One of Game of Thrones' longest-running bad
guys remained a mystery to readers and viewers until the HBO series' eighth and final season:
the Night King, the ancient creature who created and led the formidable Army of the Dead. We still don't know much about the White Walker
king, but from behind-the-scenes tidbits to fan theories, here's the untold truth of this
menacing bad guy. Slovakian actor Vladimir FurdĂk might be
the most recognizable face of the Night King at this point, but the truth is, he only started
playing the character in the show's sixth season, prior to that, the role was played
by Richard Brake, best known for films like Batman Begins or Kingsman: The Secret Service. Brake and FurdĂk actually overlapped: while
Brake was playing the Night King, FurdĂk played the high-ranking White Walker that
Jon Snow shatters to pieces with his Valyrian steel sword. The transition between the two actors was
so seamless that many may not have noticed, though some fans found Brake's appearance
even more frightening. FurdĂk was an indispensable part of the Thrones
team long before he stepped into the Night King's frozen shoes. He worked on everything from the fight scene
at the Tower of Joy as well as performing and working on everything from high falls
to intense sword fights. When it came time to recast the Night King,
there was no better choice than FurdĂk, who knew the show's action set pieces inside and
out. Though the Night King's human name is never
revealed and audiences still don't have a firm handle on his personal history, the show
did confirm during season 6 that he was once a human. He was a member of the group known as the
First Men, and he was used as a pawn by the Children of the Forest. The Children of the Forest made a home in
Westeros long before humans existed, and were settled happily in the Seven Kingdoms until
they were forced to deal with the First Men. After the First Men crossed from Essos into
what is now Dorne, they came into conflict with the Children. In the end, the Children were responsible
for creating the Night King when they took one of the First Men hostage and plunged dragonglass
into his heart. In doing so, they inadvertently created ultimate
evil by making the first ever White Walker as a means of defending themselves against
men. "It was you. You made the White Walkers." "We were at war. We were being slaughtered." The creation of the Night King turned out
to cause more problems than it solved; after all, an undead monster who can raise entire
armies of zombies is bound to cause a few issues. He turned against the Children of the Forest,
and they were forced to fight back. When the First Men and Children of the Forest
found themselves under attack by the White Walkers, the two warring factions were forced
to team up and work together to save both; ultimately, the First Men triumphed at the
Battle of the Dawn. After the war was over, the First Men worked
with giants and the Children to build the Wall. White Walkers have always been a big part
of Thrones' mythology. "Correct. A student of history, are you?" After all, the show's pilot opened with White
Walkers attacking members of the Night's Watch. Every now and then, during the show's earlier
seasons, viewers would be reminded that no matter what else was going on in Westeros,
the White Walkers were still out there and ready to attack. You might think the Night King has been around
for the whole show, but he actually didn't make his first appearance until season four's
"Oathkeeper." That's the episode which finally reveals the
fate of the many babies viewers saw offered as sacrifices. During the audience's first-ever glimpse of
the Night King, he turns a baby into a White Walker. Throughout the series, the show has diverged
dramatically from the books. Author George R.R. Martin, for his part, has
a lot to say about the Night King's history, and especially wants to make sure people don't
confuse two figures he sees as especially distinct: the Night's King and the Night King. "I'm a bit confused." The Night King audiences know and fear isn't
the same as the Night's King; as Martin has explained, the Night's King is a legendary
figure like Bran the Builder. In the books, the Night's King was an early
commander of the Night's Watch. Thanks to an ill-fated love affair, he turned
against the Watch, causing the King Beyond the Wall and the King in the North to band
together and take him down. This little distinction might not seem important,
but ultimately, it serves to distinguish two similarly named but radically different characters. As the Night King makes his way through the
icy North and builds up his army, it remains a mystery as to what he wants beyond destruction,
death, and to move beyond the Wall. In spite of that inscrutability, FurdĂk has
made some executive decisions about his character motivations. Throughout the show, hints are dropped about
why the Night King is who he is and does what he does. In various interviews, FurdĂk has said that
he thinks that the Night King wants revenge for being the Night King in the first place. As the result of years of conflict and mistakes,
the Night King became the Night King against his will and has spent the rest of his existence
trying to fight back against those who wronged him. The show also gave viewers one significant
piece of evidence about his motives: in the final season's second episode, "A Knight of
the Seven Kingdoms," Bran Stark reveals the Night King will come for him to accomplish
his true purpose: "An endless night. He wants to erase this world. And I am its memory." "That's what death is, isn't it?" One of the longest-running theories among
Thrones fans argues that, upon Bran's transformation into the all-knowing Three-Eyed Raven, Bran
Stark had actually become a part of the Night King himself. Throughout Bran's training with the previous
