Filming burial scenes can be challenging, but the actors playing Ser Erryk and Arryk on ‘House of the Dragon’ seem to have found the fun in it. Their final day of shooting unexpectedly turned into a unique treat as they were covered in a delicious substitute for soil.
Instead of real dirt, the soil used in the scene was actually a mixture of chocolate cake and Oreos. Speaking about their experience, the actors shared: “What they were chucking on us was about 300 quid’s worth (about $379) of chocolate cake and Oreos all crushed up. It was actually quite an enjoyable experience.”
One of the actors mentioned the challenge of resisting the urge to eat the crumbs: “They throw it at you on the face and you want to lick your lips and just eat cake. But then it’s like, ‘Oh, we’re meant to be dead here.’”
Michael Dawson, the special effects supervisor, confirmed that the ‘soil’ mix was 70 percent Oreo cookies and 30 percent chocolate cake.
The actors also shared how the peculiar day felt almost celebratory, given that it was their last day on set: “We’d finished the job and we were getting buried. So it felt like a celebration because they were chucking cake on us. It was a weird day.”
Episode three director Geeta Vasant Patel also reflected on the symbolism behind the shot of the brothers being buried side by side: “There is so much symbolism in that one image. The brothers represent the two sides. They had hearts and were people of love. But all we see here is death. And the clock is ticking with every bit of dirt tossed upon them.
“Rhaenys knows there is light and pushes for it. She gives one of my favourite lines, ‘We teeter on the point where none of this will matter.’ She’s referring to where it all started. But Rhaenyra is primal in shutting it down. That’s not a conversation she wants to have.”
