Scripting Episode 7

Part seven of our ten-part “scripting” series ratchets everything up another notch, beginning a whirlwind of events that will take us to and through the final episodes of season one. This episode has almost twice as many scenes as episode 6, but the scenes are shorter, with quicker hits. From here only three episodes remain, so the building momentum is palpable.

EPISODE SEVEN
41 scenes; 65 pages

JON 5
EDDARD 11
SANSA 3
EDDARD 12
DAENERYS 6
EDDARD 13
JON 6
EDDARD 14

Our rough (and slightly out-dated) Season One outline can be found HERE. Episodes 2 – 6 can be found here: Episode 2, Episode 3, Episode 4, Episode 5, Episode 6. As usual (and quite obviously), none of these scripts are official. Episode 7 encompasses pages 444 – 529 of “A Game of Thrones” (U.S. softcover), as well as pages 583 – 594. Pages 452 – 461 (Tyrion 6) have been moved to Episode 8. Tyrion does not appear in this episode.

Spoilers are everywhere. You have been warned.

Introductions: Chett, Ser Raymun Derry, Ser Karyl Vance, Ser Marc Piper, Septon Celladar, Wineseller. NOTE: Most of these introduced characters are either non-speaking roles or very minor, with only one or two lines.

Deaths: Viserys, King Robert

Sex: Drogo and a pregnant Dany. Multiple times. This man is unstoppable!

NOTE: We now know that episode 6 should have included Dany’s encounter with the Dosh Khaleen– an event I had previously placed in this episode. Here is that scene (from DAENERYS 5):

EXT. VAES DOTHRAK – FIRE PIT – NIGHT [2 pages]

Daenerys eats a horse’s heart as Khal Drogo and the CRONES of the DOSH KHALEEN look on; she finishes it successfully as they chant and sing, and the HIGH PRIESTESS proclaims Dany’s son will be “the stallion who mounts the world.” Dany says his name will be Rhaego.

EXT. VAES DOTHRAK – THE GODSWAY – NIGHT [1 page]

Khal Drogo leads Dany away and into the night. He asks what “Rhaego” means; she tells him it is for her long-dead brother Rhaegar, a great warrior.

EXT. VAES DOTHRAK – THE WOMB OF THE WORLD – NIGHT [half page]

Daenerys bathes in the black waters of the massive lake; afterwards, Drogo makes love to her.

INT. VAES DOTHRAK – KHAL DROGO’S HALL – NIGHT [4.5 pages]

Khal Drogo hosts other khals in his great pavilion for a feast, with unclothed dancers whirling around, an event akin to Dany’s wedding. Dany invites Ser Jorah to sit and eat with her; Jorah reveals that Viserys had attempted to steal her eggs earlier, and Dany says she would give them to him willingly if he asks. It is then Viserys enters the pavilion, drunk. He waves an unsheathed sword about-– forbidden in Vaes Dothrak-– and threatens Dany’s unborn child. Khal Drogo finally gives Viserys the golden crown he’d promised him by upending an iron pot filled with molten gold over his head. Viserys dies in agony.

And now for the recalibrated version of Game of Thrones: Episode 7:

EXT. CASTLE BLACK – PRACTICE YARD – DAY [1 page]

Ser Alliser Thorne announces the names of those who have passed the tests that will allow them to become full-fledged members of the Night’s Watch, including Jon. Most have passed– all except Samwell.

INT. CASTLE BLACK – DINING HALL – NIGHT [1 page]

Jon and his friends jest at the dining table; Jon notices Sam is not there. “You did all you could,” says Pyp, but Jon says it was not enough. He knows the hell Sam will have to go through now that his friends will not be there to protect him.

EXT. THE KINGSROAD – NIGHT [half page]

Jon walks alone, lost in thought.

EXT. CASTLE BLACK – MAESTER’S APARTMENTS – NIGHT [half page]

Jon knocks on Maester Aemon’s door; CHETT and his boils finally answer, irritated. Chett lets Jon in only after it becomes obvious he won’t leave.