Raven, he found himself able to "warg" back in time and see previous events. During one visit to the Army of the Dead,
he ended up branded with the Night King's mark, a twist that left some viewers looking
for deeper meaning. "His mark is on me. He always knows where I am." One of the most popular theories circulating
on this topic suggested that Bran could have warged to the past to prevent the Children
of the Forest from creating the Night King, but in doing so, he became trapped within
the Night King in some way. An intriguing theory, but now that the Night
King has come for Bran and gotten himself murdered in the process, we know it's one
that was obviously off the mark. In trying to figure out the Night King's true
origins, numerous fans have wondered if he might have come from a noble family like the
Lannisters, Boltons, or Tyrells. As far as ancient houses go, Targaryen is
certainly one of the oldest around, and many viewers theorized that the Night King might
be descended from this royal line. After all, he can ride a dragon, and he likes
arranging carnage in a spiral pattern. However, the Targaryen connection is pretty
easy to debunk considering the timeline doesn't really allow for it; that theory, while interesting,
has been moot for some time. The more appealing theory points to the Night
King being a Stark, especially since fans know for sure that the Night King was one
of the First Men, who are the Stark's ancestors. It's possible that a Stark ancestor was the
man who eventually became the Night King, which explains why he always seems to hunt
members of the Stark family in particular, they're his family, but they ultimately turned
on him. The showrunners for Game of Thrones have clearly
had long-awaited plans that are just now coming to fruition. The fact that it was Arya Stark, and not Jon
Snow or someone else, who would eventually kill the Night King was something the showrunners
had planned for several years. As far as the Night King goes, they've been
carefully considering this character for a long time. However, that doesn't mean they've shared
those plans with the actor who actually plays the Night King. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter,
FurdĂk revealed that the directors and showrunners were as silent as the famous character: "No, they didn't give me [much]. There were a couple of discussions with the
directors, but nothing particular about what he was supposed to do." Furdik indicated that since he got the sense
that they knew the character inside and out, he didn't necessarily need the same information. No matter what you might think of this approach,
it certainly didn't affect the storytelling or FurdĂk's beautifully creepy performance. Fire has long been one of the most important
weapons deployed against wights, the zombies created by the White Walkers. A body can be reanimated if it isn't incinerated,
which is why the burial rites for the Night's Watch involve cremation. Luckily, Daenerys Targaryen and her team have
a vital resource that can help fight against wights and White Walkers: dragons, which can
soar high above the battle unleashing dragonfire on any enemies below. The Night King obviously has an affinity for
these beasts, considering he took down one of Daenerys' dragons during the show's seventh
season. But during "The Long Night," it becomes clear
that even a living dragon wouldn't be an effective weapon against him. Daenerys tries her tried and true burning
trick, but the Night King just stands there staring, completely immune to dragonfire. "It's embarrassing, really." As the Night King and his army advanced on
Winterfell, characters wondered how they'd possibly prevail against an army that could
simply continue multiplying throughout the night. The battle itself was relentless, pitting
the North and their allies against a massive army of the undead. As the Night King made his way to the Godswood
to find Bran, it seemed as if the end was night and the Army of the Dead would finally
triumph. Even though the Northern squad knew they could
destroy the entire army if they only took out the Night King, the chances of them doing
that seemed slim at best. Thankfully, there was one fearless force running
around that most viewers forgot about halfway through the episode, specifically Arya, armed
with high jumping skills and a dagger of Valyrian steel. Thanks to years of training as an assassin
and the element of surprise, Arya was able to finally put an end to the Night King and
the Army of the Dead. "What do we say to the God of Death?" "Not today." Even as a professional stuntman, FurdĂk wasn't
immune to the grueling schedule of filming "The Long Night." Filming the episode required a 55-day shoot
over several nights in Belfast that many members of the cast and crew bluntly described as
"miserable." When speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, FurdĂk
looked back on the shoot as extremely tough: "This was one of the hardest jobs of my life." It makes sense. Besides performing as the Night King, he also
worked with nearly every other actor to rehearse the fight scenes and choreography. One of the toughest scenes to shoot, understandably,
was FurdĂk's final scene with Maisie Williams as Arya kills him. "It was a very emotional day and night...It
was very, very difficult. We are very good friends. We know each other. It wasn't easy for me to [pretend to] hurt
her. If you make a bad move, if you don't grab
her well, she could have an injury. So I was under pressure and she was under
pressure. It was not an easy day." FurdĂk worked with Williams on her fight
with Gwendoline Christie's Brienne, so the two have a strong combat history together;
clearly, it paid off with the perfect shot. Check out one of our newest videos right here! Plus, even more Looper videos about your favorite
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