There's no denying that HBO's Game Of Thrones has always been an ensemble show. There are literally dozens of characters spread over countless locations in two fictional continents playing out several disparate storylines. Sean Bean's Lord Eddard Stark was the closest thing the show had to a "main character" back in Season 1 — but ever since he got his head chopped off in the ninth episode, the show has lacked a clear focal point. An argument could be made that Peter Dinklage's Tyrion Lannister has been Thrones' default protagonist since Season 2... but that's about to change. Game of Thrones Season 5 will be about Jon Snow. At least, according to Kit Harington in an interview with Entertainment Weekly.
"I think this is the first season I’ve topped Peter [Dinklage] in having the most shoot dates on the calendar. There’s a lot of Jon [Snow] in there," Harington says of his Thrones character. This makes sense, since at least half of Season 5 is based on A Dance With Dragons, the fifth novel in George R.R. Martin's A Song Of Ice And Fire saga. At 13, Jon as the most point-of-view chapters in that book, and the action at the Wall dominates the page count.
So it also makes sense that Jon would be busy this year — too busy even to grieve over his lost love Ygritte, who perished in Season 4's climactic Battle At The Wall. "He doesn’t have time to mourn," says Harington. "We saw him mourn at the end of last season, when he burns Ygritte. And this season he only mentions her once. [...] He’s got bigger things at hand. If he’s missing her, it’s internal. He’s hardened, in some ways, this season.
But the most intriguing part of Harington's interview is what the actor had to say about his character's interactions with a certain Red Priestess. You'll recall that when Stannis arrived at the Wall to save the day with his army, he brought Melisandre of Asshai with him. In the books, she remains at Castle Black while Stannis ventures into the North to win the support of local lords and retake the kingdom from the devious Boltons (aka the scum responsible for the Red Wedding and Theon's torture).
In A Dance With Dragons, Melisandre is intrigued by Jon — when she asks the fires for a glimpse of Azor Ahai, she receives an unexpected vision of the young Lord Commander rather than Stannis Baratheon — but their relationship does not proceed much farther than idle curiosity. I recently argued that one of the changes Season 5 of Thrones should make is to Melisandre's storyline... and judging by Harington's words, showrunners David Benioff & D.B. Weiss are doing just that.
The one time that Jon mentions Ygritte, referenced by Harington in his interview? It comes during a surprising interaction with the Red Woman: "In a scene where he’s being come onto by Melisandre."
What the what?
Are we looking at another budding romance between Jon and someone "kissed by fire"? It's easy to see what Melisandre sees in Lord Snow: "She’s obviously obsessed with bastards and noble blood. There’s obviously something a bit special about him in this story, and she locks in on that." But what about Jon's feelings for the priestess? "He’s incredibly intrigued by her. I find it endlessly funny that he really fancies redheads. One dies, and another comes along, and he’s all, 'Hello!' There’s mutual interest between them that we see right from the get-go. There’s definitely a future there this season, with him and her."
That future will apparently translate into at least one steamy scene sure to heat up the action at the frozen Wall: "She tries to seduce him. That’s her power play. It’s going to be an interesting battle!" I suppose the key word here is "tries," but is it just me or does the usually taciturn Harington sound uncharacteristically excited about this turn of events for his character?
It will be interesting to see if Melisandre's interest in Jon will shake her loyalty to Stannis. In the books, she has thus far always been true to the man she believes to be Azor Ahai born again. But it would make for better onscreen drama to see the character doubt herself a bit more — especially if Benioff & Weiss are truly committed to departing from the novels at this point. Will Melisandre abandon Stannis and throw her weight behind Jon? Or will she merely remain wary of the Lord Commander for now, and stick to her Baratheon guns?
Stannis and Jon already have a strained relationship after the latter turned down the former's offer to become Lord of Winterfell at the end of A Storm Of Swords. Could Melisandre's fascination with the bastard drive a further wedge between the two headstrong men? All I can say now is, no matter what happens in this odd threesome, Jon better keep an eye on the Red Woman, given her propensity for burning people alive and whatnot.
One last interesting tidbit from the interview: At one point, Harington refers to Sansa and Arya as Jon's "stepsisters." Was this just a slip of the tongue, and the actor meant to say "half-sisters"? Or did Harington just inadvertently reveal what many fans have long suspected? Namely, that Ned Stark isn't Jon's real father — but rather, Jon is the secret child of Ned's sister Lyanna and Rhaegar Targaryen. (A theory known to many as "R+L=J.")
Images: Helen Sloan/HBO (3); wifflegif.com
