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⚡ Quick Take

• House of the Dragon star Abubakar Salim told us why filming the Battle of the Gullet was like being a kid, Alyn’s emotions during the fight, and more.

After a much longer wait than viewers expected, House of the Dragon finally delivered the Battle of the Gullet. It was big, bold, and bloody. But what was it like to actually film it? We asked one of the infamous Dance of the Dragon conflicts biggest players exactly that. When we spoke to star Abubakar Salim before the season about what to expect from Alyn of Hull and the show this year, we also asked him about shooting the seismic sea fight. Now that the episode is aired we can share his insights into bringing the Battle of the Gullet to HBO.

Ollie Upton/HBO

Nerdist: What’s it like getting to film a big, giant, epic sea battle on these massive sets with all of these people?

Abubakr Salim: It’s bonkers. The closest description I can give is remember when you’re at school as a kid and you’d be playing with your friends? All these fantastical sort of games, be it like you’re playing with sticks and you’ve got swords and you’re chasing one another and screaming and shouting because you’re so enraptured in this world? That was the feeling. That was what it was. Filming that whole sequence was like being a kid again.

The hardest part of it was to not smile at every single take, because it was just pure elation and joy and ridiculousness. You’re swinging t

hese swords pretending to kill people, and then also jumping and seeing explosions. I recently went to Disney World in Florida and there’s a show, the Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular. It’s watching that and being like, “Oh man, that’s so cool!’ Well, you’re in it.  And it’s like, “Oh my God, what do I do? ” That’s the best way I can describe it. It’s just mad and great fun.

HBO

What can you tell us about shooting that episode that a viewer would never know just from watching it?

Salim: We we spent a good six to eight weeks doing that whole sequence. And it was chopped and chewed. Different sets, different environments. There was a massive gap before Lohar’s ship crashes into our ship. We didn’t film that bit until I think another two, three, or four weeks even afterwards. It was a completely separate session.

The amount of detail that was put into everything, into this huge set piece, was mad. For something that happens and kind of erupts, it took so much time. And the amount of explosions and people that were set on fire. I think we broke a record because of the amount of people that we set on fire on set. It’s nuts.

In terms of what viewers can see, what do you most hope they will notice from the Battle of the Gullet that might not be obvious?

Salim: The one thing I remember Loni (Peristere), the director of the sequence, shouting at us was “fear.” It was the idea that going into battle isn’t this cool, epic thing. It’s fear. And that’s something I think you see and feel in everyone’s performance. Even the stunt guys. If you look and you watch people’s expressions and you see the way people fought, there is almost this primal animalistic fear that permeates through it all. That’s a big one.

Ollie Upton/HBO

When Alyn goes after Lohar, it seems like he’s full of rage. What is actually driving him in that moment? And what I mean by that is how much of it is duty versus admiration for a great sailor versus concern for a father?

Salim: The way I played it was in my mind, I didn’t know how much I loved Corlys until you see him gone. That flash of realizing what you have just lost or what you were about to gain. Because the scene just before that, before everything escalates, was us reconnecting and having a drink in his quarters and almost seeing each other eye to eye for a moment.

And there was something really beautiful that day when we filmed that scene. To then have that ripped and stripped from me so viciously and violently and chaotically, that’s the thing that drives Alyn. Especially when you’re so that far deep into the fight. It doesn’t even become about beauty, it becomes about survival and it becomes about really trying to ensure that you can at least breathe and return home.

Actually, you don’t even care about that. You simply are just present, you are there. And Alyn at that moment, seeing that being taken away from him, just evokes this pure age. This pure sense of a childish tantrum of something being taken away from him that he deeply loved and he didn’t realize how much he loved until he got into it.

I’d say there was no duty there. There was no duty. There was no sense of avenging. It was almost purely selfish of you have just taken something away from me that I might not ever know about.

Ollie Upton/HBO

(Note: While House of the Dragon has made major changes to George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood, he following portion of the interview alludes to Alyn’s future based on the source material. They can be considered spoilers.)

Every actor always tells they try to stay in the moment and they try to use what’s in front of them, but considering you know who Alyn of Hull becomes, and you kind of referenced this a little bit, the esteem that he is held in both by readers and within the world of A Song and Ice and Fire, does that help you shape your performance because you can say to yourself, “What kind of person becomes that?”

Salim: Yes, it absolutely does. I’m such a big fan, or big believer, of giving us the arc and the story from the beginning to the end. Because if I look at a play like Hamlet or Othello, or even a film script, you know where the character begins and you know where they ends. And the fun part is seeing the journey of how they get from A to B.

