Brienne & Tormund Almost Had *Way* More Screentime Together On 'Game Of Thrones'

While most Game of Thrones fans were excited to see Brienne of Tarth and Jaime Lannister finally take their relationship to the next level, some viewers were hoping for Tormund Giantsbane to act on his crush on the newly-minted knight. Though the pair didn't have many interactions in the final season, actors Gwendoline Christie and Kristofer Hivju recently said Game of Thrones fans shouldn't give up hope for Brienne and Tormund to work things out post-series, as they were actually supposed to spend a lot more time onscreen together in the original cut of Season 8.

In a recent interview with IndieWire, Christie explained that Brienne's decision to write Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau)'s story in the history books was a culmination of her emotional journey, and her willingness to be open and vulnerable with someone for the first time in her life. "I think writing is Brienne’s way of not only of honoring someone that she loved, but of honoring her own love — the relevance of the experience that she had with someone where she saw a different side to this human being that other people didn’t and wanting to preserve that," Christie said.

The actor continued, "She’s taking a real pride in overcoming her own feelings of pain and anger and all of the complexity, to do the right thing, to feel good about that, and then to go back to work as Commander of the Kingsguard and the Small Council to do that. She carries on." And according to Christie, Brienne's willingness to carry on in the wake of heartbreak might just open the door for another, very willing, suitor to make his move.

"Maybe [Tormund] has a chance, but she would really make him work," Christie told the outlet about the possibility of the fan favorite wildling finally getting together with the "big woman" of his dreams. "I mean, you know, she’s landed her dream job. Also, the story about the giant’s milk might take a little bit of getting over. But maybe not."

While the possibility of Brienne and Tormund getting together might seem a little absurd, considering that the Knight of Tarth seemed uninterested in him onscreen, Kristofer Hivju recently revealed that he and Christie filmed extra scenes together that were cut from the final season. "We did a lot of stuff with Tormund and Brienne that they took out, because it became too much," the actor told Digital Spy, adding that he even had a "small monologue" in one of the cut scenes.

"I think they took the right choice in the edit, but there is some fun stuff laying around," Hivju said. Clearly, there is still hope for Westeros' most unlikely couple to still get together now that the fight for the Iron Throne is officially over.

And though some Brienne fans might have been upset that her Season 8 storylines seemed to revolve around romance, in Christie's eyes, it simply shows her growth from someone who is focused only on being a knight to a fully-fleshed out character. "What I loved about Brienne’s story line this season, she not only gains some acknowledgment of her achievements, but she also manages to have a life as a human being," the actor told the New York Times. "She manages to explore her own emotions and enter a new world. She never had a sexual experience before, and she chooses that. It’s clear in the scene that it’s her choice because there is a pause and then she chooses to initiate. Her consent is very clear."

"I was pleased that we’ve seen her this way, and it was interesting to get to play that arc. She has physical strength, she has moral strength, and those two things are fantastic, but what we really want to see is a representation of a human, of a woman," she continued. "And people want to love. They want to feel love. And that can often end not the way you want it to."

Hopefully, now that Brienne has grown and evolved in so many ways — even becoming the first female knight in the Six Kingdoms — her life during the reign of King Bran is fulfilling for her in every possible way.