Westeros is getting bigger.
HBO’s Game of Thrones is expanding its production for season 2. You’ll recall the first season was shot in Belfast, Northern Ireland and Malta. The second season will continue to be based in Belfast, but the cast and crew are also going to Croatia and Iceland.
Croatia will serve for some of the Southern scenes, including most of the parts where Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) is trying to raise an army. Iceland will be used for scenes “beyond the wall” as Jon Snow (Kit Harington) and his Nights Watch brethren explore the North. Needless to say, a TV show shooting on location in three countries is extremely rare — especially with CGI backgrounds becoming increasingly popular.
For those who missed the season 2 cast updates, here’s who will play Craster, Bolton, and Gilly. Here’s the assassin Jaqen, Theon’s fierce sister, Stannis and Melisandre and Davos; here’s who’s cast for Brienne and here’s Margaery Tyrell. Check out my Game of Thrones season one recaps here.
Read more:
‘Game of Thrones’ casts Craster, Bolton, Gilly
‘Game of Thrones’ cast assassin Jaqen
More ‘Game of Thrones’ on EW
Iceland makes perfect sense. Croatia for the south seems fine as well. I wonder where the red waste will be filmed or is it just all CGI?
I FINALLY know what the RW means!! GRRM should bring the desert wasteland scenes to New Mexico, get your tax incentives while we still have them!
“I FINALLY know what the RW means!!”
You know nothing, Chanandler Bong.
Oh but I do, those were two different thoughts.
DUH.
Classic.
Nicely done.
Oh, if only that was what RW stood for…
Haha yeah sorry if I mislead. RW does not mean Red Waste.
No misleading here. I was so excited about knowing about RW that maybe I confused some peeps. I *know* what RW means since I’m 100 pages away from the end of Book 3. I was just throwing out the NM thing since GRRM lives in Santa Fe.
Hahaha, unfortunately if you remain spoiler-free, you won’t know what RW means until season three.
Winter is coming.
This series and the locations are a massive undertaking….and i love every bit of it. I just hope it doenst get TOO expensive to produce…ie (rome)
Love this show and I love how they go all out to give the fans an authentic back drop for this incredible story. I will watch game of thrones until the end!
Really looking forward to the next season. Can’t wait to see Brienne, Stannis and Melisandre. I’m hoping that we get information about who they cast for the Reeds soon. I’m worried that they cut them.
Almost forgot about the reeds. I can’t see any possible way they could be cut from the story
On the website Winteriscoming.net,theres been speculation that the Reeds might be merged into one character.
*MILD SPOILER* I couldn’t imagine them doing that when the Reeds are still active players in the books. I don’t think they’d risk that when it’s not that hard to just cast two instead.
beware of the butterfly effect
I read book 1 & 2 and stopped they killed way too many people ala ‘Ned’ in HBO’s season one and if this is the trend then this is not the show for me. Is like 24 everybody can die but not the leads but this series kill them too! I just went to Wikipeadia and read how it all ends. Still look forward to the HBO series visually is just stunning even if the story is a downer.
“How it all ends”? The story is far from over.
I’m sure Oprah’s book club has plenty of books for you that are not downers
There are 2 characters who are “safe” (although they both “die”). Hint: fire & ice.
Tyrion and Charles, next time please put a *spoil alert* before spoiling end of book 5 material…
seriously, i will slaughter tyrion for ruining the end of book 5. i was 90% through. may he burn in all 7 hells.
I am trying to remember who the hell died in book 2 and cant find anyone important…
* major spoil * : there is a trap at the end, but they are not really dead
I like that they’re going to all of these different locations for filming, but my worry is that every dollar spent on filming in more locations is one dollar less that can be allocated toward “Blackwater”
I don’t have any sort of link but I THOUGHT I read somewhere they were going to do it justice because of missing the battles in season 1. I wonder if I just dreamed that…?
The fan in me is thrilled to hear this, it will look great. But, knowing HBO’s track record, the other part of me is thinking, “Crap! The budget is getting too big!”
They need to shoot in more countries in order to have enough space to fit all these characters.
I just finished Book 2, and I’m very curious to see how they pull off Blackwater.
thanks for the spoilers douchebags
I wonder who will play Ygritte !?!
* mild spoil * : Dany is not “suppose” to rise an army in book 2. they are doing book 3 material for her now? Note that it is confirmed that Jaime book 3 material is going to be in S2.
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