The beauty of what George (R.R. Martin) has crafted and what he has created, and also what (showrunner) Ryan (Condal) cares for is honoring this stuff. And we know where we’re going, we know where we’re playing, so let’s have fun on the journey and lay little seeds there. Then when audiences do come back to watch it all at once, they can see that full arc and really revel in it. Because you can really tell when audiences definitely can tell when stories shifts and turns and goes in a direction that feels almost like it had to make sense in the moment.

HBO Max

There is a real beauty of knowing where the story ends. And again, to those who know the stories and those who don’t, there is a comfort in knowing like, “Oh, there is a source material, a truth that we can always rely on,” which is great.

It’s funny, it’s how I approach a lot of things that I hope that I create, be it with my game studio, or even whenever as I work as an actor, I always want to know, “What’s the end goal here?” Because then I can really have fun and push boundaries and push the limitations of where I’m going as a character to then come to the middle ground or make sense of where I end and feel satisfying with that and go on that journey with an audience.

So knowing that the noble accomplished, respected person he becomes, what’s the most meaningful way that’s shaping your performance now?

Salim: It’s the stoicism and the discomfort that you’re seeing me play with. And really sort of seeing Alyn almost learning from what he’s seeing. He isn’t reacting or engaging or pushing to be the star. He’d rather learn and soak up. Then when the time is right, act. And I think there’s a really lovely moment actually in episode one, which will hopefully make … do you know which moment I’m talking about?

Is it when Corlys is lost and he just takes over?

Salim: Exactly.

It’s your best moment in the whole episode.

Salim: Thank you. Thank you. Because that is exactly the moment where I felt like that’s where you plant the seed for where he is about to go. Where he sees there’s a moment, there’s an opportunity here of taking all that he’s learned, what he’s seen from his father, and stepping up to the plate.

It was so great, because I remember talking with Loni about that, that specific moment being like, “This is key.” To the people who are watching this who don’t know about the book and where Alyn goes, it’s a pretty cool moment of like, “Oh man, he’s stepping up to the plate.” For the people who do know, they’re like, “Oh, kid, this is it!”

HBO

That was exactly how it came across to me. I was like, “There it is. There he is. That’s our guy.

Salim: I’m glad you saw that. I’m glad you saw that because that was a real powerful moment. That was an enjoyable moment for me.

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. He would have immediately drowned during the Battle of the Gullet. You can follow him on Bluesky at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

The post HOUSE OF THE DRAGON’s Abubkar Salim on Filming The Battle of the Gullet appeared first on Nerdist.

⚡ Quick Take

• The world’s #1 Ser Criston Cole hater finally got to ask his fictional nemesis a (loaded) question. House of the Dragon’s Greens booed him.

I have detested Ser Criston Cole from the moment I first read about him. George R.R. Martin’s histories, especially Fire & Blood, might debate what motivated Rhaenyra’s sworn protector to turn on her. But I never had any doubts. I always knew the Kingmaker was a pathetic, oath-breaking baby who helped start a civil war because the heir to the Iron Throne rejected his offer to run away to Essos to sell oranges. My well-established hatred of Criston Cole is why I was overjoyed when House of the Dragon saw the obvious truth about him. It confirmed its handsome knight was really the lowlife punk I always knew he was.

I have not been shy about sharing my thoughts on the infamous knight in my posts and on Nerdist‘s talk show Maesterminds. But recently, I finally got a chance to do something I’ve long hoped to do. I got to ask Ser Criston Cole himself, Fabian Frankel, what it’s like to play the infamous knight/villain. And it went better than I ever could have hoped. Because before he gave me a thoughtful answer, I got a truly wonderful gift. The Hightowers booed me.

Then I went ahead and turned a win into the ultimate loss.

HBO

Before House of the Dragon‘s season three premiere, I took part in a series of virtual media roundtables with the stars of the show. That included speaking to Olivia Cooke (Alicent Hightower), Freddie Fox (Gwayne Hightower), and Frankel. Before things started, I knew my pro-Rhaenyra stance was going to be at odds with the people who play her enemies on the show. Frankel was wearing a custom Gwayne shirt while Fox was wearing the most disgusting shirt ever made. His celebrated Criston Cole. Truly vile.

While I waited for my turn to ask a question, I listened to the three stars being downright silly. The roundtable began with Fox and Frankel referencing That’s So Raven. They then talked about their characters having huge crushes on one another and being intimidated by the others’ physique. The atmosphere was lighthearted and fun. This is very important to understand. Partly to know I wasn’t out of line with how and why I asked my question, but more so you can appreciate how genuinely funny their response was to my query.

HBO

While I can’t fully convey the clearly absurd tone with which I asked my question, you’ll get a pretty good idea of how intentionally ridiculous it was. even in print This is what I asked Ser Criston Cole the very first chance I got to speak to him:

Fabian, I’ve had some very strong feelings about Ser Criston Cole that long predate the show. So I worked very hard to ask what I think is a fair question: What’s it like getting to play the worst person in the history of Westeros?

