Fans of Game of Thrones, HBO's high fantasy epic series, are eagerly awaiting Season 5, which will premiere on April 12, 2015. We know the release date, and we'll provide some spoilers with a preview of what viewers can expect in the kingdom of Westros this year.
According to Realty Today, John Bradley, who portrays Samwell Tarly on the show, is quoted in saying this about Season 5: "The quandary going into Season 5, if anything, is that we know what people like. We know what people expect. So, we know that we are going to have to keep them interested in what they like, but find ways of surprising them still." Samwell Tarly ended Season 4 on a "relative high", so it will be interesting to see what Season 5 has in store for him.
International Business Times reports that Kevan Lannister (Ian Gelder) will be returning to the show, in order to reprise his role in King's Landing. It actually makes a lot of sense for Devan Lannister to return, because like The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones follows some very specific already written source material from the Song of Fire and Ice series by George R.R. Martin.
In the books, Lannister takes on the role of the Regent of the Kingdom, after Cersei Lannister (Lena Headley) had a plan to frame Margaery Tyrell (Natalie Dormer). Kevan Lannister is also supposed to die at the hands of Lord Varys (Conleth Hill), as the author Martin is infamous for killing off his characters. Assuming that the TV series does not deviate from the books on this storyline, it is unknown if Kevan Lannister will die in this season or the next.
Game of Thrones Season 5 is "an epic in every sense of the word" according to the Latin Times. It is going to be shot in 240 days at more than five countries, featuring 150 sets, more than 150 cast members, 1,000 crew members, and 5,000 extras. A scene filmed at the Alcazar of Seville castle in Spain is going to be the Water Gardens of Dorne, where Cersei will meet the High Sparrow (Jonathan Pryce).
The crew also spent 12 days to create a scene in an old bull ring in the town of Osuna, Spain. The scene is where Daenerys marries Hizdahr zo Loraq.
There is another scene that has been leaked which shows Jorah Mormont (Iain Glen) is fighting, and possibly getting himself killed.
The books have a well-known scene with Cersei's "walk of shame" where she is naked. The scene caused a lot of trouble as it was filmed at a church in Dubrovnik, Croatia. Apparently, the church and the nation refused to allow Lena Headley to bare herself on scared grounds. Game of Thrones is famous for showing a lot of nudity, making it pretty controversial.
Another controversy always surrounding the show is that its story isn't really quite done yet. According to Mashable, HBO intends to run seven seasons of the show, but its source material only has 5 books. Unfortunately, the sixth book in the Song of Ice and Fire series won't come out until after 2015. This could create problems as the series will eventually overtake the books, something which, as far as my knowledge is concerned, has ever happened in the world of page-to-screen adaptations.
Whatever the case, Game of Thrones Season 5 begins on April 12, 2015, so be sure to catch it if you are interested in the world of Westros and the battle of the seven kingdoms over the Iron Throne.
