Game of Thrones is one of the most popular television series of the last few decades. The series already had a legion of built-in loyal fans because of George R.R Martin’s equally popular A Song of Ice and Fire book series. It became a massive pop culture hit and so popular that it broke HBO viewership records, made the cast household names, and received many TV award nominations. Game of Thrones brought HBO so much success that the network expanded the world of Game of Thrones with a spin-off: House of The Dragon, and more upcoming spin-off series.
No matter how people feel about the final season of the series, Game of Thrones carved its permanent place in the TV history. It’ll be a series that people discover and love for many decades to come. The Game of Thrones cast has gained lifelong fans who want to know the latest news on the actors who played the Starks, Lannisters, Targaryens, and all those in between.
Since Game of Thrones’ series finale, the cast members have remained busy booking gigs, starting families, and growing their empires.
Peter Dinklage (Tyrion Lannister)
Peter Dinklage played the wisecracking and resourceful Tyrion Lannister. Tyrion was shunned by his father Tywin (Charles Dance) and sister Cersei (Lena Headey), but had a close relationship with his brother Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau). Tyrion often found himself as an adviser for those in charge. He was an advocate for women and wine. Peter Dinklage won four Emmy awards for his work as Tyrion Lannister.
Following Game of Thrones’ end, Dinklage returned to The Angry Birds Movie franchise by lending his voice to The Angry Birds Movie 2. He also played a fictionalized version of himself in the Between Two Ferns movie. He appeared with an ensemble cast in I Care A Lot, a movie with a memorable ending.. Healso appeared in The Croods: A New Age, Cyrano, American Dreamer, Thor: Love and Thunder, and The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. His upcoming projects include Brothers and Thicket, based on Joe R. Lansdale’s book of the same name.
Lena Headey (Cersei Lannister)
Lena Headey as Cersei played one-half of the infamous Lannister twins. The woman who would be queen inherited her father’s ruthlessness. Cersei hated everyone and everything, except her brother Jaime and her children. Lena Headey received several Emmy nominations for her Cersei Lannister portrayal, but never received the Emmy that she deserved.
In 2019, Headey had a supporting role in the critically acclaimed movie Fighting with My Family. She starred opposite Nick Frost, Florence Pugh, and Vince Vaughn. She plays the mother to Karen Gillan’s character in Gunpowder Milkshake, a movie about an estranged mother-daughter assassin team. Gunpowder Milkshake also stars Angela Bassett, Carla Gugino, Michelle Yeoh, and Paul Giamatti. Headey lends her voice to Kevin Smith’s animated Masters of the Universe: Revelation.
Headey has also done voice-over work for Infinity Train, Wizards: Tales of Arcadia, and The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance. She appeared in White House Plumbers and co-starred in Beacon 23.
Kit Harington (Jon Snow)
Kit Harington played the king of knowing nothing, Jon Snow on Game of Thrones. He was the bastard son of Ned Stark (Sean Bean), at least that’s what everyone assumed until the truth came out. Jon Snow was a member of the Night’s Watch. He tried to live his life by a code of morals and a sense of duty.
From 2018 to 2019, Harington appeared at the Vaudeville Theatre in London in the first West End production of the play True West. He then appeared as Henry V in Henry V at Donmar Warehouse. Harington voiced the character of Eret in How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World. He played Dane Whitman in Eternals. This project reunited him with his former Game of Thrones brother Richard Madden. Harington also stars in Baby Ruby and Blood for Dust. His next projects include the film Eternal Return and Season 3 of Industry.
Emilia Clarke (Daenerys Targaryen)
Emilia Clarke played the presumed last remaining Targaryen, and some would claim the rightful queen of the Iron Throne. Game of Thrones followed Daenerys as she grew from a young innocent girl to a powerful leader. Along with her dragons, Daenerys traveled far and wide to retake her spot as the leader of the seven kingdoms. Daenerys’ journey was one of the most compelling parts of the Game of Thrones series.Clarke received many Emmy nominations for her role as Daenerys Targaryen.
In 2019, Clarke played Kate in Last Christmas. She starred opposite Henry Golding in this romantic dramedy about a woman who learns the true meaning of Christmas and giving. Clarke also appeared in Above Suspicion, a movie about the first FBI agent convicted of murder. Clarke appeared in 2020 and 2022 in a theatrical production of Anton Chekhov’s The Seagull. Clarke’s other post-Game of Thrones projects include Marvel’s Secret Invasion, The Amazing Maurice, and The Pod Generation.