Dear reader, and hopefully dear fellow hater of the Greens, Olivia Cooke’s reaction to this question is a true career highlight. It was half groan/half boo. “Ooooh, that’s unfair,” she said. Freddie Fox responded the same way at the same time.

HBO

As for Frankel, he made me laugh as he calmly said, “It’s a loaded question. It’s a loaded question.” I insisted, it wasn’t. I claimed, with the innocence of Ramsey telling Theon he was safe, I had worked really hard to make sure it wasn’t loaded. Frankel said, “No no no.” And, I mean…..yes. Obviously. The obvious loaded-ness was the point. But it was also sincere, since Cole is a major villain on the show.

And that’s exactly how Frankel took my question when he talked about playing the part. Here’s what he said:

It’s funny. I actually remember Sara Hess our writer saying something like, “Be ready.” Because [Cole]’d been set up as such a different character in the first season. As this kind of quite noble knight who’s going to protect Rhaenyra and help her manage the expectation. Then obviously he turns so quickly. And what I think is kind of a shame, not a shame, but what I would’ve been interested to see is how that 20-year gap would’ve unfolded.

The way it starts, he’s just such a different person in the sixth episode of season one. Obviously over the course of 20 years, a bunch of shit happened, which we don’t tackle as a show, but it would’ve been something I would’ve found very interesting to read about. But I tell you, I take it with great pride and it’s a great joy to play this kind of a villain. I have enjoyed every moment of it.

It was a great answer loaded with insights into both his character and the show. But my duel victory—one personal for upsetting the Greens, the other professional for asking a question that garnered a thoughtful response—came at a cost. I wasn’t really worried anyone was upset. All three understand the spirit of my silly question.

But I still wanted to make clear that my feelings about Criston Cole were limited to the fictional knight. In fact, the question came from a place of admiration for Frankel. He gives one of my favorite performances on the show. Thanks to his portrayal of Cole, the whole world knows exactly why I have always hate the dishonorable knight.

HBO

“I know everyone groaned,” I told Frankel, “But honestly, you have played this character in all the ways I hoped for. If you would have made him sympathetic or likable, I’d have been furious.” Nothing loaded in that comment. I was being completely honest.

Then, Ser Criston Cole—Ser Criston freaking Cole, my fictional nemesis I’ve always hated and always will—thanked me for the compliment. The compliment I paid him. Ser Criston Cole told me he appreciated that I said something nice about him. Total disaster.

Now I have to live with that. And really, in some ways—maybe the biggest way—that makes me the final victim in the Dance of the Dragons.

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. Despite his appreciation of Fabian Frankel’s performance, Mikey remains the world’s leading Criston Cole hater. You can follow him on Bluesky at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

The post I Asked My Fictional Nemesis Criston Cole a Question (and the Greens Booed Me) appeared first on Nerdist.

The hiring process has long been criticized for its inefficiency and opacity. Candidates spend hours writing applications and submitting cover letters, only to disappear into what often feels like a black box. Generative AI has only made things messier, with employers increasingly relying on AI-powered screening systems to sift through an overwhelming number of submissions. […]

If you're looking for a fun way to connect with nature while collecting bird species on an app like Pokémon, give this smart feeder a try.

In an AI and digital world, analog instant film and retro-style cameras continue to remain popular, fueled by a mix of both nostalgia and novelty.

A running look — in reverse chronological order — at the bigger tech companies that have announced significant layoffs this year with AI as a stated factor.

OpenAI is attempting to tackle the security issues of the open source software community.

Whether the Autopilot system was truly active, overridden, or malfunctioning likely won't be resolved until investigators finish combing through the vehicle's data logs.

The lawsuit, led by a Detroit pension fund, alleges Uber's board and management has cut too many compliance corners, resulting in thousands of lawsuits.

The loop takes agentic AI a step further, by authorizing a swarm of agents to work continuously in the background, endlessly.

Microsoft inked a 20-year power purchase agreement with Chevron, locking in decades of carbon emissions from a new natural gas power plant.

⚡ Quick Take

• The year is already halfway over, and plenty of good movies have come out so far! Here are our favorites of 2026.

This year has been a great year for movies. From horror stunners like Obsession to nerdy favorites like The Mandalorian and Grogu, 2026 has covered a wide scope of genres—and it’s only halfway over! At Nerdist, we hold movies near and very dear, and so we have compiled a list of our favorites, in no particular order. Here are the best movies of 2026 so far.

Project Hail Mary Amazon MGM Studios

Project Hail Mary kicked off the year with a feel-good space drama. It offered a little bit of everything. The deep emotions of an astronaut lost alone in deep space, complemented by star Ryan Gosling’s quippy humor and—who could forget—a lovable alien creature, Rocky.

