Game Of Thrones Showrunners 'Joke' Brienne-Tormund Shipping Means One Will Die
We all know she belongs with Jaime anyway.
Game of Thrones showrunners have some bad news for anyone longing to see Brienne of Tarth and Tormund Giantsbane have a happy ending.
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Dan Weiss and David Benioff touched on the subject of the surprising 'romance', and what it means for their future:
"t inspires us because we need to kill one of them now because there can’t be a happy ending or any romantic connection on the show. But we’re not going to tell you which one."
That was, of course, a joke - or is it? - but they did also reveal that there was never any planned coupling for the pair, and that it's mostly happened by chance due to the talent of the actors involved, and a rabid fanbase. Benioff said:
"That scene last season when Tormund was eating and lasciviously staring at Brienne was one of our favourites. Usually, when we really love something there are a few other people who like it as well.
It’s great because there was no dialogue written for that, or major stage direction, there was just a line like, 'He stares at Brienne because he’s never seen a woman like that before.' And then we let the actors do what they do."
The second, and more famous shot, with Tormund giving the eye to Brienne and her looking very uneasy, wasn't planned either, Weiss explains:
"There was the episode where they’re all leaving Castle Black together and there’s a shot — it wasn’t scripted at all — of two of them on horseback and she looks at him and he smiles at her.
It’s not something you could ever write. It’s just this moment where this guy is creeping out on her and he smiles in a way that makes her very uncomfortable and she just looks away. I saw it 150 times and every time it made me laugh; it’s purely the two of them."
So it doesn't necessarily mean one of them will die - although by the looks of things, Tormund's in a fair bit of danger this year anyway - but don't be expecting them to get together either. It'll no doubt upset a lot of people, but then Brienne's true love is Jaime Lannister. Obviously.
In the same EW interview, the pair also touch on the challenges faced filming the upcoming season, Ed Sheeran's cameo, and the fact that, as long teased, the Great War is here.