A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Episode 5 showcased the epic Trial of Seven clash between Ser Duncan “Dunk” the Tall and Prince Aerion Targaryen’s parties after the previous episode spent a considerable portion of its runtime setting it up. The battle saw both parties deal strong, devastating blows against one another, culminating in the death of a key character.
Now, in a recent interview, the actor behind the said character and the showrunner discussed the character’s demise. The pair offered their respective insights into the huge story development.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Episode 5 ending reveals who dies and lives
The end of Episode 5 concludes the Trial of Seven. It shows Dunk, gravely wounded by Aerion in their fight, quickly gaining the upper hand over the latter. Realizing his imminent defeat, Aerion yields and recants his previous accusations against Dunk.
However, Baelor Targaryen succumbs to a massive head injury dealt by Maekar, who smashed his head with a mace during the skirmish.
Ira Parker and Bertie Carvel talk about Baelor’s death in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Episode 5
While speaking with Entertainment Weekly about Baelor‘s death, Bertie Carvel said that he and the creatives experimented with “slightly different versions” of Maekar’s role in his demise, including whether it was an accidental or deliberate killing.
“I think that was really exciting for me to experiment with and to discuss with not only Ira, but Sarah [Adina Smith, director of episode 6],” he continued. “There is that kind of deep, deep desire to be number one in Maekar that might be realized by the death of his brother.” The actor further stated, “So all the guilt or all the sadness or all the grief he feels is kind of bracketed by this realization that this means he’s next in line to the throne.”
Meanwhile, Ira Parker said that Baelor’s decision to endanger himself by participating in the Trial of Seven spoke volumes about what was required to make Westeros, and possibly the real world, a better place.
Parker noted that while Baelor died in the Trial of Seven, Dunk survived. He added, “As Dunk says in the next episode, ‘Maybe someday the realm will need my foot even more than a prince’s life.’”
The showrunner subsequently referenced a scene from Game of Thrones. The scene in question sees Jack Gleeson’s Joffrey Baratheon go through the Book of Brothers. He said of the scene, “As we see, Ser Duncan has four pages in that white book one day, you know?” Parker continued, “So he wasn’t completely wrong with what [Baelor’s] sacrifice was gonna be worth.”
