No longer alone in the world of "Game of Thrones," in Sunday's episode, Arya Stark found her way back to the man who helped her at Harrenhal -- Jaqen H'ghar.
Or to put it another way, a man is back!
Tom Wlaschiha returned to the show as Jaqen in "The House of Black and White," his first appearance in the series since his character gave Arya a valuable coin, taught her to say "Valar Morghulis" (so she could find him again in Braavos), changed his face and left at the end of Season 2.
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In May 2014, Tom received a call from his agent who told him the show was interested in bringing him back in the fall to shoot Season 5. Several weeks later, Tom was in Los Angeles when he heard the good news.
"I was helping a friend [buy] paint at the paint store and then my agent called and I remember I was walking – it was a pretty big store, I don't recall the name, but I kind of got lost in the shelves," Tom told Access Hollywood, when we asked him about the moment the call came through. "I was walking just aimlessly, just listening to him and when the call was finished, I was looking for my friend to tell him the news, and then I couldn't find him for five minutes because I'd gotten lost in the store."
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Once he found his friend, the paint buying trip quickly ended.
"We ended up not buying any paint," Tom said. "We just went out and had a drink."
A few months later, the actor was on the "Game of Thrones" set, putting on Jaqen H'ghar's dark red wig, with its white streak.
"It was great obviously, and I suddenly recognized myself again," Tom joked, describing the moment he put the wig back on. "No, it was awesome, I'd always hoped to come back on the show, but the plot of 'Game of Thrones,' I mean, you rarely get what you're hoping for, so I wasn't sure at all and so [the] first shooting day of Season 5 was great."
Maisie Williams as Arya Stark and Tom Wlaschiha as Jaqen H’ghar (Macall B. Polay/HBO)
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Clothed in robes instead of Lannister armor, Tom's return in Sunday night's episode was the first scene he shot after coming back to the series.
"We shot pretty much in order and… Episode 2 was the first one we shot in Croatia. Basically, when the kindly man changes into me, thankfully," Tom said.
While Tom's career spans film and international television shows, he agrees there's something extra special about being a part of the global hit that is "Game of Thrones."
"Yeah, of course. I mean, when I was doing Season 2, I knew it was big, but since then, it has grown so much and you really have to take an extra breath to calm down and deliver your performance the usual way and not be nervous about it," he said. "But it's great. I really love being on that show because of all the detail and all the production values. It's just amazing."
When Access first spoke with Tom ahead of his Season 2 debut, he hadn't yet been recognized as a "Thrones" cast member. Now though, with the popularity of his performance as Jaqen, he occasionally gets stopped in the street.
"It happens once in a while," he said. "I'm always surprised because I look so different in costume and wig that in real life it always surprises me when people just recognize me walking past."
"Game of Thrones" continues Sundays at 9 PM ET/PT on HBO.
-- Jolie Lash
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