'Game of Thrones' Trailer Hints at Jon Snow's Return

The new “Game of Thrones” Season 6 trailer came out on Tuesday, and it has nuggets for fans. It shows Commander of the Night’s Watch Jon Snow in three separate scenes, and hints toward the confirmation of a theory first proposed as a joke on Reddit.

Warning: Spoilers for Seasons 1-5 and for the book A Song of Ice and Fire abound.

Season 5 left off with the cliffhanger of all cliffhangers — Jon Snow, a character much beloved whose parentage is still in doubt, dies gruesomely at the hands of his fellow members of the Night’s Watch. The season also ended with Cersei’s walk of shame — but still a trial for her yet to come.

Fan theories abound as to how Jon Snow will be resurrected from the dead. There is arguably more disagreement among fans as to how he will rise again than as to whether or not it will happen. By showing three separate images of Jon in this trailer, “Game of Thrones” seems to be letting the cat out of the bag. Here’s Jon’s body:

Here’s Ser Davos Seaworth, getting ready to defend Jon’s body against a potential attack:

Snow is certainly dead — for now. But it would arguably be bad storytelling on behalf of the show and the author of the books on which the show is based, George R.R. Martin, to leave him that way. Jon Snow’s parentage remains a huge mystery, and the red priestess Melisandre has expressed keen interest in his future. She may be mistaken, as she was about Stannis, but Jon’s story is likely not finished yet — and his direwolf Ghost lives on. Whether or not Jon Snow is resurrected this season, the prominent placement of his body in the trailer hints at some big scenes coming his way.

The other nugget for fans has to do with a certain Reddit theory known as “Cleganebowl” (GET HYPE!). Throughout the series, there are two brothers — Gregor “The Mountain” (Conan Stevens, then Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson) and Sandor “The Hound” Clegane (Rory McCann) — who serve the Lannister cause but hate one another. In Season 1, Gregor nearly kills Ser Loras Tyrell, and only Sandor is able to stop him. The two fight briefly, but King Robert commands them to stop. Ever since, there has been a group of internet fans anxious to see them fight for real.

So “Cleganebowl” was born: the idea of an ultimate struggle between “The Mountain,” who enforces Tywin Lannister’s rule until his death in Season 4, and “The Hound,” who serves King Joffrey until deserting at the end of Season 2. “The Mountain” nearly dies facing Oberyn Martell, but is saved — in both show and books — by the dark magic of Qyburn. “The Hound” is presumed dead after a duel with Brienne of Tarth (Gwendoline Christie), but Arya Stark (Maisie Williams) leaves him alive.

In the books, a character vaguely matching Sandor Clegane’s description is seen briefly at a monastery, and he seems to have given up his warrior ways. In recent comments about his upcoming role on the show, actor Ian McShane let slip that his character “is like an ex-warrior who has become a peacenick….So I have this group of peaceful (sort of like a cult peaceful tribe) who have brought back a much loved character everybody thinks is dead.” These comments are widely seen as confirming the rebirth of Sandor “The Hound” Clegane.

What does this have to do with the recent trailer? In the trailer, Lancel Lannister, a nephew of Cersei’s who has joined a warrior religious sect, declares to the queen mother, “order your man to set aside or there will be violence!” Cersei responds, “I choose violence.”

This is likely an allusion to Cersei’s upcoming trial, where she is expected to demand trial-by-combat. Her champion is the resurrected Gregor Clegane, and with Sandor Clegane’s presence among the monks of the Faith of the Seven, it is rumored that he will be the champion of Cersei’s accusers. So yes, it’s likely happening. Hold on to your butts.

Here’s the trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CuH3tJPiP-U