This movie knew when to be serious, and it definitely knew when to be funny. It was heartwarming, too, exploring complex relationships between humans as well as humans and aliens, and the meaning and significance of sacrifice.

RELATED ARTICLE

PROJECT HAIL MARY Made Me Romantic About Movies (Review) Hokum NEON

Switching gears entirely, supernatural horror film Hokum will have you chilled to your core. Adam Scott of Severance and Parks and Rec stars as Ohm Bauman, an author who decides to spread his parents’ ashes where they took their honeymoon. He finds himself in a haunted hotel in Ireland where he must face the evil trapped there.

Hokum was created by Damian McCarthy, an Irish filmmaker. He drew inspiration from Gaelic myth, where he got the cailleach concept. In mythology, a cailleach is a mythical “hag” with power over the landscape. While not an inherently evil being in myth, she certainly felt evil in this movie. Bauman faces the witch herself alongside visions from the past.

RELATED ARTICLE

HOKUM Is a Delightfully Chilly Haunted Hotel Flick (Review) Is God Is Orion Pictures

Is God Is was an emotionally moving tale of twin sisters on a journey to kill their abusive father. Aleshea Harris’ directorial debut, based on her off-Broadway stage play of the same name, is a thriller, a dark comedy, and a revenge film rolled into one. It also explores the tensions within a cycle of abuse.

The two girls suffered life-changing first-degree burns at their father’s hands when they were children. Despite its characters’ traumatic backstory, the movie manages to be darkly comedic.

RELATED ARTICLE

IS GOD IS: A Cathartic and Brutal Exploration of Black Girl Rage (Review) The Devil Wears Prada 2 20th Century Studios

Picking up where the first installment of Andy’s story left off 20 years ago, The Devil Wears Prada 2 was a glorious return to Runway magazine. Meryl Streep, Stanley Tucci, and, of course, Anne Hathaway graced our theater screens once again. Despite two decades passing, we could be convinced the second movie had been filmed the day after the first—the stars appeared almost identical to their 2006 counterparts.

The story follows Andy and Miranda, both down on their luck. It deals with the realistic struggles of print magazines in moving to digital, clickbait-heavy formats. It also discusses the looming threat of A.I. taking over the journalism field (gulp). Amidst these heavier issues, the characters navigate the complex reality of their careers, their relationships with each other, and their own personal flaws.

RELATED ARTICLE

THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA 2 Is 2026’s Most Important Movie—Here’s Why It Matters (Review) Backrooms Kane Pixels

After his YouTube series The Backrooms gained immense traction, a creator known as Kane Pixels found himself directing a feature-length psychological horror based on the story he had been developing for years.

He created his YouTube series in a found-footage style, exploring a liminal, empty mass of endless hallways. The landscape resembles an abandoned department store, with fluorescent ceiling lights to boot. Parsons’ first episode was a “short film” published in 2022, and the story developed from there as he continued making videos for three years. You can read more about the internet “creepypasta” that inspired his work here.

The movie is set in the same location as his shorts and follows researchers as they investigate the realm of “the backrooms.” Getting lost in the hallways is scary enough, but when it turns out some sort of entity is there with them, the scientists have to fight for their lives.

RELATED ARTICLE

The 8 Scariest Levels of the BACKROOMS Obsession Focus Features/Universal Pictures

2026 truly is a year of good horror, with Obsession being another box office smash. It has also had its moment on the internet, with stills of star Inde Navarrette’s intense frown going viral, alongside her other facially uncanny moments.

More is disturbing about this movie than just the “be careful what you wish for” trope. In some ways, it is about the world of romance we live in today, the idealization of being in a relationship or being loved. Having a partner who has no personality outside of loving you may, in fact, be more terrifying than the natural character flaws that being an individual, an independent person, would bring.

The underlying messages of the movie are what take it from scary to horror.

RELATED ARTICLE

OBSESSION Is a Classic Story with an Uncanny Horror Twist (Review) The Mandalorian and Grogu Lucasfilm

For the Star Wars nerds out there, your favorite world has never stopped expanding. The Mandalorian show has been wildly popular in the years since it began its run. And now the creators have taken a more cinematic direction with The Mandalorian and Grogu.

The two-hour long feature film actually replaced the show’s fourth season. Director Jon Favreau mentioned that writing for season four was underway in 2023 but, in a statement to SFX Magazine, said they trashed those scripts entirely to write the feature film.

The episodes would have been aiming to continue where season 3 had left off and set up the Ahsoka show. However, the movie took a different direction, something that would be appealing to the audience whether they had watched the previous content or not.

“As long as you understand the archetypes of this hardened warrior with their vulnerable young apprentice, you’ll know these characters well, even if you’ve never seen the show,” Favreau said. “But there’s still a lot of Star Wars in there.”

