Warning: This post contains spoilers for Game of Thrones season 8.
From the Battle of the Blackwater to the Battle of Castle Black to the Battle of the Bastards, Game of Thrones has a long history of producing legendary battle sequences. But creators say that the final showdown between the living and the dead in Game of Thrones season 8 is going to be bigger and better than any other battle sequence that has ever been committed to film.
“What we have asked the production team and crew to do this year truly has never been done in television or in a movie,” co-executive producer Bryan Cogman told Entertainment Weekly of the Battle of Winterfell. “This final face-off between the army of the dead and the army of the living is completely unprecedented and relentless and a mixture of genres even within the battle.”
But it’s not just the battle itself that’s going to be epic, it’s also the expansive cast of Game of Thrones characters that are set to play a role in the fight.
“The [Game of Thrones battles] I’ve done previously were generally from Jon’s perspective,” Miguel Sapochnik, the episode’s director, said. “Here I’ve got 20-some cast members and everyone would like it to be their scene. That’s complicated because I find the best battle sequences are when you have a strong point of view. I keep thinking: ‘Whose story am I telling right now?’”
Here’s the full list of everyone who is reportedly involved in the Battle of Winterfell: Jon Snow (Kit Harington), Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke), Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage), Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner), Arya Stark (Maisie Williams), Brienne of Tarth (Gwendoline Christie), Davos Seaworth (Liam Cunningham), Samwell Tarly (John Bradley), Jorah Mormont (Iain Glen), Sandor “The Hound” Clegane (Rory McCann) and, of course, the Night King (Vladimír Furdík)
Game of Thrones returns for its eighth and final season on April 14.
