by Game of Thrones for HBO by David Benioff and D.B. is an American fantasy drama television series created by Weiss. It is an adaptation of A Song of Ice and Fire, a series of fantasy novels by George R.R. Martin, the first of which is A Game of Thrones. The show was shot in the United Kingdom, Canada, Croatia, Iceland, Malta, Morocco, and Spain. It premiered on HBO in the United States on April 17, 2011, and concluded on May 19, 2019, with 73 episodes broadcast over eight seasons.
Storyline
After years of rebellion from a stolen bride and the blind ambitions of a mad king, House Robert Baratheon sits on the much-desired Iron Throne. In the mythical land of Westeros, nine great families fight for every inch of control and every drop of power.
The Hand of the King, Jon Arryn is dead. And Robert seeks out Eddard Stark, his childhood friend, his only other ally in Westeros. The grim and respected Warden of the North is tasked with leaving his frozen sanctuary and joining the capital of King’s Landing to help the now overweight and drunk Robert rule.
However, in the middle of the night a letter informs Ned that the former Hand had been murdered and that Robert would be next. So noble Ned goes against his better wishes in an attempt to save his friend and the kingdoms.
But political intrigue, conspiracies, murders and sexual desire lead to a mystery that could tear the Seven Kingdoms apart. And soon Eddard will find out what happens when you play Game of Thrones.
Casting
Nina Gould and Robert Stern were the series’ primary casting directors. Through a process of auditions and readings, the main cast was assembled. The only exceptions were Peter Dinklage and Sean Bean, whom the writers wanted from the beginning; He was announced to have joined the pilot in 2009. Other actors signed on for the pilot included Kit Harington as Jon Snow, Jack Gleeson as Joffrey Baratheon, Harry Lloyd as Viserys Targaryen, and Mark Addy as Robert Baratheon. According to Benioff and Weiss, Eddie was the easiest actor to cast for the series due to his audition performance. Some characters from the pilot were recast for the first season. The role of Catelyn Stark was initially played by Jennifer Ehle, but the role was recast with Michelle Fairley. The character of Daenerys Targaryen was also recast, with Emilia Clarke replacing Tamzin Merchant. The rest of the cast of the first season was cast in the second half of 2009,
Although many of the cast members returned after the first season, the producers had several new characters to cast in each season. Due to a large number of new characters, Benioff and Weiss postponed the introduction of several major characters in the second season and merged several characters into one, or assigned plot functions to individual characters. Some recurring characters were recast over the years; For example, the role of Gregor Clegane was played by three different actors, while Dean-Charles Chapman played both Tommen Baratheon and a minor Lannister character.