INT. CASTLE BLACK – MAESTER’S APARTMENTS – NIGHT [2 pages]

Maester Aemon speaks to Jon about Sam; Jon implores Aemon to take Sam on as an apprentice, essentially replacing Chett, who cannot read (and he suggests this right in front of Chett). Maester Aemon says he will think on it. Chett: not happy.

OPENING CREDIT SEQUENCE [1 page]

INT. RED KEEP – THRONE ROOM – DAY [5 pages]

Ned sits the Iron Throne, dealing with royal business in King Robert’s stead whilst the king is out hunting. Ned is pained by the business at hand and by his broken leg. Petitioners from Wendish Town and the holdfast of Sherrer claim Ser Gregor Clegane led Lannister brigands to sack the farms of the Riverlands. Varys, Littlefinger, and Grand Maester Pycelle look on as the tragedy is described; introduction of SER RAYMUN DARRY, SER KARYL VANCE, and SER MARC PIPER (Tully bannermen). Ser Loras Tyrell offers to hunt down Gregor himself, but Ned decrees it will be done by Lord Beric Dondarrion and other hand-picked men (Thoros of Myr and others).

INT. RED KEEP – THRONE ROOM – LATE AFTERNOON [1 page]

Sansa exits the throne room with Septa Mordane and the milling crowd. She complains to the septa that the dashing Ser Loras Tyrell should have been the one sent after Gregor Clegane, but the Septa only tells Sansa it is not her place to question her father. Littlefinger interjects, “Some of her lord father’s decisions could do with a bit of questioning.” When Sansa says sending Loras would have been like a hero hunting a monster, Littlefinger replies, “Life is not a song, sweetling. You may learn that one day to your sorrow.”

INT. TOWER OF THE HAND – SANSA’S ROOM – NIGHT [2.5 pages]

Sansa relates to Jeyne Poole the day’s gossip over cups of milk. They babble on about Ser Loras, Lord Beric, Arya, and Prince Joffrey; Sansa mentions smelly Yoren, who’d come begging from the Wall in search of men for the Night Watch. Eventually they grow bored and go in search of lemoncakes.

EXT. RED KEEP – COURTYARD – MORNING [half page]

Sansa watches from her high bedroom window as a distant Lord Beric Dondarrion and his host gather in the main courtyard.

INT. TOWER OF THE HAND – DINING HALL – MORNING [2 pages]

Sansa joins Arya and Septa Mordane for breakfast. Before long the sisters get to their usual bickering; Arya throws a blood orange at Sansa’s new dress, splattering it. The Septa separates them and sends them to their respective rooms.

INT. TOWER OF THE HAND – SANSA’S ROOM – DAY [1 page]

Sansa barricades her door and rips the ruined dress off, throwing it in the hearth. Even the underskirt is ruined; she falls into bed sobbing. “I hate her!” Later, Septa Mordane wakes her with a knock on the door. “Lady?” Sansa asks, groggily, reflexively reaching for the wolf that is no longer there. The Septa says Lord Eddard is expecting her.

INT. TOWER OF THE HAND – SOLAR – DAY [2.5 pages]

Sansa is brought meekly before her father; Arya is brought in as well, and Sansa goes on the offensive, accusing Arya of many things. Ned cuts the argument off, telling them he is sending them both back to Winterfell. Neither are happy with that, but Sansa is beside herself with anguish, pleading to stay, saying she wants to marry Joffrey and have his golden-haired sons: “As great as a wolf and a proud as a lion.” Arya corrects her, saying Joffrey isn’t a lion– he’s a Baratheon: a stag, not a lion. Sansa retorts, “He’s not the least bit like that drunken old king!” Those words seem to bring Ned to a sudden, sharp realization. He tells his daughters they will be leaving as soon as he can find a proper ship.

INT. TOWER OF THE HAND – STAIRWELL – DAY [half page]

Septa Mordane leads Sansa and Arya back toward their rooms. Arya seems to be getting used to the idea, but Sansa is still irrevocably distraught.

