Daario Naharis Recast

[Mother of Mini Dragons]

I've been rewatching Season 3 and I'm glad they recast him. There's just something not right about the first actor. I do agree with the comments though about the costuming for the new Daario and that he looks "too Westorosi", white guy or no - he should at least be costumed in a way that makes him different from the men in Westeros. But I certainly have high hopes that the acting will improve greatly.

[Le Cygne]

The beard is good (we all miss Jaime's beard). And they can make the casting work, as long as they get the dynamic right. Benioff and Weiss always have to see it their way. GRRM saw it Dany's way. Dany can't take her eyes off Daario. To get that across, the scene last season should have been the reverse, Dany coming upon Daario naked. That would be a first for the show.

Dany took Daario Naharis up the steps to her bedchamber, where Irri washed his cut with vinegar and Jhiqui wrapped it in white linen. When that was done she sent her handmaids off as well. “Your clothes are stained with blood,” she told Daario. “Take them off.”

“Only if you do the same.” He kissed her...

“I wanted you from the first time that I saw you, but you were a sellsword, fickle, treacherous. You boasted that you’d had a hundred women.”

“A hundred?” Daario chuckled through his purple beard. “I lied, sweet queen. It was a thousand. But never once a dragon.”

She raised her lips to his. “What are you waiting for?”

Spoiler tagged it!

[Mr Fixit]

Benioff and Weiss always have to see it their way. GRRM saw it Dany's way.

The scene with Dany in the tub in Second Sons was great, showing her completely in control of the situation, physically and mentally. She's come a long way from her old self and she isn't afraid to show it (pun intended!) The whole thing perfectly demonstrates just how liberated, fierce, and independent Dany has become, in full command of her body and with a clear grasp of her sexuality.

Easily among the best nude scenes the show has put to screen.

ETA: And I don't quite get why you think the situation you quoted can't still happen in S4. Don't be so black&white all the time.

[joachim]

You've got to give Daario full marks for maintaining eye contact for that entire display.

[nekrohsis]

My Unsullied friend said she thought Daario was the hottest guy on the show. I sent her a photo of the new actor and she literally didn't notice it was a different guy

[Konradsmith]

^I guess his costume must be pretty sexy then.

[zaphodbrx]

What's wrong with Pedro Pascal as Oberyn Martell? He fits GRRMs description perfectly.

This is not only wrong, but it also misses the point.

You see, there are three kinds of Dornishmen. Salty ( live near sea ), Sandy ( live in desert ), Stony ( live in mountains ). The salty Dornish have the most Rhoynar blood, while stoney have the least. It's all described in Tyrion's pov in ASOS. He then goes on to observe that Oberyn is a salty Dornishman. I think that is evidence enough to say that Oberyn is fairly tanned/brown and the guy they cast doesn't fit that.

The point about the Rhoynar ethnicity is important. It explains why some Dornish are brown skinned/dark ( eg. Quentyn's pov chapters ), and the Rhoynar invasion provides the backdrop for Dornish history under Martell rule. There is also even more stuff if you dig deep, like Orphans of the Greenblood and their emotional connection to the river which comes from Rhoynar history.

The Rhoynar thing is completely excised from the show. The king on the iron throne has the title as 'King of the Andals and First Men', rather than in the books 'King of the Andals, Rhoynar and First Men', although the Rhoynar are arguably as important to Dorne as the First Men are to the North. Cause having them would mean showing brown people in westeros, which seems to be a huge no-no in the small, racist minds of D&D.

On the other hand there seems to be no trouble in showing white people in Essos, without any explanation of what they are doing there, such as the Spice King of Quarth, etc.. Of course in the books you have the 'blood of old valyria' and all that, but that's a book explanation, not a show one. And even then, Kraznys ( last season ), and Hizdahr ( this season ) are Ghiscari, NOT valyrians. but I guess D&D are incapable of understanding such basic things. Their mindset seems to be, have white people playing all the important roles -even in Essos- and only cast non-white folks as 3rd tier unimportant characters such as Grey Worm/Missandei/extras that conform to slave/servant/savage stereotypes. If you think this is exaggeration, go watch 'Mhysa' again.

