'Game of Thrones' season 6 spoilers, plot news: Another character returns from the dead; Ian McShane opens up about mystery role

The Hound is alive!

At the beginning of the latest episode of HBO's "Game of Thrones" season 6, viewers learned that Sandor "The Hound" Clegane (Rory McCann), who Arya (Maisie Williams) had left for dead back in season 4, is alive and well.

In "The Broken Man," The Hound was reintroduced as a physically and spiritually changed man, having been cared for by Brother Ray (guest star Ian McShane), a philosophical former warrior leading a group of followers in a remote sept.

In the episode, it was revealed that Brother Ray had found The Hound in a bad state after Arya had left him seriously injured and practically decomposing, and had nursed him back to health. Apart from getting The Hound back in shape, he had also provided spiritual nurturing, which will play a crucial role in The Hound's story moving forward.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, "Game of Thrones" co-executive producer Bryan Cogman explained that it was always the "GoT" team's intention to bring The Hound back.

"He was always going to come back, it was just a matter of how," he shared.

Fans will have to stay tuned to find out what's in store for the character, including, perhaps, the so-called Cleganebowl that "Game of Thrones" fans have long been waiting for.

Meanwhile, McShane also spoke to EW in a separate interview, spilling the details on Brother Ray and his purpose in the "Game of Thrones" story.

According to the "Deadwood" actor, he was invited to appear in the show because Brother Ray had a big two-page speech to make.

"It's a big soliloquy, like in 'Deadwood,' and they needed to get somebody who could do that," he said.

McShane also spoke about the need for his character, telling EW, "But I think my main use was to re-introduce a character people thought was long gone and who needed some humanity."

"The Hound has not been shown much humanity in his life, and he gets a little from Brother Ray and carries that forward into his character, which makes it more interesting for those who watch him," he explained.

"Game of Thrones" season 6 airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO.