Game of Thrones director defends show against claims Battle of Winterfell was 'too dark'

Fans were left craning and squinting to catch the action
Natasha Sporn30 April 2019

Game of Thrones director Fabian Wagner has defended the show after fans claimed the Battle of Winterfell was “too dark” – literally.

The cinematographer insisted that his filming wasn’t to blame for the issues some fans reported in watching the third episode, instead pointing the finger at streaming services and HBO’s “compression of the episode” for the dark scenes.

“Game of Thrones has always been very dark and a very cinematic show,” he told TMZ. “I know it wasn't too dark because I shot it.

“We tried to give the viewers and fans a cool episode to watch.”

In darkness: Alfie Allen as Theon Greyjoy
HBO

Wagner also told the publication that the producers and showrunners “wanted an intense, claustrophobic and disorientating” episode for the epic clash between the living and the dead.

He also pointed out that watching over poor connection or in a room that was too bright would hamper viewing, recommending that fans watch in a cinema-style darkened room for the best experience.

Fans complained on social media as they settled down for the The Long Night, which featured the battle everyone had been waiting for, because they were struggling to see what was going on.

Twitter was awash with memes from disgruntled viewers commenting about the gloomy picture and joking that their “TV couldn’t handle it”.

“#GameofThrones is 90% unwatchable the screen is so dark,” wrote one user, while another added: “But like who actually died cause it was v dark and too wild for me to keep up. #GameofThrones.”

The third episode of the final season was the longest in the HBO shows history at 82 minutes. The broadcaster confirmed that it took 55 consecutive night shoots to film.

Game of Thrones: Season 8 - In pictures

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Game of Thrones airs 2am and 9pm, Mondays on Sky Atlantic, It is also available on NOW TV.

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