They had three potentially good roles for non-white folks this season and they missed all of them. And yes, Daario is VERY important on the show. He isn't only not the character from the book, but he is also merged with Brown ben plumm ( who is brown, and doesn't exist in the show ) and Strong Belwas ( a Meereneese ) And of course, he is a white guy that looks exactly like a Westerosi!. It seems like, as D&D get their hands on more and more of the production aspects of the show, anomalies like casting Xaro as a black guy won't happen again. If they have an important Dothraki character , or cast Alleras , Moquorro, etc, they will probably have a white guy doing those roles as well, cause its natural for them.

Edit: Even apart from the skin color thing I don't like the guy they cast for Oberyn. He looks too much like Littlefinger, and not at all like the Red Viper.

[Le Cygne]

Daario is not a minor character, though, in the sense one of the stars of the show is in love with him. He is not merging territory, he has a certain look about him the author chose, and he was described as pale with blue eyes. This actor has been signed on to the main cast for season 5, too. Most of the other important characters have been cast similarly to the books.

I am all for diversity, but I want Daario to look like Daario.

[Mr Fixit]

You see, there are three kinds of Dornishmen. Salty ( live near sea ), Sandy ( live in desert ), Stony ( live in mountains ). The salty Dornish have the most Rhoynar blood, while stoney have the least. It's all described in Tyrion's pov in ASOS. He then goes on to observe that Oberyn is a salty Dornishman. I think that is evidence enough to say that Oberyn is fairly tanned/brown and the guy they cast doesn't fit that.

Not entirely sure what you're getting at. Oberyn is a salty Dornishman, who probably have a Mediterranean look - something along the lines of Spanish, Italian, etc. Then there's this thing written by George Martin himself on this topic:

As for the Dornishmen, well, though by and large I reject one to one analogies, I've always pictured the "salty Dornish" as being more Mediterranean than African in appearance; Greek, Spanish, Italian, Portugese, etc. Dark hair and eyes, olive skin. Pedro Pascal is Chilean.

Seems to me Pedro Pascal fits just about right.

[Rhaenys_Targaryen]

Not entirely sure what you're getting at. Oberyn is a salty Dornishman, who probably have a Mediterranean look - something along the lines of Spanish, Italian, etc. Then there's this thing written by George Martin himself on this topic:

As for the Dornishmen, well, though by and large I reject one to one analogies, I've always pictured the "salty Dornish" as being more Mediterranean than African in appearance; Greek, Spanish, Italian, Portugese, etc. Dark hair and eyes, olive skin. Pedro Pascal is Chilean.

Seems to me Pedro Pascal fits just about right.

Yes! This. :D

[Annara Snow]

This is not only wrong, but it also misses the point.

You see, there are three kinds of Dornishmen. Salty ( live near sea ), Sandy ( live in desert ), Stony ( live in mountains ). The salty Dornish have the most Rhoynar blood, while stoney have the least. It's all described in Tyrion's pov in ASOS. He then goes on to observe that Oberyn is a salty Dornishman. I think that is evidence enough to say that Oberyn is fairly tanned/brown and the guy they cast doesn't fit that.

The point about the Rhoynar ethnicity is important. It explains why some Dornish are brown skinned/dark ( eg. Quentyn's pov chapters ), and the Rhoynar invasion provides the backdrop for Dornish history under Martell rule. There is also even more stuff if you dig deep, like Orphans of the Greenblood and their emotional connection to the river which comes from Rhoynar history.

The Rhoynar thing is completely excised from the show. The king on the iron throne has the title as 'King of the Andals and First Men', rather than in the books 'King of the Andals, Rhoynar and First Men', although the Rhoynar are arguably as important to Dorne as the First Men are to the North. Cause having them would mean showing brown people in westeros, which seems to be a huge no-no in the small, racist minds of D&D.

