Facing the Faceless Man
> Tom Wlaschiha, who plays the assassin Jaqen H’ghar in the Game of Thrones, refuses to divulge any details of what will happen in the series’ final season
WHEN he was asked to reveal details about season eight of Game of Thrones, Tom Wlaschiha’s coy reply was: “A man can say nothing.” The 44-year-old German actor is best known for playing the enigmatic Jaqen H’ghar ( top, right and below right) on the show, a Faceless Man who mentors Arya Stark (Maisie Williams) in the deadly arts of his order of assassins in the House of Black and White in Braavos.
Wlaschiha ( below) was recently in Singapore for the 25th anniversary of HBO Asia, and despite the best efforts of regional media, he would not reveal any juicy secrets about the iconic show’s final season, which will premiere in 2019.
Many fans already have their own theories on what will be revealed about the various characters in the final season.
Since one of the skills of the Faceless Men is the ability to put on the ‘face’ of another person and become that person, there is a fan theory that Jaqen is, in fact, Arya’s presumed-dead sword teacher Syrio Forel (played by Miltos Yeromelou).
When asked about that theory, Wlaschiha said: “I always thought it was an interesting theory and I almost believed it, until I did the Comic Con in Germany this year and Miltos was there, so I could clearly see we were two people.”
While the show is renowned for killing off some fanfavourite characters, Wlaschiha said it would be difficult to kill his character.
“Somebody will just come along, put on my face and it will be me again,” said Wlaschiha. “At least that is my theory.”
Most of his scenes in Game of Thrones are with British actress Williams. The two were last onscreen in season six, when her character left the Faceless Men to return to Westeros.
Wlaschiha said she was only 12 when they first started shooting together and that she was a natural in front of the camera, “something you don’t find very often”.
He added: “She hadn’t had any training and she was [new to] acting at that stage. I could not have done it at that age. She is an amazing person to be with. We always had so much fun.”
When asked about how he felt not being in season seven, Wlaschiha teased: “I can’t always wear this face. Sometimes, I have to wear another face. It is all a part of the game.”
He said when he was cast, he had no idea what Game of Thrones was about. “I just knew it was some American fantasy show with some dragons.
“When I was cast, I read the first two books, but by then, the storyline had completely diverged from the books. At the end of book five, Arya is still at the house of Black and White, and she hasn’t left yet.”
Describing Jaqen, he said: “I really like the character because he is mysterious and he has secrets, and it is something that always works with the audience. “I like the whole Faceless Men order because I think they always seem outside of things. They don’t take sides, or seem to [not] take sides.
“As for now, they don’t seem to have an ulterior motive, they seem very zen in a way. They will kill people regardless of their social status and have otherworldly powers. All men are equal to them.”
Wlaschiha admitted that being on the series has changed his professional life quite a bit. He was slowly building up his career with minor roles in television, film and stage productions, but joining Game of Thrones in 2011 made him an international star. He said as an actor, it is important to be a part of something that is watched by so many people, adding that he has been offered more roles now, which is something every actor wants.
While he enjoys meeting fans dressed up as his character at conventions and has no problem being greeted as Jaqen as well as spoken to in the third person (the way his character speaks in the series), he said one must be careful to not do that in real life.
He regaled us with a story of his encounter with an obsessed fan (ironically, before he was in Game of Thrones) who came to his home, rang on his doorbell, and asked if she could make a plaster cast of his face. She even brought the materials with her!
Fortunately, he escaped by saying he had to be somewhere. He now looks back on the somewhat-prophetic experience with amusement, even laughing when someone suggested it was probably an invitation to join the Faceless Men brotherhood.
When asked about his feelings about the series coming to an end with season eight, Wlaschiha said: “I think it is a perfect idea to end it. First of all, all good things must come to an end. The audience has been waiting for the past seven years now to find out how it will end. I think it is only fair they get a resolution, [but] I don’t know if it [will be] the desired one.”