Masters of the Universe

Based on the 1980s animated show, He-Man and The Masters of The Universe, this nostalgic movie did the series justice. He-Man, played by Nicholas Galitzine, is your average Joe working in an office cubicle and yearning for the day he can return to Eternia. Luckily, he does—it would have been boring otherwise—and along the way encounters Skeletor, the classic villain, along with other characters from the series.

Amazon MGM

This is the second time He-Man has been adapted in live-action. In 1987, the first adaptation was made, featuring an oddly shiny blonde man and a tacky skeleton mask. On the surface, not much changed, but this film is a step up.

RELATED ARTICLE

MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE Is a Colorful Retro Adventure (Review) Toy Story 5

If you thought Toy Story 4 was the end, you’ve officially been proven wrong. Despite what seem to be repeated conclusive finales to the series, fans love Toy Story enough to bring it back to the theaters a fifth time. Nostalgic characters accumulated over the first four movies return and grapple with their place in the age of the internet.

Pixar

1990s toys meet electronics, and parents face criticism in this new story. A review from Indiewire points out the blatant complacency with which many parents now operate, surrendering their children to the teachings of mindless internet use. This movie calls that out and emphasizes the importance of imaginative play in childhood, and this makes it one of the best movies of 2026.

RELATED ARTICLE

TOY STORY 5 Cements the Franchise as Cinema’s All-Time Best

Originally published on June 22, 2026 with additional reporting by Ella R. Dunn.

The post The Best Movies of 2026 (So Far) appeared first on Nerdist.

Supergirl stars Milly Alcock (Supergirl), Eve Ridley (Ruthye), and Jason Momoa (Lobo) sit down with Nerdist’s Maude Garrett to talk Supergirl vs Superman, bringing Lobo to the big screen, and their secret fandoms!

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The post SUPERGIRL Cast Reveal Their Secret Fandoms! appeared first on Nerdist.

What does an AI company do after one of those not-acqui-hire deals? Groq raised money, is leaning into its neocloud business, and hiring new execs.

Nvidia announced a new cooling system that cuts water use inside the data center. But it does nothing to address AI's biggest water use — fossil fuel power plants.

⚡ Quick Take

• Actor Joseph Potter is particularly interested in the dynamics between Armand and Nicholas de Lenfent.
• Speaking to Nerdist, Potter revealed he’d love to delve into the time from The Vampire Lestat when Nicki and Armand were left alone without Lestat.
• He shares, “It’s a fascinating place.”

In The Vampire Lestat episode three, we met a familiar face again in a whole new way. In Interview with the Vampire, we briefly saw Nicholas de Lenfent through Armand’s perspective. But in The Vampire Lestat, with Lestat telling his version of events, we got to see a lot more of Lestat’s first… or is that great… love. Fans of the Anne Rice books will know that some aspects of Nicki’s story changed for The Vampire Lestat series, one of which is the idea that Lestat left Nicki alone with Armand for a period of time, although not without arranging for his care, and in this time, Armand’s emotional and mental manipulation of Nicki drove his inner struggles to an even worse place, eventually leading to his death by walking into fire. But, as we know, there are no reliable narrators in the world of The Vampire Lestat/Interview with the Vampire. And if you ask Nicki actor, Joseph Potter, it’s too soon to give up on the idea of the time that Armand and Nicki (Nickimand, if you will) spent together. Potter, for one, would love to explore it.

AMC

Speaking about Armand and Nicki, here’s what The Vampire Lestat actor, Joseph Potter, had to say. “I’d love to revisit the role. I’m always up for revisiting anything. It has been such a privilege to play this part with this amazing team of actors and creatives. But yeah, there’s a lot of the history between Armand and Nicki that I’m really intrigued by, that we haven’t necessarily seen too much of there.”

He continues musing about the character of Armand, noting, “Without sounding too strange, I was always fascinated by when Lestat goes away in the book, and Nicki’s just left with Armand in the theater. That dynamic is… I’m really fascinated by that. And that kind of power dynamic at play between them, with Armand in control. I think it’s a fascinating place. I mean, you don’t know what’s going on there. I mean, I’d be intrigued.”

AMC

Well, wouldn’t we all? If there’s one thing about Armand, it’s that he has fascinating dynamics with pretty much everyone. The time Potter speaks about is one that’s left murky in both the books and in the series (for now), so it would be a great place to explore and adapt the two characters. What did Nicki and Armand get up to while Lestat was away in The Vampire Lestat? There’s always been a great deal of confusion around the particulars of Nicki’s devolution and death, even among book readers. And though we have some vision of it from the series now, it’s hard to trust that events were recounted with exact truth. More points of view for us all to dissect, debate, and debrief about are always welcome.