On the other hand there seems to be no trouble in showing white people in Essos, without any explanation of what they are doing there, such as the Spice King of Quarth, etc.. Of course in the books you have the 'blood of old valyria' and all that, but that's a book explanation, not a show one. And even then, Kraznys ( last season ), and Hizdahr ( this season ) are Ghiscari, NOT valyrians. but I guess D&D are incapable of understanding such basic things. Their mindset seems to be, have white people playing all the important roles -even in Essos- and only cast non-white folks as 3rd tier unimportant characters such as Grey Worm/Missandei/extras that conform to slave/servant/savage stereotypes. If you think this is exaggeration, go watch 'Mhysa' again.

You're saying Joel Fry is white? :huh:

[darksellsword]

I'm almost certain that they will have to recast Bran soon he looks ridiculously tall in that cart He must be the same height

as Jon snow at this point same with Arya riding around on stranger with her long legs dangling down , in season 3 she

was sitting on the horses neck and all i could concentrate on was how uncomfortable the horse seemed under her weight

looked very strange. What will they do in two or three years time when they look twenty and are playing the part of kids.

[~DarkHorse~]

I'm almost certain that they will have to recast Bran soon he looks ridiculously tall in that cart He must be the same height

as Jon snow at this point same with Arya riding around on stranger with her long legs dangling down , in season 3 she

was sitting on the horses neck and all i could concentrate on was how uncomfortable the horse seemed under her weight

looked very strange. What will they do in two or three years time when they look twenty and are playing the part of kids.

The characters (and actors) are gong through puberty in which people grow and mature. The show hasn't even highlighted any of the characters with a specific age so it makes no difference. Also, the actress playing Maegary (Natalie Dormer) is 32 and in the books Maegary is only 15 and it doesn't matter.

Lots of mature actors and actresses still play the part of kids and teens in movies and films.

Maisie (Arya) is still 16 and Issac (Bran) is only 14 while the actor who plays Joffrey (Jack Gleeson) is 21 and he still fits the part of a teenage(brat) King.

It really doesn't matter and there is no way they would recast an actor who plays a main character, is recognisable and loved by the fans because they are growing too tall.

[Juan_Snow]

I'm almost certain that they will have to recast Bran soon he looks ridiculously tall in that cart He must be the same height

as Jon snow at this point same with Arya riding around on stranger with her long legs dangling down , in season 3 she

was sitting on the horses neck and all i could concentrate on was how uncomfortable the horse seemed under her weight

looked very strange. What will they do in two or three years time when they look twenty and are playing the part of kids.

I actually don't think they will have to. Ned says Bran is 10 in season 1, so that would put him at 13 now using the timeline from the novels. There's no reason they can't advance time a little further in the show. It certainly solves the problem of having to put in a 5 year gap like GRRM originally wanted to.

[Annara Snow]

I'm almost certain that they will have to recast Bran soon he looks ridiculously tall in that cart He must be the same height

as Jon snow at this point same with Arya riding around on stranger with her long legs dangling down , in season 3 she

was sitting on the horses neck and all i could concentrate on was how uncomfortable the horse seemed under her weight

looked very strange. What will they do in two or three years time when they look twenty and are playing the part of kids.

What about Richard Madden, Kit Harington, Emilia Clarke and Joe Dempsie, who were in their mid-20s to begin with, playing the parts of kids? They did age up their characters, but not that much - Robb, Jon and Dany were supposed to be 17 in season 1, Gendry should be little younger probably.

I actually don't think they will have to. Ned says Bran is 10 in season 1, so that would put him at 13 now using the timeline from the novels. There's no reason they can't advance time a little further in the show. It certainly solves the problem of having to put in a 5 year gap like GRRM originally wanted to.

