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Five 'Game of Thrones' Stars Are Getting Big Raises, Will Likely Live Through Season Finale
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In
case you were wondering if Game of Thrones was possibly going to murder
a main character in the season six finale, that's looking unlikely for a
significant portion of the cast, who seem safe (for now) based on
current contract negotiations ...
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In case you were wondering if Game of Thrones was possibly
going to murder a main character in the season six finale, that’s
looking unlikely for a significant portion of the cast, who seem safe
(for now) based on current contract negotiations.
Deadline is reporting inside knowledge into negotiations for five of the show’s biggest stars, something that secures their participation in the (possible final) eighth season, while giving them big raises.
The identity of the five is a possible spoiler, as if these contracts exist, it seems entirely likely that all will live through at least the season six finale next Sunday, and knowing that might eliminate some of the tension from the episode.
The five, you might be able to guess, given the screen time and
importance of their characters. It’s Peter Dinklage (Tyrion Lannister),
Emilia Clarke (Daenerys Targaryen), Kit Harrington (Jon Snow), Lena
Headey (Cersei Lannister) and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jaime Lannister),
who will now be getting $500,000 an episode for signing on to season
eight.
This is an increase from ~$300,000 an episode the group reportedly received previously when signing on for season seven. As Game of Thrones’s ratings increase, so does the potential payday for these actors, and HBO obviously needs them to finish out the home stretch of the show. We still do not have an official episode total for season seven or season eight, but last we heard, the showrunners were talking about dramatically shorter seasons, possibly even seven episodes for S7 and six episodes for S8. If that’s true, perhaps that’s another factor as to why these cast members are getting an increase, to offset the decline in total episodes.
So, it seems likely that these five will live through the season six
finale, or else these negotiations would not be taking place. It does
not, however, seem to mean that all five will survive through the series
finale, if the show does in fact end at season eight. But I wouldn’t
expect any of their deaths early in season seven either. Jon Snow,
having already died once, seems safer than anyone else these days.
I do have to wonder a bit about whether these five are the true “core” cast of the show, given that Game of Thrones is a true ensemble. I checked a fan-compiled list
of total screen time across the life of the series, and while the top
four are Tyrion, Jon, Daenerys and Cersei in that order, ahead of Jaime
are both Sansa (Sophie Turner) and Arya (Maisie Williams WMB -4.20%) who aren’t included in this more “adult” group.
Perhaps this is standard practice in Hollywood, and the 20 year-old Turner and the 19 year-old Williams just don’t have the negotiating power as these older actors, but it is kind of a shame, given how much screen time they get, and that they’re usually the star of their own storylines in the same way these other characters are. If you’re curious who rounds out the rest of the top ten, Theon, Sam and Jorah have the most screentime after Jaime.
Still, with the success of Game of Thrones, it’s no wonder that HBO is doing what they can to secure the continued participation of the cast. It’s unlikely these numbers will ever be verified by HBO, which says it doesnt discuss contracts, but it seems we can breathe easy for these five characters during next week’s finale, at the very least.
Follow me on Twitter and on Facebook. Pick up my sci-fi novels, The Last Exodus, The Exiled Earthborn and The Sons of Sora, which are now in print and online.
Five 'Game of Thrones' Stars Are Getting Big Raises, Will Likely Live Through Season Finale
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Photo: HBO
Deadline is reporting inside knowledge into negotiations for five of the show’s biggest stars, something that secures their participation in the (possible final) eighth season, while giving them big raises.
The identity of the five is a possible spoiler, as if these contracts exist, it seems entirely likely that all will live through at least the season six finale next Sunday, and knowing that might eliminate some of the tension from the episode.
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This is an increase from ~$300,000 an episode the group reportedly received previously when signing on for season seven. As Game of Thrones’s ratings increase, so does the potential payday for these actors, and HBO obviously needs them to finish out the home stretch of the show. We still do not have an official episode total for season seven or season eight, but last we heard, the showrunners were talking about dramatically shorter seasons, possibly even seven episodes for S7 and six episodes for S8. If that’s true, perhaps that’s another factor as to why these cast members are getting an increase, to offset the decline in total episodes.
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Photo: HBO
Perhaps this is standard practice in Hollywood, and the 20 year-old Turner and the 19 year-old Williams just don’t have the negotiating power as these older actors, but it is kind of a shame, given how much screen time they get, and that they’re usually the star of their own storylines in the same way these other characters are. If you’re curious who rounds out the rest of the top ten, Theon, Sam and Jorah have the most screentime after Jaime.
Still, with the success of Game of Thrones, it’s no wonder that HBO is doing what they can to secure the continued participation of the cast. It’s unlikely these numbers will ever be verified by HBO, which says it doesnt discuss contracts, but it seems we can breathe easy for these five characters during next week’s finale, at the very least.
Follow me on Twitter and on Facebook. Pick up my sci-fi novels, The Last Exodus, The Exiled Earthborn and The Sons of Sora, which are now in print and online.
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