INT. TOWER OF THE HAND – SOLAR – DAY [2.5 pages]

Ned is cared for by Grand Maester Pycelle again, who implies Lord Tywin Lannister will not happily stand for the manhunt Ned ordered for Ser Gregor Clegane. Littlefinger visits after Pycelle leaves, and says the Hound will not be happy with the manhunt either; “Gregor was his to loathe, not yours to kill.” Eddard glances at Jon Arryn’s book once more after Littlefinger is gone, frowning. Eventually he summons his guardsman, FAT TOM, and has him deliver a message.

EXT. RED KEEP – THE GODSWOOD – AFTERNOON [5.5 pages]

Cersei arrives in the Godswood to answer the summons from Ned, as beautiful as ever. They are alone. When asked, she freely admits her brother Jaime is also her lover-– and the father of all three of her children, “Thank the gods,” she adds. Ned asks her about Bran. Cersei responds, “He saw us. You love your children, do you not?” Ned asks why she hates Robert so; Cersei says it is because Robert whispered the name “Lyanna” on their wedding night. Cersei attempts to seduce Ned; he asks, “Did you make the same offer to Jon Arryn?” Cersei slaps him. She mocks Ned’s honor, throwing Jon Snow’s birth in his face, asking him how he is any different from Robert, or her, or Jaime? “For a start, I do not kill children,” he replies. Ned tells her he will reveal the truth to Robert upon his return from the hunt, and that she would be wise to be far away when that happens. She retorts that he should have taken the throne long ago when it was there for the taking. “I have made more mistakes than you can possibly imagine, but that was not one of them,” Ned says. Cersei replies, “Oh, but it was, my lord. When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground.” Cersei exits.

INT. VAES DOTHRAK – HOLLOW HILL – MORNING [1.5 pages]

Daenerys and Khal Drogo have finished their lovemaking, and they debate the merits of invading Westeros. Drogo is clearly against it; “The stallion who mounts the world has no need of iron chairs.” He adds that horses cannot cross the sea. Dany argues that there are ships they can use, but Drogo ceases the conversation and leaves to hunt.

EXT. VAES DOTHRAK – HOLLOW HILL – DAY [1.5 pages]

Dany talks to Ser Jorah Mormont, despairing that she will return to Westeros. Jorah promises, someday, they will go home.

EXT. VAES DOTHRAK – WESTERN MARKET – DAY [5 pages]

Dany is carried through the market in a litter carried by the four young men of her khas (Quaro, Rakharo, Jhogo, and Aggo); she is also accompanied by Irri and Jhiqui, with Ser Jorah riding along beside. Dany dismounts and shops amongst the colorful tents and stalls, chatting with Ser Jorah. After a moment he excuses himself and leaves. Dany encounters a WINESELLER, who attempts to sell her a special cask of wine; Ser Jorah returns and immediately demands the wineseller taste it first. The wineseller throws the cask at Ser Jorah and attempts to run away, but Jhogo’s whip catches him around the throat and he is caught.

INT. VAES DOTHRAK – HOLLOW HILL – DUSK [3 pages]

Dany is still shaken from the assassination attempt, and she paces restlessly. She fetches her dragon eggs and tells Ser Jorah to light the brazier. In a fit of seeming madness, Dany lays the eggs in the brazier, but nothing happens. Khal Drogo enters and learns of the attempt on Daenerys; he rewards Ser Jorah and Jhogo with horses, and rewards the wineseller by decreeing he will forever run afoot behind the khalasar; so long as the wineseller can keep up, he will live. Lastly he bequeaths a gift to his unborn son: “To Rhaego son of Drogo, the stallion who will mount the world, to him I will give this iron chair his mother’s father sat in. I will give him Seven Kingdoms. I, Drogo, khal, will do this thing.”

INT. WINTERFELL – CRYPTS – NIGHT [quarter page]

Ned dreams of a walk through the crypts of his forefathers. He stops at the end, standing before the crypts in which his father, brother, and sister are buried. The statue of Lyanna wears a garland of pale blue roses. “Promise me, Ned,” Lyanna whispers.

INT. TOWER OF THE HAND – SOLAR – NIGHT [quarter page]

Ned is awakened by Fat Tom; a messenger has arrived saying King Robert has returned from the hunt and commands his presence.

