The Best Casting and Worst Casting (in your opinion).

[Queenswood Sisterhood]

You understand actors age right?

I mean seriously I thought Bran and Arya were perfect in season 1. Young kids grow

Of course they do. I think Bran is perfect, but I've never really liked Arya, even though she's never bothered me as much as Jon Snow. There's no excusing the age there, he was a man already in the first series.

[CaulShivers]

I agree with you, it's not the whole world that they have aged up the characters a little bit, the actors that play for example Joffrey, Bran, Arya, Sansa could pass as two years older than their book counterparts, at least in the first season. Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen, Robb Stark, Margaery Tyrell etc. however look too old, but the last two are at least good actors and Emilia Clarke fits the description of Dany but Kit Harington neither has the looks or the acting ability for Jon.

[Ingelheim]

I'm still wondering why people think Harington was miscast when the main problem is his script. Not even Charles Dance could make a good performance with the quality of Jon Snow's lines.

He's been pretty good in season 4. He nailed it in 4x01.

[Queenswood Sisterhood]

I'm still wondering why people think Harington was miscast when the main problem is his script. Not even Charles Dance could make a good performance with the quality of Jon Snow's lines.

He's been pretty good in season 4. He nailed it in 4x01.

Maybe you're right. But he still just seems to have one facial expression (moody/pained with or without a slightly open mouth). Or maybe he's a good actor and I'm a bit harsh because HE'S JUST NOT JON SNOW. Poor dude. Sorry.

I still can't see why they had to age almost all the actors though. I understand it's probably because a lot of the established actors are older, but come on, Missandei...?

Got some more good ones though: Sam and Osha are just as I pictured them. And the new Daario. Controversial I know, but I think he seems to have captured him pretty well.

But ser Jorah is pretty badly cast as well.

[Annara Snow]

Only the old Daario. I didn't buy his semi-surfer dude with braids outlook. He was kinda bland.

Missandei is okay but I still don't get why they aged her up of all the characters-

In some cases (Dany) because a lot of people wouldn't be ready to watch a story about a 13-year old (even if played by an older actress) having her season 1 storyline.

Mostly, however, it was in order to not have to hire so many child actors. It's hard to find very young actors with acting abilities for such large roles (I'm talking about 7-year old Bran, 9-year old Arya etc. not to mention 4-year old Rickon - it's a small role, but getting a 4-year old who can act even that would be really hard) and having to observe child labor laws. They were able to cast 20-something actors in the roles of 17-year olds (it's done all the time on TV and in movies) but having them playing 14-year olds would have stretched credibility too much.

[Velociraptor]

To me the quality of the casting is signified when the image of the character from the show overwrites the one I had been picturing when reading the books- or aligns so perfectly with it, there's no need to overwrite anything at all. That said, here are my examples:

Tywin. Never am I able to read a chapter featuring Tywin without picturing him as anyone else but Charles Dance, his description be damned. He's done all I could ask from an actor in the role and more.

The Hound. This is one of the examples where there's little need to overwrite anything. Rory McCann nailed the character in looks, personality and everything else, down to the raspy tone of his voice, as described by Sansa.

Varys. There is little to be said, again, no adjustments were needed for me to adopt him as THE Varys.

Melisandre. God her actress is spot on in the role in every way.

Walder Frey. A shame he makes so few appearances because the actor is absolutely brilliant for the role. I could say the same about Maester Aemon. Both old timers absolutely nail their characters from the books.

Brynden Tully. The reason I put him on the list is because, to me, he went so well with the Tully characters already in the show, particularly Catelyn. At the Red Wedding I looked at the two seated beside each other and I was like "yup, those two are definitely relatives". A stark contrast to Edmure, of whom I can say exactly the opposite.

Tormund Giantsbane. I've seen a lot of posts against him in this thread, but personally I thought the cast was spot on. The only thing that seems to be off about him, for me, is the hair color, otherwise, that is how I picture him now when reading.

