‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ Episode 5 Battle Scene Making of

Editor’s Note: The following story contains spoilers for Episode 5 of HBO‘s “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.”

Almost half of Episode 5 of “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” centers on a seven-on-seven combat sequence between pissed-off (and/or pissed-drunk) Targaryen princes on one side and the bewildered Ser Duncan the Tall (Peter Claffey) and his Ashford Tourney frenemies on the other. In keeping with the show’s earthier, simpler perspective on the world of Westeros, though, the sequence in “In the Name of the Mother” isn’t just about spectacularly intricate fight choreography or bravura drone shots. The scene has those, for sure. But it’s really about Dunk having a quick mental breakdown inside his helmet. 

This comes right from series showrunner Ira Parker, who told IndieWire on an upcoming episode of the Filmmaker Toolkit Podcast that the reasoning behind every decision, from tone to costume to camera style to the rhythm of the edit, all flows back to how the show can best put the audience alongside Dunk — who might be the tallest of George R.R. Martin’s protagonists in his “Game of Thrones” works but also probably has the most anxiety. 

“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. And he’s also alone a lot. Most of the other characters have other people to bounce off of, other people in their sphere, and Dunk has very little of that,” Parker said.

That’s why, from the script to the earliest storyboards, the battle had to kick off from Dunk at his most alone: inside his helmet, staring out the tiny slit of his visor as he tries to get his breathing under control. Supervising sound editor Alastair Sirkett told IndieWire that Peter Claffey’s big, former-rugby-player frame really helps that moment sing with suppressed panic. 

“When we’re in that sword fight, we really stay in the mud, and the movement and the failing and in the helmet for Dunk’s breathing, and it was wonderful that we got to go there. It’s quite shocking, I think,” 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). We do use quite a bit of production sound for his and Aerion’s reactions, but 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.” 

The way that “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” treats its battle sequence is so shocking because, as much as this show loves to puncture the nobility and the romance of “Game of Thrones” with as many farts and shits as possible, and as much puking as it can get away with, it treats violence and the emotions of characters who are vulnerable to the depredations of the Targaryens seriously. Much of Sirkett and the sound team’s work on the sonic landscape of the battle was about giving every sound a terrifying, skull-crushing (RIP Baelor) weight.

“You can have a sword the size of a scaffolding pole, and if you hit it against something, it gives a ring, and you don’t feel that size. I love our Foley team — Barnaby Smyth and the guys at Feet First are just brilliant at bringing texture to everything,” Sirkett said. “They’re really good at getting that texture that gives you the realism of it, the movement in it, and it’s just subtle enough you feel like you are there, but it’s not distracting, and it beds in.” 

Indeed, for director Owen Harris, that visual texture was just as key as the “hero” choreography of the fight between Dunk and the sadistic Prince Aerion (Finn Bennett). “Every single frame has been considered, and especially on a fight like this, because you’ve also got the structure (of) seven on seven. You know that around the fight, you’ve got these 12 other guys that are in the middle of their own fights for their lives, so wherever the camera goes, you need to know exactly at that point what stage of the fight they are in. It almost becomes as complicated as the foreground fight. It’s got to feel like that moment there was completely tied into this moment over here, and it feels spontaneous,” Harris said.

It is very in keeping with the smallfolk-loving spirit of “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” that the sequence is concerned about everybody, not just one or two characters in blond wigs with special destinies. Harris kept coming back to the idea of Dunk’s honesty as the keystone for how the Trial of the Seven was conceived, choreographed, shot, and edited.

“We wanted to make something that had the character of this show, that maintained the very honest perspective of Dunk — the honesty of actually being in a fight that doesn’t always go your way,” Harris said. “Dunk’s agricultural is the way I like to think of him. He’s sort of slow, and he doesn’t have that sophistication and that nimble speed of someone like Aerion, (but) deep down, you think if only Dunk could just get his hands on him, you know? If he could just lay a paw on him, then maybe he’s got a bit of hope,” Harris said. 

Many meetings about the levels of dirt, mud, blood, armor design, and fight choreography were held about how to achieve that tantalizing sense of Aerion just dancing out of Dunk’s reach. Of course, putting us in Dunk’s point of view starts with the helmet shot itself.

“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,” Harris said. “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.” 

One of the hardest shots Harris organized in Episode 5 is all about the anxiety before the fight. Dunk and newly minted Ser Raymun Fossoway (Shaun Thomas) join the line of more seasoned knights who are prepared to, quite literally, fight in Dunk’s corner against Aerion. Prince Baelor (Bertie Carvel) lines them all up with tactical instructions. Since these don’t preclude Dunk and Raymun losing their breakfast before they charge off to battle, Harris and his cinematographer Gustav Danielsson frame up a beautiful shot of the two young heroes quite literally puking and rallying. 

“This looks like quite a straightforward scene, but it takes place across a day where the weather changed a lot, where you’ve got actors on horses all with different levels of ability and confidence having to act confidently because they’re knights. So funny enough, that was strangely complicated because it was quite still. You know, I think the thing with action is that once you start moving, that energy creates its own drama. Whereas when things quieten down, it’s the energy of the performance,” Harris said.  

Perhaps nothing better exemplifies the honest spirit of “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” than the fact that, sometimes, puking on a horse is half the battle. 

“A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” airs Sundays on HBO and is streaming on HBO Max.