Additionally, Potter referred to Armand affectionately as a “Cheeky Gremlin” and “That Naughty Armand,” elsewhere in our talk, which is probably of interest to the people reading this right now.

The Vampire Lestat airs on AMC and AMC+, Sundays at 9 pm ET/PT and midnight, respectively. You can snag The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice to read, if you’d like to know a little bit more about what’s going on.

Rotem Rusak is the Editor-in-Chief of Nerdist. Devil’s Minon is her endgame in The Vampire Lestat, but she’s never opposed to other ships on the side—Nicki and Armand, why not?

This post has affiliate links, which means we may earn advertising money if you buy something. This doesn’t cost you anything extra, we just have to give you the heads up for legal reasons. Click away!

The post Joseph Potter Wants More Armand and Nicholas Dynamics in THE VAMPIRE LESTAT appeared first on Nerdist.

The incident comes as Tata Electronics expands its role in global technology supply chains.

House of the Dragon‘s season three premiere changed the Dance of the Dragons forever with the highly-anticipated Battle of the Gullet. It was a massive conflict that saw fire and blood meet salt and sea. What was it like to actually be a part of an episode of this scope and scale? We found out from both those who fought in the sky and those who fought on the water when Nerdist took part in a series of virtual roundtables ahead of the series return to HBO.

Here’s what we learned from stars Harry Collett and Bethany Antonia about Jace and Baela’s role in the conflict along with what Abubakar Salim and Steve Toussaint had to say about Alyn and Corlys’ emotional, dangerous journey.

⚡ Quick Take

• House of the Dragon stars Harry Collett, Bethany Antonia, Steve Toussaint, and Abubakar Salim on what it took to film the Battle of the Gullet.

Henry Collett and Bethany Antonia HBO

Whether Jace is naive about going to fight and doesn’t really think things through before going to the Battle of the Gullet.

Harry Collett: 100%. He’s got a rough plan in his head, but everyone would probably think they have their ideas about battle and not really realize how difficult it is. And he can be quite cocky sometimes in thinking about how good he is at certain things. So he’s not really thought this through massively. He’s like, “Okay, mother’s safe.”

This is probably the first time we see Jace smile throughout the entire series. He’s just been a grumpy teenager before, but it shows what he really loves and what he’s been waiting for. This is the moment where he can prove that he’s not just a bastard. He wants to be hero Targaryen like everybody else.

HBO

What was it like as performers filming a lengthy, difficult sequence that required them to be at such an intense emotional level the whole time.

Bethany Antonia: It was definitely quite a step up this season learning how to sustain that kind of feeling over a few days. Generally, if you’re shooting something like that you’ll do it in a block for two or three days. Then it’s finished. You get to be in that emotional headspace for three days and then it’s done. Whereas the Battle of the Gullet we filmed over weeks. So it was really about learning pacing and learning how to get there and how to get there safely and then how to get out of it safely as well. For me, it felt like a really big turning point as an actor, which was really cool.

Collett: Something new, something fresh, and something that my character’s never done before. And something that me as an actor has never done before. It’s like Bethany was saying, it just felt good to finally do something new and be in the full frontal-ness of this absolute madness and not be not in it and stuck at home.

HBO

On the added layer of having to look out for each other as dragonriders while also trying to avoid getting hurt yourself.

Antonia: I really loved that added layer, especially for me. Because last season I had so many things where I was dragon riding, but I was just scouting. I was out sort of mindlessly looking for nothing in particular. Whereas having the added layer this season of actually having something to do and something to protect and something to follow meant that movement-wise, it really changed everything. We sort of had to imagine that you were looking over the wing as opposed to just being in your saddle.

It really changed the way that we operated on the buck, which was really cool. It meant that you had to think a lot about direction instead of just going with the dragon. You really had to steer a lot more intentionally. And Loni (Peristere), our director, was really brilliant for that. He was really, really clear and he would also move around the buck to be like Jace for me. He would show me where he wanted my eye line and stuff, which was really cool.

HBO

Collett: Same for me. There’s a lot more thinking in place than you think because we’re just sitting on the buck. Like Bethany said, the biggest surprise for me was when he’d tell me to look at something and I’d just look that way, but the dragons are huge, aren’t they? You’ve got to really exaggerate every move to look over.

Antonia: Sometimes [Loni]’d say “Look,” and then he’d be like, “No, you’ve not cleared the wing.” You’re still looking at the wing.

Their expectations for what playing with dragons would look like.

Collett: I was obviously expecting it to be fun. Again, did not expect it to be that challenging, but I was so excited to see how it would look when it was finished. That was all that was in my mind and I was just really trying to use my imagination of what is around me at that time and what could possibly be coming my way. And I just knew they had temporary visual effects in place and even that looked incredible. I’d be happy if they released that on its own, but obviously they hadn’t even started doing the proper visual effects yet. So I went into it with the expectation it was going to be fun, but it exceeded expectations with the way it looked on the final product, I’d say.

