It’s hard to believe, but actress Maisie Williams, who played the sweet, charming, and funny little Arya Stark in the early episodes of the series, is about to turn 30. Yes, time flies relentlessly, and in just a couple of years, the series itself will soon surpass the age of 20.
But, no matter what, it’s no reason to be sad. AdmiGram.com is confident that no matter how many years pass for this series, it will forever remain one of the most grandiose, discussed, and epic. Let’s remember just a small part of why Game of Thrones is a true masterpiece!
20 fascinating facts about the series ‘Game of Thrones’
- The most underestimated at the start. Most film studios didn’t even want to consider its production; the rights to adapt George Martin’s novel ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’ were almost given away, and critics initially viewed the series as a parody of the hugely popular video game ‘Skyrim.’
- The most successful and expensive series. By the release of the third season, practically everyone was talking about it, and the cost of producing each episode became comparable to a movie budget. According to media analysts, every 15th person on Earth has watched the series in its entirety. That’s an unimaginable record.
- The most secretive media project. Actors of the series were only given the script before filming and only on secure iPad tablets. No paper and no leaks of information. To keep the plot secret, they even filmed false plot scenes. Editing the episodes was done under the strictest confidentiality.
- The most significant and award-winning series. ‘Game of Thrones’ is a genuine cultural phenomenon. It has earned 386 of the most prestigious awards and received 1018 television nominations. It is the only media project in the world honored with ten world achievements in the Guinness World Records.
- The most disappointing. Folk wisdom says that even the most impressive things aren’t devoid of flaws. Most of us labeled the most disappointing event of 2019 as the finale of ‘Game of Thrones.’ As sad as it is, it’s hard to recall anything in art that had such an impact on people’s minds.
- The most influential on culture. ‘Game of Thrones’ was a part of the culture and life of the 2010s. Memes, parodies, fashion, art, merchandise – all of these were just a small part of what revolved around the show back then. We even named our children Khaleesi, Arya, Tyrion, Gregor.
- The most illegally downloaded. At the time of the series’ release on the HBO channel, every second byte of pirate internet traffic was dedicated to the recently released episode of ‘Game of Thrones.’
- The most lavish in set designs. Despite the abundance of computer graphics, the series is simply overflowing with natural set designs. There was such a great need for sets that they couldn’t keep up with sewing costumes and crafting props for filming. On the set, the weight and quantity of the set pieces were counted in thousands.
- The most creative. Speaking of set designs and a creative approach, the decorators did their best. They came up with an incredible idea to use Ikea rugs to create fur capes worn by the Night’s Watchmen. It was faster and cheaper to make them than to wait for custom orders.
- The most bloodthirsty. As calculated by fans of the series, throughout its airing history, we witnessed nearly 150,000 deaths of people, animals, and other creatures. Just for the battle scenes, over 4,000 gallons (15,000 liters) of artificial blood were used.
- The snowiest. In the series, the main role was played by frost and snow. However, to convey the severity of the Westeros winter, the natural snow in Northern Ireland wasn’t enough. Therefore, the production used 52,000 bags of paper snow.
- The most detailed lore. Why is ‘Game of Thrones’ so impressive? Because real historians, geographers, linguists, economists, and other experts worked on creating its lore. The languages created by David J. Peterson alone are a testament to the depth of the world-building.
- The most censored. Despite its obvious commercial success (having more than 100 licensees worldwide), the series faced incredible difficulties due to its brutal and explicit scenes. Some countries simply couldn’t allow its broadcast on their TV screens without censorship.
- The most hated by animal rights activists. Unfortunately, after the series aired, the percentage of purchased and abandoned Husky dogs increased by more than four times. The fault lay with the irresistible desire of people lacking understanding of animal care to have a ‘direwolf’ by their side. All of this sparked outrage among animal rights activists.
- The most covered in the press. To understand how popular the series was, it’s enough to say that the number of official photos provided to the press exceeded 1.4 million shots.
- The most anticipated. At the release of each new season, the proportion of searches on search engines for the release date exceeded typical user queries. Moreover, searches for its illegal downloading were rampant even before the episodes aired.
- The most ‘actor-sticky.’ It’s funny, but most of us continue to refer to the actors of the series not by their real names but by the names of the characters they portrayed in ‘Game of Thrones.’
- The most actor-charismatic. ‘Game of Thrones’ is the only series that seamlessly integrated an incredible number of charismatic characters: Arya Stark, Tyrion Lannister, Cersei Lannister, Tywin Lannister, Joffrey Baratheon, Sandor ‘The Hound’ Clegane, Tormund Giantsbane, Ygritte. And this is by no means an exhaustive list.
- The most grueling for actors. Not only did the actors perform in extreme weather conditions, enduring severe cold and heat, but they also spent almost all of their free time in training. Those who portrayed warriors spent 3-4 days a week training with martial arts masters and working on strength in the gym.
- The one that played a cruel joke on actors. Cersei Lannister, Joffrey Baratheon, Ramsay Bolton – they received the most in real life for masterfully embodying the roles of the main antagonists in ‘Game of Thrones.’ They all admitted that the fan hatred toward the character often translated into personal animosity towards them.
