Sean Bean possibly cast as Ned

[Quiet Wolf]

Bean's currently finishing up on filming Black Death, and has a bit of Neddish vibe to him in that role, for example. And just so.

Whoa!...almost the seven who faces three in the first picture. I wonder who is the frogeater

[Rimmer]

I get more of a Boromir vibe from thos pictures. I hope they would be able to make him look different enough, even if he has to lose the beard of the hair.

[fitheach]

I wonder if this story from a few days back is affecting the announcement.

Could be HBO wants to wait until this blows over before bringing Sean Bean up in the news again.

Hmmm :o

Hmmmm, not very Ned like. People in England watching GoT might have a hard time swallowing him as a standup family guy, from what they know if his personal life. He needs to put a cap on his Irish temper.

Although, this could totally be blown out of proportion by the tabloids...

But he's an actor, his job is to make people see Ned- not Sean Bean. Lets hope he can do it, if he has indeed been cast.

[Ran]

Bean would probably pop you one for suggesting he's Irish. ;)

The rows with his wife seem to not be unheard of. I doubt they're having much of an impact on his popularity or perceived persona.

[Gabriele]

IAnd even though he's 50 (he's really 50? wow), in GRRM's world, I always imagined that a 30-40 year old person would look more like a 40-50 year old in the modern world. Basically just adding an extra 10-15 years in appearance to everyone's age, say starting from 25 or so.

Exactly. Plus kids had to grow up a lot faster, and if HBO makes them a bit older - and I think they will because else they'd run into trouble with some scenes - an older Ned would fit.

[williamjm]

Hmmmm, not very Ned like. People in England watching GoT might have a hard time swallowing him as a standup family guy, from what they know if his personal life. He needs to put a cap on his Irish temper.

Although, this could totally be blown out of proportion by the tabloids...

I wouldn't pay any more attention to a story in the Mirror than I would the Daily Mail, they're quite capable of blowing things out of proportion so I can't find them trustworthy. I doubt enough people know about the incident to really make much of a difference to the viewer experience, unless it has been more widely reported than I've noticed.

[daimonion]

I wouldn't pay any more attention to a story in the Mirror than I would the Daily Mail, they're quite capable of blowing things out of proportion so I can't find them trustworthy. I doubt enough people know about the incident to really make much of a difference to the viewer experience, unless it has been more widely reported than I've noticed.

Yeah.

So they had a (really) loud argument - big deal... Noone was arrested and noone was hurt.

[Gabriele]

Yeah.

So they had a (really) loud argument - big deal... Noone was arrested and noone was hurt.

Yeah. Add to that some attention seeking neighbour who wanted to see her face in the news, and you got it.

[Knight of the Teabags]

Bean would probably pop you one for suggesting he's Irish. ;)

Didn't he try in that "Patriot Games"(both popping people and being Irish)? Not his most convincing performance really, I was dubious on his accent and besides Sean Bean simply looks too Anglo-Saxon to be Irish - not pale enough.

Of course that's one thing that is highly likely should Sean Bean be cast as Ned and that's Ned will sound like he's from Yorkshire(Sheffield specifically).

[howland_reed]

This is a really ingenious and prudent move by the producers.

By casting a well-known actor for the "lead" role, not only do they draw in people who haven't read the books, but they only need him to commit to the show for one season.

Sean Bean isn't how I pictured Ned, but at least we know he's not an actor to butcher one of the most important characters in AGoT.

[fitheach]

Didn't he try in that "Patriot Games"(both popping people and being Irish)? Not his most convincing performance really, I was dubious on his accent and besides Sean Bean simply looks too Anglo-Saxon to be Irish - not pale enough.

Of course that's one thing that is highly likely should Sean Bean be cast as Ned and that's Ned will sound like he's from Yorkshire(Sheffield specifically).

I always thought he was English but of Irish decent... And the not pale enough? I lived in Ireland and was definitly paler than alot of the Irish I met there- in fact some where downright olive toned. I do like that he's from Yorkshire too, since I imagined Winterfell being in a region similar to Yorkshire.

[Werthead]

Sean Bean has a mixed approach to accents: not great as an Irishman in Patriot Games, surprisingly good as a clipped upper-class English accent in GoldenEye and acceptable as a sort of middle-of-the-road neutral English accent in Lord of the Rings. My only concern about him going for the middle-of-the-road one is that it will be something else that will remind people (a bit too much?) of Boromir.

The WiC discussion has turned onto the subject of typecasting, which I can see the argument for. It is a very traditional 'Sean Bean role'. However, I think typecasting is much more of a concern for him as an actor than for the audience. In this case the typecasting means experience of characters not too dissimilar, so we know he can handle the role. I think the fact that Ned has children and complex relationships with them, with his wife, with Jon, with Robert, with his bannermen and so on is more than enough to differentiate him from his role as Boromir (who's a bit more of a loner despite his rank) and Sharpe (who is more of a purely military man albeit with an eye for the ladies).

