One of the more seemingly impossible tasks in TV fandom is taking part in a conversation about Game of Thrones these days without having the subject of Jon Snow’s fate come up. And while that’s definitely an interesting train of thought that has many clues pointing to both sides, we’re more interested in the fate of another character left for dead, but never actually seen as a corpse: Sandor “The Hound” Clegane. And if there is glory in this world (as well as truth to recent rumors), we will see The Hound again in Season 6.
As with a lot of these Game of Thrones rumors, this one about The Hound’s potential resurgence is based on actor Rory McCann being seen in the same area where Game of Thrones is filming. According to Watchers on the Wall, McCann was spotted at a hotel in Belfast that HBO is known to use. Since the show’s production isn’t based in a celebrity-heavy spot like L.A., seeing former show actors in the vicinity lends some weight to the sighting, and it’s doubly strengthened by the fact that McCann doesn’t seem to have any upcoming projects on his schedule.
Yes, it’s possible that he’s in Belfast to visit his former cast members. Yes, it’s possible that he was flying home from somewhere and his flight got delayed and so he had to stay at a hotel that night. Anything is possible, really. So we’re choosing to believe, in this case, that it’s possible he’s there to film more scenes as The Hound. And not just a death scene, either. We want him fully revived and in need of sticking a blade in someone. Left for dead doesn’t always mean dead, especially in a world where magic and dragons exist.
That’s not the only Game of Thrones actor that was seen in the area, either, although McCann is clearly the more important one here. Enzo Cilenti, who played the recurring Season 5 slave-trader Yezzan zo Quaggaz, shared a photo on social media taken at a shipyard in Belfast Harbour which shares space with Titanic Studios, where Game of Thrones is filmed. Will Yezzan have more to do in Season 6? We certainly hope so.
Nothing is out of the realm of possibility for Game of Thrones, which featured its first flashback last season, and will have another one this season involving Ned Stark. Hell, even if The Hound’s return involved a flashback of some kind, I’d be down with it. What about you guys?