EXT. MAEGOR’S HOLDFAST – BRIDGE – NIGHT [quarter page]

Ned rides across the bridge that leads from the Red Keep to the Holdfast. One of the Kingsguard stands watch.

INT. MAEGOR’S HOLDFAST – ROYAL HALL – CONTINUOUS [quarter page]

Ned enters. Ser Barristan Selmy and a second member of the Kingsguard stand watch at the steps and the King’s chamber door respectively; Ser Barristan looks pale and shaken.

INT. MAEGOR’S HOLDFAST – ROBERT’S ROOM – CONTINUOUS [1.5 pages]

Ned enters to find King Robert in bed, dying; the king has a ghastly wound from his groin to his chest that has been haphazardly sewn shut. Also within the room is Cersei, Grand Maester Pycelle, and Renly Baratheon. Servants skitter about nervously. Robert tells them to leave so he can speak to Ned alone. Once they are gone, Robert tells his tale:

FLASHBACK TO:

EXT. KINGSWOOD – DUSK [1 page]

King Robert drinks to excess, imbibing more than a few skins of wine with the aid of an obedient Lancel Lannister. He faces down the gigantic boar, screaming that he’ll take the beast alone; Ser Barristan, Renly, and other can only watch helplessly as Robert misses his thrust and the ferocious boar gores him. King Robert kills it even as its tusks rip at his bowels.

BACK TO PRESENT:

INT. MAEGOR’S HOLDFAST – KING ROBERT’S ROOM – NIGHT [2 pages]

King Robert decrees that Ned will be Lord Protector of the Realm until the day Joffrey comes of age. He had Ned write the command so he can sign it; instead of “my son Joffrey,” Ned hesitates and writes “my heir.” Robert signs it. Ned pledges to guard Robert’s children as if they were his own. Pycelle and Renly are then let back in to witness the seal.

INT. MAEGOR’S HOLDFAST – ROYAL HALL – NIGHT [1.5 pages]

Ned comes back out and speaks with Ser Barristan. Varys appears, insinuating Lancel may have been too eager to keep wine in King Robert’s hands: “Such a dutiful boy, to make certain His Grace did not lack for refreshment.”

EXT. MAEGOR’S HOLDFAST – BRIDGE – NIGHT [1.5 pages]

Ned crosses the bridge again and is met by Renly, who urges Ned to take Cersei’s children prisoner before she can move against him; Renly adds he has a hundred swords he can put in Ned’s hands. Ned refuses, saying Robert may still live; “Sometimes the gods are merciful,” Ned says. “The Lannisters are not,” Renly retorts. Renly leaves.

INT. TOWER OF THE HAND – SOLAR – NIGHT [3 pages]

Ned orders his men into action: he asks for Littlefinger to be brought to him, and ensures the ship he commissioned for his daughters is ready to depart. Lastly he writes a letter addressed to Stannis Baratheon and orders it delivered to Dragonstone immediately. Littlefinger enters; Ned reveals the parentage of Cersei’s children, though Littlefinger does not seem surprised. Ned informs Littlefinger he is pronouncing Stannis Baratheon as King Robert’s true heir; Littlefinger advises against it, saying Stannis would only bring war, but Ned reminds him about Jon Arryn, Jory Cassel, and the attack on Bran, and will not support Cersei on the throne. Littlefinger eventually promises to buy off the City Watch in Ned’s name.

INT. CASTLE BLACK – DINING HALL – MORNING [half page]

Sam joins Jon for breakfast, breathless with excitement; Sam reveals he’s being raised to a full-fledged member of the Night’s Watch in order to assist Maester Aemon.

INT. CASTLE BLACK – SEPT – MORNING [3.5 pages]

Jon , Sam, Pyp, Halder, Dareon, Grenn, and Toad are here for the oaths; SEPTON CELLADAR swings an incense-filled censer as he prays. Maester Aemon, Ser Alliser, and Lord Commander Mormont enter, as well as Ser Jaremy Rykker and Bowen Marsh. Mormont gives a brief speech before assigning the boys to their respective orders; Halder is assigned to the builders; Grenn, Pyp, and Toad to the rangers; and Sam and Dareon to the stewards. Jon is also assigned to the stewards. “Do you take me for a servant?” he asks, stunned. Maester Aemon responds, “No, we take you for a man of the Night’s Watch … but perhaps we were wrong in that.”

