Ever since the season four finale of HBO's Game of Thrones, fans who have read George R.R. Martin's fantasy saga have been wondering - where is Lady Stoneheart?
A central character in the novels introduced at the end of Martin's fourth book, the mysterious woman is nowhere to be seen in the HBO show. It doesn't seem like she will be appearing in season five either. What gives?
EW asked Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss that exact question. Where is Lady Stoneheart? This was their answer. Oh, and in case you are wondering, don't worry: this article is 100 percent spoiler free.
"We reached that point that commenting individually on what is or is not in the show from the books is a prospect of diminishing returns," Weiss says. "Early on in the process, it was something we talked about a fair amount. [The change of strategy is] not out of any disrespect; the fact that people care enough about the books and the show to have arguments about it is something we have huge gratitude and respect for. I just don't think there's value in anything we have to say about it. It opens a Pandora's box of questions you could spend your whole life answering, and the net result is that what you said will probably make people less happy than if you hadn't said anything."
In another interview, Benioff said much the same, opting for a "wait till the end" approach to explaining the show's inclusion and exclusion of characters.
"People will complain about things because they don't know what's coming up ahead," Benioff says. "‘Why haven't we seen this guy?' And I think it will be easier once everything is out and it's 70 hours. Not that people shouldn't complain-that's why God invented the Internet-but I think we'd be better able to have that argument later. Sometimes we're going in a different order or telling a different story. We think the story will all make sense at the end. Otherwise it will be eight wasted years."
If you are thinking to yourself that Benioff and Weiss totally dodged the question, you are probably right. But their answers are insightful, even if they don't give a straight answer. They do seem to suggest that just because certain characters haven't appeared yet doesn't mean they won't appear at all. Such could be the case with Lady Stoneheart. We will know for sure once the show's fifth season concludes. In the meantime you can read up on some of the major book to show changes that have happened so far.
Game of Thrones returns to HBO on April 12.
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