One of the highly anticipated plots in “Game of Thrones” season 8 is the return of Jon Snow’s (Kit Harington) direwolf, Ghost. But is there also a chance that viewers will see Arya’s (Maisie Williams) own direwolf, Nymeria, in the final installment as well?
The Stark kids — Robb (Richard Madden), Sansa (Sophie Turner), Arya, Bran (Ian Hempstead Wright), Rickon (Art Parkinson), and their cousin Jon — found a newborn pack of direwolves in season 1. Coming in to “Game of Thrones” season 8, the only living ones are Ghost and Nymeria.
So far, “Game of Thrones” season 8 director David Nutter confirmed that viewers “will see a direwolf.” To avoid spoiling plot details, the director did not mention whether the returning direwolf is either Ghost or Nymeria. But what are the chances that they will both appear?
In the books and in the TV series, these direwolves have been extremely loyal to the Starks and they really make a good companion when bad guys are around. With a wave of epic battles expected in “Game of Thrones” season 8, it would really be a treat for Arya and Jon to have Nymeria and Ghost beside them.
However, scenes with the direwolves have previously been cut out because of budget restrictions. And “Game of Thrones” season 8 is expected to include many battle scenes to portray thousands of armies and dragons fighting largely requiring CGI technology as well.
Back in season 7, Nymeria surprisingly returned and faced Arya once more. However, she apparently found her own pack and turned down Arya’s offer of returning to Winterfell. So there is a chance that this part of the story will not be changed in “Game of Thrones” season 8. That leaves Ghost as the possible direwolf cast member in the finale.
In fact, “Game of Thrones” season 8 visual effects head Joe Bauer already told HuffPost about Ghost’s return. “Oh, you’ll see [Ghost] again. He has a fair amount of screen time in Season 8,” the production member said.
Now, why would David Nutter answer the direwolf-related question about “Game of Thrones” season 8 with a dash of riddle? He could be simply unaware of Joe Bauer’s earlier statement. But it can also be because there are more surprises that await direwolf-loving fans.
The likely endgame in “Game of Thrones” season 8 is the defeat of Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey) and the Night King (Vladimír Furdík). But along the way, another major mystery is how Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) will handle the truth that they are related by blood. HBO already announced the show returns for its final six episodes in April 2019.