EXT. CASTLE BLACK – COURTYARD – DAY [1 page]

Jon stalks out, furious. Sam and Dareon try to calm him, but he won’t have it. “It’s not fair!” Sam talks sense into him, pointing out the Lord Commander personally chose Jon, very likely to groom him for command. In the end, Jon realizes he was being immature. Because duh.

INT. THE WALL – LOWER TUNNEL – DAY [half page]

Jon and Sam travel with Bowen Marsh through the tunnel that cuts beneath the Wall.

EXT. THE WALL – NORTH TUNNEL EXIT – CONTINUOUS [quarter page]

Jon, Sam, and Bowen Marsh exit the tunnel; there is a ranger escort waiting for them with horses to take them into the woods. Jon whistles and Ghost joins them.

EXT. HAUNTED FOREST – PATH – CONTINUOUS [quarter page]

They continue on in silence, though Sam is nervous. Neither has ever been north of the Wall.

EXT. HAUNTED FOREST – WEIRWOOD CLEARING – DAY [1.5 pages]

Within the grove, Bowen Marsh has Jon and Sam kneel and take their oaths. When they are done he intones, “You knelt as boys. Rise now as men of the Night’s Watch.” As they’re about to leave, Ghost trots up to Jon– with a severed hand in his mouth.

INT. TOWER OF THE HAND – NED’S ROOM – MORNING [quarter page]

Ned wakes from his brief sleep to the pounding of hooves; The Hound and other Lannister guards are training in the practice yard. He curses Cersei for not fleeing when she had the chance.

INT. TOWER OF THE HAND – SOLAR – MORNING [1 page]

Ned breaks his fast with Sansa, Arya, and Septa Mordane. Sansa is still disconsolate, but Arya’s mood is as good as it has ever been; she has a training lesson with Syrio planned for the day. Sansa asks to say farewell to Joffrey, but Ned refuses her; Sansa flees in tears again.

INT. TOWER OF THE HAND – SOLAR – DAY [2 pages]

Grand Master Pycelle arrives to give the news to Ned: King Robert has finally died. Ned commands him to have the Small Council convene here at once. Ser Barristan comes, then Littlefinger, then Varys; Ned is informed Renly has fled the city already. A knock at the door heralds a summons by King Joffrey for the Small Council to meet with him in the throne room. “The king is dead,” Ned says, but he grimly concedes they will have to confront Cersei now.

EXT. TOWER OF THE HAND – BAILEY STEPS – DAY [quarter page]

Ned, Ser Barristan, Grand Maester Pycelle, Littlefinger, and Varys are escorted by the gold-cloaked City Watch.

INT. RED KEEP – THRONE ROOM – DAY [2.5 pages]

Janos Slynt opens the doors and bows as Ned and the others march in; Ned leans on Littlefinger, his broken leg still making the long walk awkward. King Joffrey is on the Iron Throne; Cersei is beside him and the five remaining members of the Kingsguard (all but Jaime Lannister) are arrayed in front of them. Many Lannister guardsmen are spread about, but they are outnumbered by the City Watch five-to-one. Joffrey says he will now accept the council’s oaths of fealty, but Ned presents him with King Robert’s decree-– which Cersei promptly rips up. “We have a new king now,” she says, and she advises Ned to bend the knee and swear fealty. Ned says he cannot, as her son has no claim to the throne. Joffrey angrily screams for Ned’s death. Ned, resigned, orders Slynt to take the children into custody … but instead the City Watch turns on him, killing Fat Tom and other Stark guardsmen. The Hound leaps in and personally kills a Stark man as well. It is only when Littlefinger slides Ned’s dagger up beneath his chin that Ned knows he was fully betrayed. Littlefinger smiles and says, “I did warn you not to trust me, you know.”

• Published on 10/18/2010 at 4:02 AM CDT
• Last updated on 10/20/2016 at 5:14 PM CDT