Hey, you! Yeah, you! Do you not want to be spoiled about what’s probably going on with the sixth season of Game of Thrones? Then don’t read this post. It contains spoilers! You’ve been warned.
The meanest dad in all the Realm finally has a face, and it’s one you’ve likely seen before. James Faulkner—he of Downton Abbey and DaVinci’s Demons fame—has been cast as that mean-mugging Lord Randyll Tarly on Game of Thrones alongside the rest of the family clan. The night is dark and full of family dysfunction, comin’ at ya George R.R. Martin style.
The news is hardly unexpected, given that Dickon Tarly—Samwell’s younger brother and the heir to House Tarly—was recently cast with actor Freddie Stroma. Also coming along for the wicked ride to Horn Hill will be Samantha Spiro and Rebecca Benson who will play Samwell’s mom Melessa Tarly (née Florent) and his sister Talla Tarly, respectively.
As season six shapes up, it looks like the secondary characters and noble houses are going to come more and more into play. (Like all them pesky Greyjoys.) The Tarly family has been mentioned regularly throughout the series, mostly because theirs is an old and noble house, obsessed with honor and battle—probably because they’ve been the home of Valyrian greatsword Heartsbane for almost 500 years.
And that lust for battle was not lost on Randyll, who’s long been known to Thrones fans as fierce war commander, which is part of the reason he forced Samwell to The Wall (hey, it was either that or an accidental-on-purpose death) in order to make his more seemingly capable and less doughy son his heir. It’s also important to note that while he is loyal to the crown, his liege lord is Mace Tyrell, which will make for interesting business given what’s going down with Queen Margaery. Cough.
Are you looking forward to the arrival of Westeros’ war machine? Let us hear it in the comments.
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HT: Deadline
Image Credit: Starz
Alicia Lutes is the Associate Editor of The Nerdist and the resident Game of Thrones obsessive. Find her on Twitter @alicialutes.
