HBO
"I can't honestly say. I still reckon he's dead," Isaac Hempstead-Wright, who plays Bran Stark, told Business Insider when we asked Monday about his role in the storyline's cover-up.
On Sunday's episode, Melisandre (Carice van Houten) got her mojo back and conducted a spell that appeared to bring Jon Snow back to life.
Hempstead-Wright returned to the show on Sunday's episode after sitting out season five. During his hiatus, the actor said he knew as much about Jon Snow as the fans did.
"I saw that he died at the end of season five," the actor said. "And I thought, 'Well, that happens at the end of the books anyway, so no surprise there.' And then, we got the scripts for season six. But we still don't know too much; he's only opened his eyes. It's just like 'Game of Thrones' to dangle carrots in front of our eyes and then snatch them away cruelly."
Helen Sloan/HBO
So the players behind HBO's fantasy hit are still sending mixed signals.
Maybe Hempstead-Wright is just getting deep into character. The actor believes that Bran, the eldest legitimate Stark, has embarked on a new path that doesn't include his siblings. The character has been honing his magical powers under the tutelage of the Three-Eyed Raven (Max von Sydow).
"I think Bran has given up any hope for a reunion with the Starks, or any character for that matter," he said. "I think he has risen above the basics of getting back together, regrouping, and working something out, because it's been hammered into Bran that he's got a responsibility in the wider world of Westeros, a responsibility that may be quite massive."