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The Actors On ‘Game Of Thrones’ Have A Safe Word For Their Crazy Stunts


  • April 3, 2019

We hope you’ve used the past two years to catch up because the eighth and final season of the HBO hit epic, Game of Thrones is set to premiere on April 14, 2019. After seven seasons of plotting, blood, dragons, and battles we will finally see who will sit on the Iron Throne when everything is said and done.

Though Season 8 of Game of Thrones has just six episodes — they are all said to be epic and feature film length –finally revealing the long-awaited conclusion to George R.R. Martin David Benioff, and D.B. Wiess’ magical creation. Still, since the season is so short, we can expect lots of gore and war. In fact –-the actors on Game of Thrones said Season 8 was the most difficult to film.

Why was Season 8 of Game of Thrones the most difficult to film?

Season 8 of Game of Thrones required a ton of discipline and sonme very long nights. According to Entertainment Weekly, our favorite cast of characters came together for 11 weeks of night shoots to film the final battle on Game of Thrones. Iain Glen who stars as Ser Jorah Mormont on GoT said it was not a fun time. He told EW, 

It was the most unpleasant experience I’ve had on Thrones. A real test, really miserable. You get to sleep at seven in the morning and when you wake in the midday you’re still so spent you can’t really do anything, and then you’re back. You have no life outside it. You have an absolute f—ked bunch of actors. But without getting too method [acting] about it, on screen it bleeds through to the reality of the Thrones world.”

The actors on Game of Thrones have a safe word when they are doing stunts

Though Game of Thrones uses a ton of stunt coordinators and special effects –the battle scenes in particular, like the “Battle of the Bastards” are still very taxing on the actors. Maisie Williams, who portrays Arya Stark on the show had to begin training one year before Season 8 started filming because her character had never been in a battle before.

In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly —Rowly Irlam, Game of Thrones‘ stunt coordinator explained that the actors and stunt doubles use a safe word just in case things become too overwhelming. He said, “Our safe word was always ‘banana’. When we’re doing these battles and people are screaming and crying and dying, you might not know if anyone’s in trouble. So If someone started shouting ‘banana!’ at the top of their voice, you’d know they’re in trouble.”

How are the stunts and battles on Game of Thrones coordinated?

Though they look extremely violent and authentic –the battles and stunts on Game of Thrones are coordinated down to the second. During a Game of Thrones featurette, Irlam revealed, “It’s really controlled. It’s a real process. With all stunt work, it’s about harnessing that stress and channeling that kind of energy. Fear is really good. Fear will keep you safe.”

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