When you play HBO's Game of Thrones, you win or you die. We know Sean Bean's Ned Stark sure as heck didn't win, and now that we're up to the final Season 8, Bean thinks maybe only one of Ned's children will reach the finale. Here's what he said when asked which of his TV kids will make it to the end:
Who's left? Jon Snow is left, isn't he? But Arya would have to be it. Yeah Arya will last -- maybe she'll be on the throne.
A Girl will rule? By the way, sorry, Sansa and Bran Stark, who are also still alive but not even mentioned by their dad. Instead, Sean Bean only name-dropped Jon Snow and Arya Stark to Mashable, pointing to his young daughter as the most likely to not only live, but rule on the Iron Throne.
Game of Thrones started with six Stark children, who all got their own direwolves. Sadly, we lost eldest son Robb and youngest son Rickon. Only Jon, Sansa, Arya, and Bran are still alive as we enter the final six episodes of the series.
Arya actress Maisie Williams had posted she was the last woman standing at the end of Season 8 filming, so maybe Sean Bean was even right. But it doesn't seem like an Arya thing to rule.
Arya could easily take over -- just ask the Freys. Oh wait! You can't! But she's more the behind-the-scenes loner type. Sansa seems to have a taste for leadership, and Robb really took to it before the Lannisters sent their regards at the Red Wedding.
Jon Snow is not Ned Stark's biological child, but Ned raised Jon as his own. No matter what, Jon is Ned's son. Jon keeps being named leader everywhere he goes, even though his goal was always just to be a ranger like his Uncle Benjen Stark. It would be very Jon-ish to sacrifice himself in a final battle, although I'm certainly not rooting for that fate.
Sansa has grown so much across the past seven seasons. If Winterfell is threatened by the White Walkers, the Lady of Winterfell would likely fight to the end. Again, not rooting for that, but Sean Bean may be right to think all of the remaining Starks won't make it. There are major battles ahead, as we know.
Since Bran Stark is now Three-Eyed Raven, it stands to reason he'll not only live to the end of the series, but long long LONG afterward. But we'll see.
For now, Sean Bean is placing his bets on his tomboy daughter turned assassin, Arya Stark. Bean made his comments while promoting his new role as "The Undying" in the upcoming game Hitman 2, which plays off the actor's reputation for always dying on screen. This should probably come full circle with Maisie Williams cast to play an assassin charged with killing Sean Bean. Maybe in a new Netflix series?
Sean Bean previously mentioned a reunion for the whole Game of Thrones cast in an upcoming Conan O'Brien special. So we can look forward to that, in addition to the final six episodes of Game of Thrones, which should premiere in the first half of 2019 on HBO. Keep up with more TV shows in our fall 2018 premiere guide.
