'Game of Thrones' casts screen legend Max von Sydow in familiar role

Game of Thrones has just cast another acclaimed veteran actor. Silver-screen legend Max von Sydow is joining the HBO hit, EW has learned exclusively.

The famed performer, whose career spans dozens of feature films — from The Exorcist to Minority Report to the upcoming Star Wars: The Force Awakens — has signed on to season 6.

Bonus: We know who von Sydow is going to play, and it’s a character we’ve already met!

Von Sydow will play the Three-Eyed Raven, the mystical tutor of Bran Stark, who was briefly seen in the season 4 finale (where the character was portrayed by a different actor).

The casting comes on the heels of another famed European thespian joining the fantasy hit. On Saturday, EW exclusively reported that Ian McShane (Deadwood) has joined the cast as well. McShane’s role, however, has remained under wraps.

Both McShane and von Sydow are not expected to have a lot of screen time next season, but both roles are crucial in their own way.

Thrones, recently nominated for 24 Emmy nominations, is currently in production, with von Sydow already on set. The series is expected to return for 10 episodes next spring. Last week, HBO’s programming president Michael Lombardo revealed that the network plans at least eight seasons of the show, a bump from the oft-reported seven season plan.

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