New Casting Announcements

[Brude]

But that's definitely not Kit Harrington there.

Well, then whomever made that collage of head shots just made a mistake...no recasting has happened.

As for the pictures of our Arya nd Sansa, they look great. It's always interesting to see how things get cast vs. one's own mental image. I seldom if ever care that actors don't match my mental image, so long as the look they have at least makes sense in some way. Alfie Allen doesn't look at all like my mental image of Theon, but I actually really like the interpretation a lot and I think he's a good actor from what I've seen, so I'm down with it. The girl playing Arya has a much more rounded and typically "cute" face than I always imagined for her, but as I said, no problem with her look at all. She does have a great impish quality others have said, and hopefully her acting is good enough, that's the most important thing.

[TheHalfman]

I saw the bigger photo of Sophie Turner (Sansa) on Not-A-Blog and have to say I'm very impressed in the choice. She has the look (obviously needs a dye job but that's easy). Arya is good as well.

The only one that did not remotely match any mental image I had at all was Alfie Allen, but I'm not the least bit worried. As long as he can act it is good with me.

[About Yea High]

Not only their ages, but I'm curious if anyone knows whether or not they're British.

[Cyclone49]

Wow, the girl playing Arya looks pretty much exactly as I imagined her - particular in the first picture with the annoyed look she has on her face. Sophie Turner doesn't quite match my image of Sansa, but she still definitely looks more than suitable for the part.

As for the others. Iain Glen seems like perfect casting, as does the guy playing Robb. Tamzin Merchant looks pretty different to how I imagined Dany, but she's definitely attractive enough and I'm sure she'll do a fine job. Alfie Allen and NCW I was originally a bit ambivelant on (NCW in particular seemed a bit to rugged), but I've really grown to like both choices - that video Martin linked on his blog really sold me on Nikoaj.

[Ser Greguh]

I'm glad that the kids they got for Sansa and Arya look the part (and they certainly do!), but that is such a minor concern to me. If those roles play out in the series the way they play out in the books, they're going to make for some of the most challenging roles in the series. Arya in particular is going to have to make a realistic transition from charming, slightly-wild tomboy to cold-blooded, deeply-damaged killer.

In other words, I hope these two kids can act up a storm, because they're going to have to.

It will be interesting to see how much the roles of those two in particular are kept true to the books. There are different rules for dealing with child actors as opposed to adults, and it may wind up being impossible to give the kids screen time that is proportionate to their roles in the books. I anticipate that that will be a continuing challenge for the producers.

[Ninotchka]

Just to disagree a bit (I´m in the mood, sorry ;) maybe the hour -here in Spain it´s early and I haven´t sleep a lot :sleep: ), have you thought about the very description Martin does of Arya Stark in his books? He says she is a girl with long face, solemn expression and not really beautiful... this girl is lovely! :unsure:

And for the Sansa girl-lady... I don´t know :| she is beautiful, but not in the way I´ve imagine Sansa Stark, The Perfect Young Lady of Westeros :| maybe she has eyes too little, or this is the photo that does her pretty little favor :mellow:

But hey, just a little of "I´m gonna disagree ´cause this is being pretty much a I-am-really-happy thing" :smug: Just seeking the bads where there are a lot of goods :)

[brook]

I can't be sure but I don't think that anyone except Arya herself and Sansa (and sisters will say awful things to each other just because they can) ever says anything about Arya not being beautiful (or likely to be beautiful in any case).

I always got the impression that Arya's opinion of her looks was...unreliable. The closest thing we have to an outside view is Ned saying she looks like Lyanna and his surprise when her response to that was 'but she was beautiful'.

[Brude]

Just to disagree a bit (I´m in the mood, sorry ;) maybe the hour -here in Spain it´s early and I haven´t sleep a lot :sleep: ), have you thought about the very description Martin does of Arya Stark in his books? He says she is a girl with long face, solemn expression and not really beautiful... this girl is lovely! :unsure:

Well, she does look different - this girl's face is pretty round and not long, but I don't think that's a big deal. As for Arya not being beautiful, well that's only what Sansa says about her (she calls her "horseface," which Arya in her thoughts seems to take to heart). Normally she's so covered in mud or dirt and her hair is so bedraggled that people just think she's some ragamuffin boy but the minute she cleans up people tell her she's pretty. Also, she is described as looking just like a young version of Lyanna and let us not forget that Lyanna's beauty was such that it helped to cause a war that spanned all of Westeros and led to the downfall of the Targaryen kings.

Arya really should be a pretty young girl - it just might be very hard to tell most of the time.

[Padraig]

maybe she has eyes too little

:lol: Oh dear...

[Ninotchka]

:owned:

Yeah, well, english is not my strength :lol: but we understand each other, don´t we? :smug:

Lyanna was a beautiful woman, but how was she when she was nine or ten? :huh: I thought she was just like Arya, a not-so-pretty girl that later transformed in a so-beautiful woman :kiss:

[Dornish]

I'm glad that the kids they got for Sansa and Arya look the part (and they certainly do!), but that is such a minor concern to me. If those roles play out in the series the way they play out in the books, they're going to make for some of the most challenging roles in the series. Arya in particular is going to have to make a realistic transition from charming, slightly-wild tomboy to cold-blooded, deeply-damaged killer.

This is actually starting to bother me a bit. I've seen child actors in all varieties of roles in serious films but I've never seen one so young take on such a dark character. All the kids are going to witness some seriously messed up scenes but only Arya participates in the most disturbing actions. It seems a bit unsettling that we're asking a little girl to get into the mindset of someone savagely stabbing a man to death for our amusement.

