Plot Synopsis

Two powerful families are engaged in a deadly cat-and-mouse game for control of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros -- from the scheming South and the savage Eastern lands, to the frozen North and the ancient Wall that protects the realm from the darkness beyond. Kings and queens, knights and renegades, liars and noblemen vie for power, and their bloody struggle for the Iron Throne will have unforeseen and far-reaching consequences. The story opens when King Robert Baratheon, who is married to Cersei Lannister of the wealthy and corrupt Lannisters, asks Lord Eddard 'Ned' Stark to come South and help run his kingdom after the questionable death of his right-hand man. Meanwhile, there is a threat to the throne from the East by the exiled teenage Princess Daenerys and her brother Viserys, whose family ruled the Kingdoms for many years before their bloody ouster. And there are rumors of strange things happening at the edge of the Kingdoms, North of the Wall, where Jon Snow, Ned's bastard son, goes to be part of the brotherhood of the Night's Watch, which is sworn to protect the Kingdoms. In King's Landing, the coveted Iron Throne is occupied by cruel young Joffrey, counseled by his conniving mother Cersei and his uncle Tyrion, who has been appointed Hand of the King. But the Lannister hold on the Throne is under assault on many fronts. Robb Stark, son of Ned Stark, the slain Lord of Winterfell, seeks autonomy in the North and has taken Cersei's brother Jaime prisoner in battle. Daenerys Targaryen looks to shore up her depleted power in the East with her three newborn dragons. Stannis Baratheon, brother of the late King Robert, rejects Joffrey's legitimacy and aligns with a powerful priestess to raise a naval attack. And Renly, Stannis' charismatic brother, has maintained his own claim since fleeing King's Landing. In the meantime, a new leader is rising among the wildlings North of the Wall, adding fresh perils for Jon Snow and the order of the Night's Watch.

Season 3 premiered on Sunday, March 31, 2013 at 9pm ET/PT on HBO, with Blackwater Bay cooling, the victors consolidating their power and rebuilding King's Landing. But new challengers for the Iron Throne rose from the most unexpected places, as everyone navigated the demands of family, honor, ambition, love and -- above all -- survival, as the Westeros civil war raged into autumn.

GAME OF THRONES returned for its fourth season on Sunday, April 6, 2014 at 9pm ET/PT on HBO. Season 4, which is based on the second half of "A Storm of Swords," the third and arguably most acclaimed book in Martin's series, picks up where Season 3 left off. Encouraged by the Red Wedding slaughter in the Riverlands that wiped out many of their Stark nemeses, the Lannisters' hold on the Iron Throne remains intact...but can they survive their own egos, as well as new and ongoing threats from the south, north and east? While an unbowed Stannis Baratheon continues to rebuild his army in Dragonstone, a more immediate danger comes from the south, as Oberyn Martell, the Lannister-loathing Red Viper of Dorne, arrives at King's Landing to attend Joffrey's wedding to Margaery Tyrell, and perhaps act on an ulterior agenda. In the north, a depleted Night's Watch seems overmatched against the inexorable Wall advances of Mance Rayder's army of wildlings, which in turn is being trailed by an even more formidable foe: the undead White Walkers. As if that weren't enough, Daenerys Targaryen, accompanied by her menacing trio of dragons and army.

GAME OF THRONES returned for its 10-episode fifth season on Sunday, April 12, 2015 at 9pm ET/PT on HBO. Jon Snow is struggling to balance the demands of the Night's Watch with those of the newly arrived Stannis Baratheon, who styles himself the rightful king of Westeros. Meanwhile, Cersei scrambles to hold on to power in King's Landing amidst the Tyrells and the rise of a religious group led by the enigmatic High Sparrow, while Jaime embarks on a secret mission. Across the Narrow Sea, Arya seeks an old friend and a fugitive Tyrion finds a new cause. And as danger mounts in Meereen, Daenerys finds that her tenuous hold on the city requires hard sacrifices.

Season 6 of GAME OF THRONES premiered on Sunday, April 24, 2016 at 9pm ET/PT on HBO. Following the shocking developments at the conclusion of season five, including Jon Snow's bloody fate at the hands of Castle Black mutineers, Daenerys' near-demise at the fighting pits of Meereen, and Cersei's public humiliation in the streets of King's Landing, survivors from all parts of Westeros and Essos regroup to press forward, inexorably, towards their uncertain individual fates. Familiar faces will forge new alliances to bolster their strategic chances at survival, while new characters will emerge to challenge the balance of power in the east, west, north and south. New cast members for the sixth season include: Pilou Asbaek, Essie Davis, Souad Faress, James Faulkner, Richard E. Grant, Ian McShane, Joe Naufau, Freddie Stroma and Max von Sydow.

On Sunday, July 16, 2017 at 9pm ET/PT, HBO premiered the seven-episode seventh season of GAME OF THRONES. Daenerys Targaryen has finally set sail for Westeros with her armies, dragons and new Hand of the Queen, Tyrion Lannister. Jon Snow has been named King in the North after defeating Ramsay Bolton in the Battle of the Bastards and returning Winterfell to House Stark. In King's Landing, Cersei Lannister has seized the Iron Throne by incinerating the High Sparrow, his followers and her rivals in the Sept of Baelor. But as old alliances fracture and new ones emerge, an army of dead men marches on the Wall, threatening to end the game of thrones forever.

The six-episode eighth and final season of GAME OF THRONES premiered on Sunday, April 14, 2019 at 9pm ET/PT on HBO.
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On Sunday, May 26, 2019 from 9-11pm ET/PT, HBO premiered "The Last Watch," a two-hour GAME OF THRONES special. For a year, acclaimed British filmmaker Jeanie Finlay was embedded on the set of the GAME OF THRONES, chronicling the creation of the show's final season. This documentary delves deep into the mud and blood to reveal the tears and triumphs involved in the challenge of bringing the fantasy world of Westeros to life in the very real studios, fields and car-parks of Northern Ireland. Made with unprecedented access, GAME OF THRONES: THE LAST WATCH is an up-close and personal report from the trenches of production, following the crew and the cast as they contend with extreme weather, punishing deadlines and an ever-excited fandom hungry for spoilers. Much more than a "making of" documentary, this is a funny, heartbreaking story, told with wit and intimacy, about the bittersweet pleasures of what it means to create a world -- and then have to say goodbye to it.