S1 Mountain. That guy was THE Mountain. S2 was a disappointment, but he was barely there. Here's hoping the S3 cast can live up to the role.

Hodor. Granted, it seems like a simple enough role, if you have the looks, but if there could be a better portrayal of the character, I can't picture it.

And there are many, many more. But these are the ones that came to my mind the quickest.

A weird example for me is Littlefinger. Aidan Gillen's look is spot on, and so was his acting in the first season at least. In the later seasons, however, he seems... off. Nevertheless, his looks are exactly how I picture Littlefinger now.

As for the not-so-good ones:

Edmure Tully. Not fond of him at all. For me he doesn't look the part even one bit, doesn't sound the part and doesn't act the part.

Asha (Yara) Greyjoy. I'm gonna be cruely blunt and say that she's plainly not attractive enough. I don't picture her as Asha at all.

Ygritte. Opposite issue to Yara. She's way too beautiful. The actress nails the personality and sure sounds like a wildling, but she lacks the wild look. For me, at least. She strongly contrasts with almost every other wildling on screen.

Meera Reed. Granted, I never really cared for her, be it books or show, but that is not how I picture her. At all.

Renly Baratheon. When reading the books, show Renly's image never comes up. He just felt plain goddamn wrong in the first season, however, I do have to give props to his 2nd season performance- he had almost nailed Renly there. Almost.

Daario Naharis. Either one. None of them seem even remotely similar to book Daario. They might as well have given the character a different name altogether.

And the worst for me is Shae. The actress is just a terrible actress in my opinion and that's that. To me her performance stands out from the rest, it feels out of place. She makes me cringe nearly in every scene of hers.

[WakeTheDragon]

Honestly the new Daario is probably the worse the only one comparable is mance.

[regie027]

Yeah, it's hard to imagine Asha Greyjoy, a hardened commander of killers and raiders, as a sex goddess in a ringmail bikini - although it seems many people did imagine her that way. :lol:

My own mental image of Asha, when reading her chapters in the books, wasn't too far from Gemma Whelan's onscreen version. Battle-scarred, muscled in a lean and wiry guerrilla-soldier way, wears male armor, a hard and weatherbeaten face. No supermodel looks - maybe attractive in an unconventional "ugly-sexy" way, but definitely not pretty.

I agree. Asha/Yara needed someone who could convey what Michelle Rodriguez does. Not the most beautiful girl in the room but just one look and you can tell she's a badass.

Aside from that, I think casting has been mostly good and the fact that we get Gwendoline as Brienne is a treat of its own.

[Red Tiger]

Thoros of Myr *Claps*

[Waxfoot]

I genuinely think the casting directors have done an incredible job casting this huge array of characters. I would feel it harsh to single any out, except Charles Dance is so brilliant that my fingers would not let me write this post without saying his name.

Honourable mention too for Pedro Pascal, who puts his own spin on my favourite character Oberyn, but retains the spirit of the Red Viper with impressive nuanced performance.

I used to get annoyed by Emilia Clarke, Richard Madden, and Kit Harington. They are the most wooden... But actually, Emilia really has the look, and in certain scenes she is excellent. Watching back, I also thought Richard Madden was far stronger as Robb than I had first thought. Grew into the role.

I find Kit Harington patchy. Sometimes he plays well off other actors (John Bradley as Samwell is truly excellent), but sometimes he falls into 2D leading man style performance. I love Jon Snow in the books so I want Kit to keep developing, which he clearly is.

Finally, most confusing casting for me is Aiden Gillen as Littlefinger. Such a crucial scheming character, yet for me distracts all the time with his strange delivery and misplaced em-PHA-sis. Not necessarily a bad actor (I hear he is excellent in the Wire), but I think should've spoke in his native accent rather than concentrate on speaking in an English one. Seems to me this is what gets in the way.

Any thoughts?

[Fat Mac]

The aging up of characters doesn't bother me in the slightest. I see why it's done. I also think the less the series refers to a characters age, the better.

