Bran Stark Actor Says He's Not The Night King, So You Can Let That Theory Die

With Season 7 officially in the can, Game of Thrones fans only have one more season to look forward to before the fantasy saga is done. Obviously, the hype for the eighth and final season is immense, and fans are already trying to put together the major twists and reveals they think will happen in Westeros. But according to one actor on the show, one of the most popular fan theories to rise up in Season 7 is totally wrong. Isaac Hempstead Wright, who plays the all-seeing Bran Stark, confirmed in an interview with Vulture that Bran Stark is not the Night King, despite many predictions otherwise.

Game of Thrones fans have been toying with the theory that Bran Stark could actually be the villainous Night King for a while now, but it grew to a fever pitch in Season 7. When Bran returned to Winterfell with a whole set of insane new powers, and a lot less emotional connection to his family, fans couldn't help but wonder if something was up. We also saw Bran warg into the Night King for a little bit, and then there was that final shot where it looked like the White Walkers were marching in the shape of the Stark house sigil. A lot of this stuff helped create the fan theory that Bran was actually the Night King.

But, according to the man who actually plays Bran on the show, that theory just doesn't hold water. Isaac Hempstead Wright said the similarities fans are probably picking up on just arose because the Night King and the Three-Eyed Raven (the mystical seer Bran became north of the Wall) are both ancient beings with huge amounts of power. They may seem similar, but they are still on opposite sides in the battle of good versus evil.

I think it's less that they're the same person and more that they're two of the ancient beings of Westeros. The Three-Eyed Raven has been around for God knows how long, and White Walkers have been reported since the beginning of time. As we've seen, they were created by the Children of the Forest, so we can't get much more ancient than that. Perhaps we can think of it as these are two characters with a huge amount of power, but one is a Frankenstein's monster who is driven by nothing but hatred and violence. Then there's Bran, who uses his powers for good.

Hempstead Wright did end with the caveat that he has no idea what will take place in Season 8 yet, so who knows — maybe there will be some connection between Bran and the Night King. But as of right now, he sounds pretty confident in saying they are two completely different beings.