[Ran]

I admit, my perception is that Arya and Lyanna were girls who were awkward and needed growing into their faces, so to speak -- ugly ducklings, one might say. The only person to ever explicitly say Arya is pretty, as I recall, is Lady Smallwood; and that might be the sort of pleasantry an older lady might tell a young girl whether it was true or not. I am sure Arya is likely to be quite pretty, even beautiful, when fully grown, but right now I think ... probably not so much.

This is neither here nor there for the actress, of course. She needs to be able to act the part. There's a certain quality to Arya that'll become increasingly important as the season wears on (*knock on wood*), not so much tomboyishness as a kind of unruly confidence. Hopefully, Ms. Williams will knock it out of the park. :)

[About Yea High]

I'm hoping they all knock it out of the park. The "name" actors will carry the first season ... but from there the baton is exchanged to the younger ones, and they'll essentially have to carry huge chunks of the series.

In all honesty, people saying this person or that person doesn't "quite fit the picture they had in their head" is fine. I'm going to take a young Maizie Williams and a Sophie Turner if they can nail the parts, no matter what they look like.

I happen to think they look great. I guess Arya could be made to look uglier.

Or they'll just throw mud onto her.

[Matarreyes]

This is actually starting to bother me a bit. I've seen child actors in all varieties of roles in serious films but I've never seen one so young take on such a dark character. All the kids are going to witness some seriously messed up scenes but only Arya participates in the most disturbing actions. It seems a bit unsettling that we're asking a little girl to get into the mindset of someone savagely stabbing a man to death for our amusement.

I am fairly certain the kids will not witness any atrocities or odd sightings on the set. It´s not like Bran actor will hang around while Jaime and Cersei actors are filming their part, to chime in afterwards ;). For instance, I am fairy sure it was not the props for dead heads Sansa was staring at while reading her scene. And that whatever that Arya will be stabbing will not even look human. And that nobody will ask her to imagine she have just gutted a living being or anything like that. I imagine those little kids will be pretty clueless as to the general story, even the storyline they are part of.

[Padraig]

Yeah, well, english is not my strength :lol: but we understand each other, don´t we? :smug:

Sorry. I wasn't actually laughing at the english used. Complaining about how big eyes were struck me as a bit ridiculous though. Do people really have such an exact picture in their heads? Slight differences in eye size would make a difference to them? I'm laughing again just thinking of it. :)

Arya could be uglier in the books. But of course, by the end of the series she may grow into somebody quite pretty (and given the Lyanna references, that is very possible). And then where would we be. :P

Far easier to focus on the tomboyish aspects (which is actually important to the story) and not worry about looks (which is not important). :)

Those cast to play Arya and Sansa might be a couple years older than their roles also. So wouldn't be too concerned at what they'll experience when filming occurs.

[Ninotchka]

You´re welcome ;)

It´s not really that I´d that picture of Sansa in my head, a big-blue-eyed little lady, but that I have pictured her as the prettiest of the young ladies of Westeros and, in my head, her face was dominated by her eyes. This girl has eyes more little that I have pictured Sansa´s eyes, but that´s just my damn imagination having fun of me :mad: .

Nevertheless, the picture of the actress has been taken in a sunny day, I think maybe her eyes are bigger that it seems. But just the same, it isn´t really important, is it? :lol:

[daimonion]

Nah.

Also i think she is easily described as beautiful. If i were 12 years younger and she was in my class at school, i would send notes to her in the classroom and whatnot...

[Black Wizard]

It´s not really that I´d that picture of Sansa in my head, a big-blue-eyed little lady, but that I have pictured her as the prettiest of the young ladies of Westeros and, in my head, her face was dominated by her eyes. This girl has eyes more little that I have pictured Sansa´s eyes, but that´s just my damn imagination having fun of me :mad: .

Slap some make-up on her then her eyes will look bigger. If that doesn't work then just use a couple of safety pins to keep her eyelids open.

My concern about Arya is that she doesn't have the "Arya Horseface" look. Her face is too round.

[The Pita]

I am fairly certain the kids will not witness any atrocities or odd sightings on the set. It´s not like Bran actor will hang around while Jaime and Cersei actors are filming their part, to chime in afterwards ;). For instance, I am fairy sure it was not the props for dead heads Sansa was staring at while reading her scene. And that whatever that Arya will be stabbing will not even look human. And that nobody will ask her to imagine she have just gutted a living being or anything like that. I imagine those little kids will be pretty clueless as to the general story, even the storyline they are part of.

I actually think Maisie will be the one stabbing and Sophie will see the heads. Bran may be a little clueless as to some of the parts of the story (Jaime and Cersei fucking), but Arya and Sansa are too important to have the actresses not know what they're doing. Also, it won't be nearly as traumatic for either of them than it would have been for cases like Dakota Fanning playing a rape victim, or if you want to go earlier, Brooke Shields in Blue Lagoon or Jodie Foster in Taxi Driver.

The actress playing Sansa is no little kid, by the way. She's 15, from what I read earlier. That's definitely old enough to look at some black shapes and pretend they're heads. By the time of most of the really bad scenes (End of ACOK and ASOS), she'll probably already be 18. And using safety pins to make someone's eyes bigger sounds really funny, thank you Black Wizard.

[Fate's Bitch]

It's hard enough to find good, natural child actors without looking for certain physical features as well. I'd rather a round-faced Arya who looks nothing like I'd imagined and who plays the role well than someone who fits the book description perfectly but struggles with her role. These are extremely tough roles to fill.

It's best not to look a gift-horse-face in the mouth.