Even if you haven’t yet watched the most recent episode of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, “In the Name of the Mother,” it’s not a spoiler to say the Trial of Seven was excruciating. Dunk (Peter Claffey) and the other characters get put through hell fighting each other on the battlefield, and the viewer is left cringing while watching all the blows, jabs, slashes, and stabs. If the sequences felt especially visceral, even while watching from the comfort and safety of your couch, you have the creative minds behind the series, including showrunner Ira Parker and director Owen Harris, to thank.
Speaking to IndieWire, A Knight of the Seven Kingdom‘s crew explained how focusing on Dunk’s inner thoughts and feelings was important for the show, not just because he’s the main character and the story unfolds from his perspective, but because George R.R. Martin’s novellas are mostly a running monologue of Dunk’s reactions to everything around him. The trial is the most stressful situation Dunk has ever faced, so the creators wanted to find a way to bring that to the screen in a way that would make the most impact.
“We were doing our best to keep the audience immersed in his world. Dunk, in the novellas, has probably the most [anxious] inner monologue of George’s characters. So obviously, a big challenge of this was going to be bringing that out,” Parker explained.
One way was by emphasizing Dunk’s elevated breathing as well as his limited vision, framing a shot that seems to be coming from the inside of Dunk’s helmet. Sound editor Alastair Sirkett told IndieWire, “To be able to go into that first part with the breathing in the helmet, I think it immediately takes you into [Dunk’s panic] … that breathing, Peter was so into it. He knew where we were going with it and what we were trying to do, and got himself into that zone to give us that anxiety, sharp breathing. It was really perfect.”
As for the in-helmet shot, Harris explained, “It was a mixture of how do we do some great action and make it dramatic and exciting and entertaining, but how do we also keep the character and the tone of the show going throughout all of it.”
“You spend the whole show going on this journey with this guy, and finally you are quite literally inside his head—and the claustrophobia and anxiety of being trapped in this thing while people try to kill you? We’re finding the balance between wanting to do something eye-catching and entertaining, but ultimately honest.”
The season finale of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms arrives Sunday on HBO and HBO Max.
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