Richard Dormer talks about how it feels to wield a flaming sword

Game of Thrones is full of interesting and mysterious character, but there’s only one that is cool enough to have a flaming sword and has been resurrected multiple times: Beric Dondarrion. The leader of the Brotherhood without Banners has an eye patch, has been brought back to life six times, and says a lot of mysterious stuff, most of which is about the Lord of Light. In the latest edition of HBO‘s Making Game of Thrones, Richard Dormer, the actor who plays the role of Beric, talked about how it is to wield a flaming sword, and more. Read on!

Speaking about Beric, and the choices that he has made, Richard said :

“I think he realizes there are sacrifices to be made for every great purpose, and every soldier has to go make those calls. You can’t dwell on mistakes. You’ve just got to look forward and think of your fellow comrades. When he hears about the armies that are gathering in the north, of the dead, he realizes that’s where he’s got to go. He knows what death is and he’s one of the men to hold it back, to try to defeat it.

I think his one regret is he’s only half the man he used to be; he’s lost so much of himself.”

He spoke about how Beric feels a kinship to Jon Snow, and has a begrudging respect for The Hound. He went on to speak about how it was to film with the flaming sword, when asked if it was real :

“Yes, the flaming sword is real. It only burns for two minutes at a time, and you can’t swing it too quickly, so you have to slow down your moves, which is actually quite tiring. It weighs about three times as much as a normal sword. It’s a pretty impressive weapon.”

Apparently the sword isn’t the only thing Richard has to worry about. The eye-patch makes it hard for him to fight, too :

“It’s really, incredibly difficult. Even just running. You don’t have any depth perception, so it’s hard to judge distances. Also when the sword lights up, you get a bit blinded every time it crosses your field of vision. So those fight sequences have to be really well rehearsed. When I’m filming, I always walk around with one eye closed to get confident with that; I’ve got used to it.”

Beric recently lost his best friend and the priest who always resurrected him, Thoros of Myr, in the last episode. Speaking of the loss, Richard said :

“It was heartbreaking to lose his last, oldest friend he had. Thoros connected him to his past life, before he formed the Brotherhood Without Banners, so losing him really touches Beric very deeply; it leaves him very empty.”

He also said that Beric feels a little bit relieved, knowing that he’s on his final life now. Lastly, he was asked which character he would like to see Beric reunite with :

“The Mountain. Because even after all these years, he’s still carrying Ned Stark’s command to find and bring the Mountain to justice; so I think he would like to have a go at the Mountain and fulfill his promise.”

Well, he’s not going to get a chance to have a go at him with the Hound around! Cleganebowl, finally? Get hype.

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