EXCLUSIVE: Up-and-coming Brit actress Melanie Liburd has been cast as a Red Priestess in HBO’s Game Of Thrones. Liburd, who has appeared in The Grinder, Strike Back, Dracula and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, is repped by the UK’s Identity Agency Group, Talent Works in the U.S. and Silver Lining Entertainment.

Liburd’s casting would seem to indicate a new direction for the character, or at the very least a new incarnation. One Red Woman or Red Priestess had previously been played by Carice Van Houten, who embodied the form of Melisandre. Speculation has been rife that Melisandre would have a hand in bringing back the character of Jon Snow, played by Kit Harington, who was (spoiler alert) shockingly killed at the denouement of the previous season. The Liburd character is separate and different from Van Houten’s major recurring character.

Game Of Thrones is currently filming across multiple locations around the seven kingdoms. Liburd also has an untitled Kevin Williamson psychological thriller opposite Dylan McDermott in the pipelines.