good and bad.
So, what popular theories do we believe? For starters, it’s obvious that the Night King is about to rein terror on Westeros. We never intended to get attached to characters, but cried tears at the fatalities of Robb Stark, Ned Stark, Hodor and Ygritte. So why wouldn’t the Night King add salt to our wounds by collecting their corpses and reanimating them?
Beyond that, one of the crazier theories is that young Bran Stark has a connection to the Night King. Slowly unlocking the powers of the Three Eyed Raven, Bran is able to look past the wall, manipulate people’s minds, and look into the past. With powers like this, he may, in fact, be revealed as the Night King himself, but there is limited evidence to prove it
Fans predicting the end are nothing new, but to get a more up close and personal insider opinion, we talked with some actors behind some of the deceased characters of the show to hear their opinions.
Kingsguard of Robert Baratheon, Ser Meryn Trant, met his fate at the hands of Arya Stark towards the end of season five. After a history of questionable decisions, his passing was one of the more celebrated ones. Luckily, Ian Beattie is nothing like his on-screen counterpart:
“It won’t be what we think. It never is. People will die unexpectedly and I’m reminded of Ramsey Bolton’s quotation, ‘If you think this has a happy ending, you haven’t been paying attention.”
In regards to the next season, he has avoided social media spoilers, but mentions that his best candidate for the throne is Tyrion, though it seems unlikely at this stage.
Season five also saw the death of Lord Janos Slynt, the Commander of the City Watch in Kings Landing. A rebel without cause led him to his death, beheaded by Jon Snow’s Longclaw. Dominic Carter, who perfectly portrayed the gruelling character, is comfortable with his own predictions:
“Well the whole series is called a Song of Fire and Ice, so I expect there to be an epic showdown between these worlds – along with some revealing facts about the characters we all know and love, and love to hate. With some very unexpected twists and turns. You know, the usual.”
At the end of season six, the destruction of the Great Sept of Baelor killed off many notable characters, one of those being the Lord of the High Garden and Head of House Tyrell, Lord Mace Tyrell. When it comes to theories, Roger Ashton-Griffiths has one of the most unique and insightful opinions:
“War will lead to the complete annihilation of all dragons and White Walker life, and a catastrophic reduction of human civilisation. The way will then be open for the evolution of the world we know now, with its Classical antecedents, leaving just a collective memory of a mythical place, where dragons once flew, and perhaps of a wonderful city lost in antiquity, possibly called Atlantis.”
Only a year to go until the forthcoming series commences, but be wary… the night is dark and full of spoilers.