He can't be 13 yet. Less than 2 years have passed since the pilot. Sansa was supposed to be 13 at the beginning and she was still 14 when she married Tyrion, she's probably recently turned 15. Arya is 13/14, Bran should be 12.

[Le Cygne]

I actually don't think they will have to. Ned says Bran is 10 in season 1, so that would put him at 13 now using the timeline from the novels. There's no reason they can't advance time a little further in the show. It certainly solves the problem of having to put in a 5 year gap like GRRM originally wanted to.

Agreed, just age them up. I'm fine with a teenage Bran. If they'd just stop calling out their ages on the show, that would help loads. It really strains credibility. They called out Tommen as 8 in season 1, and the new actor is 16, so more than 2 years has passed for him, for sure. Ease the gap into the story, and that adjusts for this:

"You were a child or you were an adult. And the onset of sexual maturity meant you were an adult. So I reflected that in the books."

http://shelf-life.ew.com/2011/07/12/george-martin-talks-a-dance-with-dragons/

[Annara Snow]

Agreed, just age them up. I'm fine with a teenage Bran. If they'd just stop calling out their ages on the show, that would help loads. It really strains credibility. They called out Tommen as 8 in season 1, and the new actor is 16, so more than 2 years has passed for him, for sure. Ease the gap into the story, and that adjusts for this:

http://shelf-life.ew.com/2011/07/12/george-martin-talks-a-dance-with-dragons/

They established that Sansa was still 14 during her wedding to Tyrion, so, no. It still hasn't been two years.

Bran is 12, since he can't be older or the same age as Arya. And it's believable enough, some boys enter puberty a bit earlier than others and he can be going through adolescence at 12. Lawrence Fishburne played a 17-year old in Apocalypse Now when he was 14 in real life and nobody could tell the difference.

Tommen's age is just going to be a big inconsistency. Or they're going to pretend that Loras was exaggerating.

The only character who really needs to look like a child is Sweetrobin. Fortunately, Lino Facioli is still tiny and adorable at 13, unless he gets a growth spurt before he films season 5.

[Le Cygne]

I was proposing aging everyone up.

It's been about 2 years. They indicated the timeline was approximately the same for the books (some changes).

Season 1 October - Dany 1, December - Sansa birthday (13 on show), March - Bran 1

Season 3 November - Sansa wedding (14.9 on show), December - Sansa birthday (15 on show)

Season 4 January - Purple wedding

So that's a couple months short of 2 years for Sansa.

But for Dany, it's been over 2 years.

That's why people are saying 2 years. It's a reasonable estimate.

[Annara Snow]

I was proposing aging everyone up.

It's been about 2 years. They indicated the timeline was approximately the same for the books (some changes).

Season 1 December - Sansa birthday (13 on show), March - Bran 1

Season 3 November - Sansa wedding (14.9 on show), December - Sansa birthday (15)

Season 4 January - Purple wedding

So that's a couple months short of 2 years.

Isn't that what I said? We know Bran was 10 when Jaime pushed him from the window. Bran is 12 now, Sansa is 15, Arya is 13 or 14.

[of man and wolf]

The characters (and actors) are gong through puberty in which people grow and mature. The show hasn't even highlighted any of the characters with a specific age so it makes no difference. Also, the actress playing Maegary (Natalie Dormer) is 32 and in the books Maegary is only 15 and it doesn't matter.

Lots of mature actors and actresses still play the part of kids and teens in movies and films.

Maisie (Arya) is still 16 and Issac (Bran) is only 14 while the actor who plays Joffrey (Jack Gleeson) is 21 and he still fits the part of a teenage(brat) King.

It really doesn't matter and there is no way they would recast an actor who plays a main character, is recognisable and loved by the fans because they are growing too tall.

They actually did say Brans age at the very begining of the show when Ned is informed of the NW guy who fled after seeing the white walkers. Ned decided to take Bran to watch the beheading while Cat said he was only 10 iirc.