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The pressure Baela feels in season three considering she’s one of the few people who seems to trust Rhaenyra.

Antonia: Baela really craves a relationship with Rhaenyra that feels mutual. Because she lost her mom at such a young age and because she witnessed this union when she was a child, really Rhaenyra has been her stepmom now for almost as long as [Baela] would’ve had her mom. And yet I do think there’s a part of her that feels like it is not the relationship she would have hoped for. That’s where that sort of unquestioning belief comes from. I think she’s like, “If I just support you in everything and I am loyal and I’m committed and I show you that I’m here, then you will want me at this table as much as I want to be here.”

In season three, maybe we start to see that changing a little bit and maybe Baela’s suddenly starting to realize, “Actually, do I want to be here? Or am I just wanting to be here because I support you and because I have faith in you or do I want to be here because I believe that you’re doing the right thing?

So I would say yes, at the start of the season, she is one of Rhaenyra’s few true allies and it will be interesting for people to see if that changes as the series goes on.

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On saying goodbye to a show like this versus having to continue working on it after longtime co-stars leave.

Collett: I’m just very grateful I was even on it in the first place. I would be content even if I went in season one. It’s such an amazing show and such a once in a lifetime experience.

Walking into that audition room all those years ago, being smaller than I am now and not looking like a prince at all, thinking I’ve not got this role and then walking out and getting the role. I mean, I pinch myself every day because of it. So yeah, forever grateful. I’ll never look at it and go, “Damn, I’m dead in season three.” I’ll never ever look at it that way.

And what a good way to go. It’s not boring. It’s quite an impactful death, sort of like a Red Wedding vibe death. So I will take it. I’m very, very happy and thank you to (showrunner) Ryan (Condal) and the whole team for even having me in the first place. I’ve had an absolute joy and I’ve met friends for life.

Antonia: I would echo everything Harry said. It just feels like an absolute privilege to get to do this for so many years now and to have watched our characters evolve and to have watched our friends evolve.

I guess going into the next season for me, this is the first time that I’m going to feel the shift. I’ve spent so much time with [Harry] and I do think it’s going to be really strange. It’s going to feel like a different job for me. So much of what we do is together and so much of what we do as a paor is with Emma (D’Arcy). And I think for Baela, both of those connections are going to be very different come season four. So I think it’s going to be really new and fresh for me and maybe a chance to find a different side of Baylor going forward.

HBO Steve Toussaint and Abubakar Salim

How filming the wars in the Stepstones compared to shooting the Battle of the Gullet.

Steve Toussaint: The Stepstones was very interesting. It was on land and it was a lot of running around and bashing people’s heads in. The Battle of the Gullet was that much more technical.

One of the things we did as preparation for both is you spend some time in a large room, like a gym, with the stunt guys and you choreograph the moves. Then, of course, hopefully you get to do it and it looks reasonably good.  On this occasion, the space that we had to learn the choreography was much bigger than the actual space we had to do the fighting in. On the Gullet, we were doing it on a ship that was moving up and down. The area was much more narrow. There was water and blood on the ground. There was the odd corpse that they threw down in front of you as well. So a lot of the choreography went out the window and I just basically swung my sword and hoped that the stunt guys would make me look good.

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What viewers won’t be able to know from just watching the Battle of the Gullet.

Toussaint: In the water beneath us, there were divers who were there all day and they never got out to go to the toilet. So we made sure we didn’t drink any of that water. :both him and Abubakar Salim laugh:

No, I’m not sure what I can say. If it looks good, that’s down to the stunt performers because I was literally just flailing away and helping to survive and somehow they managed to make me look good. And there’s a bloke whose balls I cut off and I worked with them on another job later on, so you wouldn’t know that either.

Salim: It took us many, many months to actually film the whole battle. So it was quite shocking for what was seen on the show.

Toussaint: Yeah, that’s my answer. Forget that you’re in urine stained water.

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What it was like for them to further explore the father-son dynamic between Corlys and Alyn.

Salim: It felt great because season two was very much a buildup to this. We were getting the foundations of who these two are, where they are. Then it came to a real climax in episode eight of season two where Alyn is telling Corlyswhat he thinks and where he’s at. He almost threw down the gauntlet, a challenge for Corlys to step up and be like, “If you really want to face the music of this, this is where we are. “

So to have that then explored in episode one (of season three), where everything is still very tense but then he’s invited into the cabin and we have that moment of hope in a way between these two, for it to then almost be ripped and taken away from them because of the battle it’s quite raw and emotional.

