1. Deleted Pilot
2. A Sudden Change Of Cast
The major plot detail that Jaime and Cersei were actually brother and sister failed to come to light.
In the first episode, Catelyn Stark and Daenerys Targaryen were actually portrayed by Jennifer Ehle and Tamzin Merchant.3. Other Actors who Turned Down a Role
However, when the show aired, they were replaced by Michelle Fairley and Emilia Clarke.
Ehle and Merchant weren’t the only actors who were offered a role. Gillian Anderson and Dominic West turned down roles on the show.4. Pranks
Sam Claflin and Sam Heughan tried out for a lot of different roles.
After the pilot was chosen, David Benioff pranked Peter Dinklage by telling him that the show was going to be cancelled.5. The Game Of Thrones Pet
Dinklage was left to suffer for a bit before being told the truth.
Sophie Turner, otherwise known on the show as Sansa Stark adopted Zunni, the Northern Inuit dog that played her pet direwolf on the first season.6. New Language
Her parents adopted her dog after it was killed off on the show.
Dothraki is a real created language you can learn to speak. Linguist specialists even have a course made by linguist David J.7. Characters That Have Revolving Actors
Peterson, who worked with HBO to create the language for the show.
Many of the characters have been played by more than one actor. One was Dario Naharis, portrayed by Ed Skrein in season 3, and afterwards by Michiel Huisman from season 4 through 6.8.The Targaryens Eyes Were Initially Violet
Tommen Baratheon was portrayed by Callum Wharry in season 1 and 2 and then by Dean-Charles Chapman from season 3 to 6. Marcella was portrayed by Aimee Richardson in season 1 and 2 and then by Nell Tiger Free in season 5.
In the books it is known that the Targaryen families traits are silver hair and violet eyes. Daenerys and Viceroys Targaryen actually wore violet contact lenses in the beginning, but David Benioff and D.B.9. Dead Or Alive
Weiss felt that the actors’ were limited in portraying emotion.
Many of the characters are alive in Martin’s books, but very dead on the show.10. Filming The Horse Heart Scene Was Creepy
These characters include: Shireen and Stannis Baratheon, Night’s Watchmen Pyp and Grenn, Barrister Selmy, Marcella Baratheon, and Mance Rayder.
In season one, The gory horse heart Daenerys had to eat was only a big gummy candy.11. Monty Python and The Holy Grail Connections
All the fake blood made Clarke so sticky it had her glued to the toilet.
Some of the shots from the pilot were filmed in one of the castles used in Monty Python and the Holy Grail.12. People Are Naming Their Babies After Characters
Very cool!
In 2014, according to the Social Security Administration, “Khaleesi” was popular among baby names for girls, it jumped to 755th place from 1021th place in 2013.13. The Stark Kids Real Ages Are Different On The Show
Other names that are becoming more popular are Arya, Tyrion, Brine, Sansa, Bran, Sandor, and Theon.
The actors playing the Stark kids in the show are older than their counterparts in the book. The actor playing Bran was 12, when he was supposed to be 7.14. The Show runners had to guess who Jon Snows Mother was
Arya went from 9 to 13. Sansa went from 11 to 15 and Rickon from 3 to 6.
George RR Martin tested the show creators Weiss and Benioff before giving them the blessing to make the show.15. 1 Actor 4 Characters
Martin asked them “Who is Jon Snow’s real mother?” He wanted an intelligent guess and based on the facts of the world.
16. Ramsay Almost Played Jon Snow
On season 3 he was a nameless giant and in season 5 he portrayed the Wildling giant Wun Wun. Those are pretty big roles!
Iwan Rheon was close to playing Jon Snow, but the role went to Kit Harington.17. The Most Illegally Downloaded Show
Rheon went on to play Roose Bolton’s son, Ramsay.
According to various sources, Game of Thrones was the most pirated show four years running. In 2015 it had more than twice the illegal downloads than The Walking Dead.18. Game of Thrones Has Its Very Own Official Rap Album
Now that’s crazy!
The show released an official rap album in 2014, called “Catch the Throne.” They re-released it before the airing of season 5.19. Sean Bean Had Fun With His Chopped Off Head
Artists that contributed in the album include: Method Man, Snoop Dogg, Big Boi, Taleb Kweli and Anthrax.
Behind the scenes, actor Sean Bean (Ned Stark) was playing football with his character's chopped off head.
That’s not something you see everyday.