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jaime Lannister)
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau’s Jaime Lannister tried to live an honorable life as the Kingslayer. He was always willing to bend the rules of honor when it came to protecting his family, especially Cersei. Jaime began Game of Thrones as one of the series’ antiheroes but slowly started to earn a heroic title, until all character development flew out the window like Tommen Baratheon (Dean-Charles Chapman).
Coster-Waldau appeared in two projects in 2019, Suicide Tourist and Domino. Coster-Waldau has roles in The Silencing, Krudttønden, Against the Ice, God is a Bullet, and The Last Thing He Told Me. Coster-Waldau was the lead in the Geffen Playhouse version of Macbeth in 2020. In 2024, he starred in the docuseries An Optimist’s Guide to the Planet.
Sophie Turner (Sansa Stark)
Sophie Turner played Sansa Stark on Game of Thrones. Sansa had a rough path to find her place in Winterfell and among the world of warring families and power thirst. Of all the Game of Thrones characters, her ending fit her journey the most.
Turner appeared in her ex-husband’s music videos for “Sucker” and “What a Man Gotta Do,” and expanded their family. Career-wise, Turner has been just as busy. She reprised her role as Jean Grey in X-Men: Dark Phoenix in 2019. Then she appeared in the revenge thriller Heavy. In 2020, Turner had the lead role in Survive, a TV series about a woman who survives a plane crash but now must survive being on a snow-covered mountain with only one other survivor. Turner kept busy with the projects Do Revenge, Every Last Secret, The Prince, and The Staircase. Her next projects include Joan and Trust. According to Deadline, Turner will reunite with Harington in the horror film The Dreadful.
Alfie Allen (Theon Greyjoy)
Alfie Allen played Theon Greyjoy for Game of Throne’s eight seasons. Theon started the show as a Stark loyalist, but his desire for power and to live up to the Greyjoy name led to him betraying the family that raised him. Then he spent the final few seasons trying to make up for this mistake.
Allen played Isaac Pincher in the third season of the Hulu series Harlots. Allen’s TV roles also include White House Farm, SAS: Rogue Heroes, and the upcoming Safe Harbor. Safe Harbor also stars former Game of Thrones cast member Jack Gleeson. Game of Thrones stars Gemma Whelan and Mark Addy also have roles in White House Farm. Allen’s film roles include a part in the Academy Award-winning film Jojo Rabbit. He starred opposite Beanie Feldstein in How to Build a Girl, a movie based on Caitlin Moran’s book. Allen appeared in Netflix’s 2021 movie Night Teeth. It’s a thriller about a chauffeur who ends up fighting for his life after he drives two women to five different parties in Los Angeles.
Maisie Williams (Arya Stark)
Maisie Williams played Arya Stark, the girl who would have some of the most debated moments of the final Game of Thrones season. Arya was the adventurous, tomboy Stark girl who went from a young child to a girl with no name to one of the series’ greatest heroes.
Williams made her X-Men debut when The New Mutants finally hit theaters in 2020. She plays Rahne Sinclair, aka Wolfsbane, a Scottish mutant who shape-shifts into a wolf. Williams also appeared in the films The Owners and the TV shows Two Weeks to Live, The New Look, and Pistol.
In 2019, she also launched a social media platform called Daisie. It aims to be a networking site for creatives looking to collaborate on projects and to help newcomers receive exposure for their work.
Isaac Hempstead Wright (Bran Stark)
Isaac Hempstead Wright played Bran Stark, one of the youngest of the Stark clan. He kicked Game of Thrones off with a bang by showing that the show would, in fact, harm kids. Bran eventually becomes the Three-Eyed Raven and gains power.
Hempstead Wright is in a film called Voyagers. Voyagers depicts the story of 30 people sent into space to search for a new home. The film has an ensemble cast that includes Colin Farrell, Lily-Rose Depp, Fionn Whitehead, and Tye Sheridan.
Gwendoline Christie (Brienne of Tarth)
Gwendoline Christie played Brienne of Tarth, a brave knight who often faced challenges because of prejudices against women warriors. Her kind heart, loyalty, and honorable nature won her respect and love, especially from the Kingslayer.
Christie appears in The Personal History of David Copperfield. Dev Patel, Hugh Laurie, and Tilda Swinton also star in this movie. She played Titania in the 2019 Bridge Theatre stage production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Christie is part of the cast of Our Friend, a movie featuring Dakota Johnson, Casey Affleck, and Jason Segel. It is about a man who puts his life on hold when a couple, his best friends, receive life-altering news. In 2022, Christie starred in the black comedy Flux Gourmet. Her past TV appearances include The Sandman and Wednesday. In 2022, Variety announced that she would join the cast of Severance Season 2.