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Toussaint: Any story that you watch, we call them all different genres, thrillers, action, but they’re all dramas, basically, somebody wants something and someone’s trying to stop them from getting it. But ultimately all of them, I think the best of them, they all stand on the human relationship. So yes, we do have dragons and Night Walkers on Game of Thrones, all those things. But ultimately what we cared about was the interpersonal relationships. Those are the things that make you then care about what happens to somebody. It’s always much more rewarding to explore that emotional connection. And I really enjoyed this story of these two individuals.

The fact that we see Corlys showing humility, showing vulnerability with his son, particularly in that cabin scene where he says, “It was my fault and I’m really sorry,” in the best way that he can, that’s a huge step for him. If I was somebody who was just watching it as a fan, I would love that. And those things then hopefully make you care more about them in that battle because you know a bit more about them.

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On what it’s like to watch the finished episodes.

Salim: Oh, it’s so great. You go through the readthrough and you hear the stories and you’re like, “Oh, that’s interesting. Oh, that’s exciting.” And then for a very long time you see no one. The story is just yourself and you’re going through your own little arc. Then to come back together and see the finished product, and see all the other stories, it’s almost like watching it anew. I feel like it makes the whole premiere experience and seeing these episodes, you’re watching it then now for your castmates. You’re watching it for their story and to see what they’ve done. It’s a really wonderful experience.

Toussaint: I was talking to Matt Needham (who plays Larys) just now and he was saying, “Yeah, basically I was just with Tom the whole time, so I didn’t see much.” And so then you get to watch it and you’re like, “Oh, so that’s what you guys were doing while we were doing this thing. It’s crazy. Wow. It’s so crazy. So you and you did that?” And so yeah, it is exactly as Abu said. It is just like watching it anew. It’s wonderful. And also because they’re all just so good to watch, which helps.

On whether they had a safe word during battle scenes the way Kit Harington did on Game of Thrones.

Salim: That’s because Kit is weak. :Steve laughs: Unbelievable. Safe word. I have a word.

Toussaint: I’ve got a safe word.

Salim: What’s your safe word?

Toussaint: It was a safe phrase. “F**king stop!” Which I always find quite effective.

Salim: Definitely, that would stop a lot of things.

Ollie Upton/HBO

Salim: Honestly though, the thing that I really, really respect and love about the whole sequence of the Gullet was that it was so choreographed and rehearsed to death that the safest place was in front of the camera. Genuinely, everything had been really, really meticulously thought of and taken into consideration. The stunt team was totally on it. There was never a moment or a point where we felt like we were in danger. There’s lots of blood and dead bodies everywhere and sometimes the helmet goes over your eyes. But the stunt team were all there to ensure that we were okay.

There was no safe word.

Toussaint: Safe word.

Salim: Safe word. God.

Toussaint: Thanks for that information. We’re going to use that against him.

Salim: Next time I see Kit I’m going to say, “What’s your safe word, mate?’

(Note: Harington’s safe word during Game of Thrones was “banana.”)

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How they kept their performances centered and emotionally consistent while filming the Battle of the Gullet for months.

Toussaint: There are various things. Obviously there are script supervisors on set. As of course is Loni and sometimes Ryan. So sometimes I would find myself asking them, “Where is this sequence in the battle? What has just happened? What have I just seen?” Then with that information, then you start to think

You do the choreography, but also you have to chart your emotional journey through this battle. That is what I think keeps an audience engaged. So that’s what you do.

Toussaint: Abu said when we were doing fight training, it was always-

Salim: The intention to kill.

Toussaint: Yeah. Every blow is the intention to kill.

Salim: Yeah, it’s the final blow. Yeah.

Ollie Upton/HBO

Toussaint: You watch a movie and the fight goes on for six or seven minutes, but in reality, they don’t want the fight to go on for six or seven minutes. They want the next blow to be the [last one]. So you have that in mind when you’re doing it emotionally. And then also, what does that do to you when that blow isn’t the one that kills? What does that do to you? Are you disappointed? Do you suddenly regroup? All those things are questions that I ask myself.

Salim: In the moment. And I think that’s what keeps it alive.

Toussaint: Hopefully those of us who are watching those moments, we are like, “Oh my God, that was a setback and he wasn’t expecting that.”

Salim: Also the brilliance of shooting something so technical is the fact that it is performs like a sprint rather than a marathon. So you have those short bursts of being able to throw everything you can in that moment. Then be cut and you can reset and gather and then you go again. It is tiring, but it’s a lot easier to maintain than to do a shoot for God knows how long to do a whole sequence. So that helps massively. Also the great editing, the music. There are so many other aspects that add to the emotion of a piece that just aids the performance massively.

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. He is glad no one drank the pee water on set. You can follow him on Bluesky at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

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