There other actors they could have gone with. I was actually keen on seeing James Purefoy in the role since his range and talent is impressive and more than just Mark Antony in Rome, and he's slightly more of a physical match with Ned. However, I suspected HBO wouldn't want too many big actors from that show crossing over with this (although I suspect given how many recognisable British actors worked on Rome some crossover of talent will be unavoidable).

Sean Bean is a pretty canny casting choice and I'm pretty happy with it (assuming it's true etc etc caveat caveat). At the end of the day, we know he can do it well. I'd be far more 'worried' about the likely-inexperienced actors they're going to be using for Jon and Dany, and even then I have a lot of faith in Tom McCarthy's ability to draw out very impressive performances from his actors, based on The Station Agent (which reminds me that I still need to check out The Visitor).

[TheEvilKing]

Didn't he try in that "Patriot Games"(both popping people and being Irish)? Not his most convincing performance really, I was dubious on his accent and besides Sean Bean simply looks too Anglo-Saxon to be Irish - not pale enough.

Of course that's one thing that is highly likely should Sean Bean be cast as Ned and that's Ned will sound like he's from Yorkshire(Sheffield specifically).

I'm from Yorkshire and live in Australia, and most people's first guess at my accent is Irish. Same deal with a friend who is also from Yorkshire.

I think a lot of people who have never been to England don't realise that everyone there doesn't speak in a Southern accent.

[Commodore]

Bean is very convincing as a leader of men, I'm a big fan of him in the Sharpe series.

[About Yea High]

I think anyone who avoids Game of Thrones because Sean Bean's Ned Stark reminds them of Sean Bean's Boromir is not the sort who would get into the series in the first place, much less truly understand it. George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire takes "fantasy" convention and often turns it on its head. The primary characters aren't safe. Innocence is not always good to have. Wounds can actually fester. It's so real it sometimes makes us afraid to turn the page.

Don't let the chain-mail hauberk fool you. Ned Stark of Winterfell is nothing like Boromir of Gondor. Boromir is emotional, prone to acts of desperation, willing to forsake personal honor for the glory (and survival) of his people. Despite the noble air he at first emits, Boromir soon falls apart. He blubbers, he spits, his eyes dart to and fro nervously. His self-loathing is palpable. We're watching him crumble, and then we watch him at the last moment vindicate himself in one of the greatest death scenes ever filmed. Sean Bean played him brilliantly.

Ned Stark is none of that. You won't see shifting eyes - only a steady gaze. You won't see self-loathing - only flashes of self-doubt, and only toward the end, as everything starts to go to shit. Ned Stark does not crumble - everything around him does. When he pats a head, it won't be in order to try and cajole a hobbit out of a piece of jewelry - it will be fondly, to his son, or with love for his daughter.

And sadly, Ned Stark is not willing to do anything more to impede his personal honor - even at the risk of his family, the cost of his life, and the cost of the lives of those who serve him. I have a feeling Ned did that once already when he lied about fathering Jon. I personally think that was the last one.

This is a role Sean Bean has never played. And judging from his track record, I have little doubt he will embody it.

[Silverstar]

I'd actually be surprised if many non-fantasy, non-LotR fans even know that Sean Bean was in the Lord of the Rings. It wasn't like his face was splashed across all the posters in the same way Elijah Wood or Viggo Mortensen's was. Which means that I can't see the comparison being made by the kind of people who might not automatically watch AGOT anyway.

[The Pita]

I don't know. Sean Bean has a very recognizable face and LotR was a very successful movie. Most people will recognize him, especially in a fantasy series.

[Andhaira]

Fantastic news. He fits my image of Ned Stark almost to a tee.

Lets hope it is indeed true, which I am quite sure it could be.

[Silverstar]

I don't know. Sean Bean has a very recognizable face and LotR was a very successful movie. Most people will recognize him, especially in a fantasy series.

He might be recognisible, and LotR might have been successful, but I can pretty much guarantee you that most of my non-fantasy loving friends, for example, would have no real idea that he was in it, because they didn't watch it. They might know Elijah Wood was, and Viggo Mortensen, and Ian McKellen, but the rest of the cast? Doubt it.

[Padraig]

And sadly, Ned Stark is not willing to do anything more to impede his personal honor - even at the risk of his family, the cost of his life, and the cost of the lives of those who serve him.

The ironic thing being he actually did put his family ahead of his personal honour. He lied about his attempted seizure of power to save his children. Ned is more nuanced than people sometimes realise.