The best casting I think are the Lannisters. I find Charles Dance, Lena Headey, Jack Gleeson and NCJ phenomenal. In fact, I think Peter Dinklage is the weakest, because I find his accent awful (he's still a good Tyrion though).

I think Emilia Clarke plays Dany well, its just that some of her scenes are quite ridiculous (WHERE R MUH DRAGONZ?). Kit Harington I think is pretty weak.

[Ingelheim]

As I said before, with good lines, Kit can portray a quite good Jon Snow. As he's doing right now.

[BrojenReed]

^Yeah, Kit really is crushing it this season.

[Trillian]

Casting I loved the most: the amazing Tywin/Charles Dance, Tyrion, Arya, the Hound, Varys and Brienne. Jack Gleeson has also done a great job of making Joffrey properly nasty. I wasn't sure with Jaime at first, but Nickolaj Coster-Valdau has nailed every scene, including last episode, and has done justice to one of mu favourite characters. Great performances from Michelle Fairley last season. Absolutely loved Lady Olenna. Don't mind Littlefinger either, it's a peculiar casting but I think it ultimately works. Bronn and Podrick.

Casting I did not love: definitely Jon/Kit Harrington. It doesn't convince me, it might be for a lack of facial expressions, or maybe he's just not right for the role. For some reason I am not too keen on Bran's actor either. And yeah, Shae it's just a plain NOPE (the scene when she tried unsuccessfully to cry says it all).

[Follmann]

Jerome Flynn's Bronn is one of the cases where the show character is much superior to the book counterpart. I hope they keep him around for longer than in the books.

[Waxfoot]

Jerome Flynn's Bronn is one of the cases where the show character is much superior to the book counterpart. I hope they keep him around for longer than in the books.

I have a suspicion, and I hope I'm wrong, that the show will kill Bronn off. They need a reason for this character to not fight for Tyrion as his champion, and bronn's story from the books is kind of over for now. GRRM might have more planned for him though, in which case he would surely tell DAnd D either way.

Show Bronn is brilliant though, but that is even more reason why it would be weird for him to snub Tyrion

[Annara Snow]

I have a suspicion, and I hope I'm wrong, that the show will kill Bronn off. They need a reason for this character to not fight for Tyrion as his champion, and bronn's story from the books is kind of over for now. GRRM might have more planned for him though, in which case he would surely tell DAnd D either way.

Show Bronn is brilliant though, but that is even more reason why it would be weird for him to snub Tyrion

Um, what's wrong with the reason he had in the books - namely, that he didn't want the Mountain to crush him like a bug?

Show Bronn is no more unselfish, self-sacrificial and mad about Tyrion than book Bronn is.

[Waxfoot]

Um, what's wrong with the reason he had in the books - namely, that he didn't want the Mountain to crush him like a bug?

Show Bronn is no more unselfish, self-sacrificial and mad about Tyrion than book Bronn is.

I feel like they have played up Tyrion and Bronn's friendship to the point where it might jar. I think book Bronn is more volatile and even more selfish. Show Bronn is friendlier, funnier.

[Annara Snow]

I feel like they have played up Tyrion and Bronn's friendship to the point where it might jar. I think book Bronn is more volatile and even more selfish. Show Bronn is friendlier, funnier.

He's friendly and funny in the book, too, and "friends" with Tyrion, but he's the subversion of the "lovable rogue pretends that he cares about money more than about his friends but will become a real hero when push comes to shoave" trope - he actually does care about money, social climbing and, of course, his own life, more than about his friends, and will not become a self-sacrificial hero. Show Bronn is no different, just gets more screentime and more lines/funnier lines (and is played with charm by Jerome Flynn).

"If someone told you to kill a baby, would you do it without question?"

"Without question? No. I'd ask 'How much?' "

"Oh, are we friends now?"

"Of course we are. Just because I pay you for your services doesn't diminish our friendship."

"Enhances it, really."

[ovis alba]

I still somehow think he could have turned to one of the few people with even more cash than Tyrion when it comes to Shae. That would be a pretty solid reason for Tyrion not even wanting him as a champion.