If you’ve been watching all those spine-tingling trailers HBO has released for Game of Thrones, then you probably noticed that Daenerys Targaryen doesn’t seem to be getting a very warm welcome from her former Dothraki subjects. Or maybe we’re seeing this the wrong way: the fact that no one in the Khalisar instantly lopped Dany’s head off shows that being a Khaleesi still means something.
Still, we know that Dany is being forced (on foot!) to Vaes Dothrak, the traditional home/prison of all Khaleesi that outlive their Khals. Another scene showed her about to be branded, which still seems better than having to eat a raw horse heart like the last time she was in town. The warriors in the Khalisar treat Dany with disrespect and outright hostility. She can only hope the Khals currently in Vaes Dothrak treat her better.
One of those Khals is Khal Moro, played by New Zealander Joseph Naufahu. He’s a former rugby player best known for his role as Liscus in Spartacus, and he may be Dany’s best hope for improving her station among the Dothraki. So what do we know about Moro?
“He’s Dothraki, so he’s a bit of a brute,” Naufahu told the Hollywood Reporter. “But he’s also quite loyal. He follows traditions very strictly. He’s loyal to the living, and he’s loyal to the dead as well. He’s not as much of a chauvinist as some of the other Dothraki.”
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Since he’s already played a barbarian, getting the Dothraki look and demeanor right wasn’t too difficult for Naufahu. Unfortunately, he also had to learn the Dothraki tongue, developed into a real language for the show by David J. Peterson.
“That was the toughest part. I can ride horses; that’s all good. I can grow a beard. They can put tattoos on me. In terms of prep, it was just the language.”
Khal Drogo was never big on talking too much — he preferred to express himself with his arakh. We’ll have to wait until deep into the new season of Game of Thrones to see what Khal Moro is all about, and whether he’s a friend or foe to Daenerys.
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