Where the Game of Thrones cast is now (15 years after season 1's debut)

It's surreal that 15 years have passed since the world of Westeros came to our screens for the first time. It feels both like it can't have been that long and like an age has passed since season 1. To see George R.R. Martin's work come to life was an incredible ride, and we wish we could go back in time to see it again as a new series.

One of the biggest ingredients that made Game of Thrones so successful was its talented actors. The cast put everything into their roles and allowed us to connect with the characters in an extremely visceral way. But after the series ended, what did the future hold for these actors? We're looking at a few of the main cast to see where they are now, 15 years later.

Peter Dinklage

Peter Dinklage showed off his acting prowess as the clever Tyrion Lannister, the youngest of Tywin Lannister's (Charles Dance) children. He won numerous awards for his portrayal, including four Emmys and a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor. It was almost as if Dinklage was born to play Tyrion.

Since Game of Thrones, Dinklage has starred in movies like Cyrano (2021), The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (2023), and Wicker (2026). He voiced Phil Betterman in The Croods: A New Age (2020) and Dr. Dillamond in Wicked (2024), while also appearing in TV shows like Dexter: Resurrection. He will star in and produce the upcoming film The Dwarf, in which his character manipulates the royal court and strategizes for his own best interests, much like Tyrion.

Lena Headey

As the queen we all love to hate, Lena Headey gave us the ruthlessly ambitious Cersei Lannister. Headey was nominated for several awards for her portrayal, including five Emmys and the 2014 TV Guide Award for Favorite Villain. So, what has the villainess been up to since then?

Headey was in quite a few roles concurrently with Game of Thrones, with the most notable being in the films 300: Rise of an Empire (2014) and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (2016). After Cersei was killed in the final season, Headey went on to play Karen Gillan's mother in Gunpowder Milkshake (2021), as well as voicing characters in The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance (2019), Wizards (2020), and Masters of the Universe: Revelation (2021, 2024). Her latest projects are the upcoming sequel film Red, White, and Royal Wedding and the detective series Project Codename.

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau is a Danish actor, already known for his role in the 1994 thriller Nightwatch, but his portrayal of Jaime Lannister rocketed him into society's consciousness. I mean, it is pretty difficult to forget a man who colludes with and canoodles his twin sister, especially when he turns into one of the show's most intriguing morally gray characters. As Jaime Lannister, Coster-Waldau was nominated for two Emmys and the 2014 People's Choice Award for Favorite Anti-Hero.

After the downfall of the Lannister twins, Coster-Waldau would take roles in several crime dramas like Domino (2019), The Day We Died (2020), and God Is a Bullet (2023). He even reprised his role as Martin in Nightwatch: Demons Are Forever (2023) and played William the Conqueror in the series King and Conqueror (2025). Now, Coster-Waldau will soon be starring as Jackson Parrish, alongside Jennifer Lopez, in the film adaptation of the psychological thriller novel, The Last Mrs. Parrish.

Kit Harington

Jon Snow was Kit Harington's first major acting role, but that doesn't mean he was less skilled than his castmates. He was nominated for two Emmy awards, a Golden Globe, and a People's Choice Award for his role as the heroic leader with humble beginnings. Though many fans were disappointed in Jon Snow's ending, or at least his devastating choice in the final season, we still love to see Kit Harington succeed outside of Game of Thrones.

Harington was able to work on Pompeii (2014) and Testament of Youth (2014) while also playing Jon Snow, and he starred in and produced the mini-series Gunpowder (2017). After Jon Snow, he played the superhero Black Knight alongside fellow Game of Thrones actor Richard Madden in Marvel's Eternals (2021). Most recently, Harington has been in the series Too Much and Industry, with upcoming roles in Count My Lies and A Tale of Two Cities.

Emilia Clarke

Emilia Clarke had much to overcome in her personal life to get where she is today, mirroring Daenerys's resilience throughout the series. She survived two brain aneurysms during the early seasons of Game of Thrones and still rose to be the Mother of Dragons and claim the Iron Throne. Clarke was nominated for four Emmys, three People's Choice Awards, and three MTV Awards as Daenerys.

Clarke starred in several blockbuster films during Game of Thrones run, including Me Before You (2016) and Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018). After Daenerys's extremely controversial end, Clarke received over $100,000 for her neurological injury charity, SameYou, as fans donated to a "Justice for Daenerys" fundraiser. She has appeared in show's like Marvel's Secret Invasion and Peacock's Ponies, and has a few new projects coming up, such as the film Next Life and the TV series Criminal.

Sophie Turner

Sophie Turner made her acting debut as Sansa Stark, and she grew along with her character. She earned nominations for this portrayal, including an Emmy and two People's Choice Awards. Turner took Sansa from a naive girl who believed in fairytale romance to the literal Queen of the North.

Turner's biggest role outside of Game of Thrones was Jean Grey in X-Men: Apocalypse (2016) and X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019). She has also made a name for herself through several TV series, such as Survive (2020), The Staircase (2022), Joan (2024), and Steal (2026). Her latest venture? Turner will be playing Lara Croft in the new Tomb Raider series. An injury while filming has briefly delayed production, but Turner will be back in action soon.

Maisie Williams

We watched Maisie Williams grow up on Game of Thrones, becoming one of the fiercest and most-beloved characters, Arya Stark. She helped to redefine femininity and what a lady "should be," and used her pain to transform into a formidable warrior. Williams was nominated for two Emmys, two People's Choice Awards, and three MTV awards for her role as Arya. She also won a Saturn Award for Best Performance by a Younger Actor.

Williams was in a number of music videos in between filming Game of Thrones, and she also appeared in a few episodes of Doctor Who as Ashildr/Me in 2015. She starred in films The Book of Love (2016), Mary Shelley (2017), and Then Came You (2018). When Game of Thrones wrapped, Williams went on to be in The New Mutants (2020), the series Pistol (2022), and The New Look series (2024). Her newest film, Practical Magic 2, will be released later this year.

Isaac Hempstead Wright

Love him or hate him, Bran Stark ultimately won the game and became the ruler of the Six Kingdoms. Isaac Hempstead Wright was only eleven when he began his journey as Bran, and he had to learn to train his skills just as Bran had to train his Sight. A lot of fame suddenly landing on a young, unknown actor was similarly difficult as abruptly becoming nearly omniscient as the Three-Eyed Raven.

Hempstead Wright only had a few other roles outside Game of Thrones. He voiced Eggs in The Boxtrolls (2014) and played Edward in the science fiction film Voyagers (2021). He left acting to pursue a degree in neuroscience and is now doing clinical training. Hempstead Wright recently offered advice to the young actors in HBO's Harry Potter series, knowing just how difficult it can be.

Excited about Game of Thrones' 15th anniversary? So are we! That's why we're celebrating all month long at Winter Is Coming with deep dives, retrospectives, quizzes and more. Come along with us on a return journey to Westeros!

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