Any Game of Thrones fan worth their salt will tell you, in no uncertain terms, that the night is dark and full of spoilers for the eighth and final season of HBO’s fantasy show. The show, which premiered on 14 April 2019, has already sparked a number of brillian fan theories – but there are plenty of twisted folks out there who seem hellbent on ruining the finale for all those loyal viewers whose watch is almost ended (see all the leaked GOT scripts on Reddit, as a prime example).

Here at Stylist, though, you’re in a completely safe (and spoiler-free) space. Instead of confirming the top secret details about the fates of Jon Snow (Kit Harington), Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke), Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage), Jorah Mormont (Iain Glen), Ser Davos Seaworth (Liam Cunningham), That Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey), Samwell Tarly (John Bradley), Gendry *cough* Baratheon (Joe Dempsie), Jaime Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), Euron Greyjoy (Pilou Asbæk), Sansa (Sophie Turner), Arya (Maisie Williams) and Bran Stark (Isaac Hempstead-Wright), we prefer to focus on all the Easter eggs, fan theories and GOT secrets that have already been lovingly laid out before our eyes by the show’s producers.

And one of the most compelling theories so far is that the eight-season long battle for the Iron Throne has all been for naught, and that Jon and Daenerys will be forced to melt it down for parts.

Wait, what?

As GOT fans will already know, Aegon The Conqueror created the Iron Throne from the (still sharp) swords of his enemies, using Dragonfire to melt the swords down. 

“I said repeatedly the Iron Throne is huge,” said George R R Martin, who penned the original A Song of Ice and Fire series. “It towers over the room like a great beast. And it’s ugly. It’s asymmetric. It’s put together by blacksmiths not by craftsmen and experts in furniture manufacturing. You have to walk the iron steps, and when a king sits on it he’s like 10 feet above everybody else… 

“He’s in this raised position looking down on everyone.”

We already know (according to a Belfast insider) that a new King’s Landing set has been built at Titanic Studios in Northern Ireland, and that Jon Snow has been filmed fighting on top of it. We know, too, that Daenerys once had a vision of a burned and blackened Iron Throne room. And we know (according, once again, to our canny Belfast insider) that people living near the studios were warned that they would hear a number of explosions during filming.

All in all, it seems to suggest that the Night King and his army of White Walkers will destroy Winterfell and then pursue the survivors (including Jon and Dany) down to King’s Landing. Indeed, there may be a whole new army of people who need to be outfitted with weaponry that can take out the wights. Where do they get the steel on such short notice?

The Iron Throne. Thank god that they have at least one dragon to help them melt that fucker down and turn it into dragonglass weaponry, eh?

Speaking to The New York Times, Clarke said that the ultimate message of Game of Thrones is that power simply isn’t worth it.

“The whole show is just a discussion on power,” Clarke said. “Because the Iron Throne is representative of complete and consuming power and what that does to someone.”

She continued: “It’s fascinating, what I’ve found about the sacrifices that you make and what you get out of it as a result. Ultimately, if you get on the throne, what are you really getting?” 

“Cersei proves that you’re not getting that much,” Clarke added. “You’re getting a lot of loneliness, pain, critiques.”

Aidan Gillen has also said that the fight for the Iron Throne will prove futile come the end of it all.

That’s right: the actor, best known as the slimy, cunning Littefinger might not be appearing in the final season of the show but that doesn’t mean he is entirely in the dark about what’s to come. Indeed, in an interview with the Express, the actor dropped some pretty heavy-handed hints about the show’s oncoming conclusion.

“I don’t picture that [someone winning the Iron Throne is] a thing that’s going to happen. It would be a bit boring,” he said.

The Littlefinger actor continued: “I don’t know… I think initially that was the thing – there was a quest for an ultimate winner who was going to rule from the Iron Throne. But it doesn’t feel that’s what it’s about any more.”

Of course, we here at Stylist have long believed that, come the end of Game of Thrones, Daenerys will use her dragons to melt down the Iron Throne, putting an end to the tired old feudal systems past and forging a better, stronger and fairer future for all in Westeros.

Cersei Lannister has long warned us that, “when you play the Game of Thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground.” And, for a very long time, we believed her. But what if… well, what if she was wrong? What if there was a middle ground? What if all the players could just… just opt out of the game, and instead start up a new one? One based on honour, and talent, and ability? All it would take is one woman with a vision, and the strength to see it through.

Enter Daenerys, aka the self-titled ‘Breaker of Chains’. Our beloved Khaleesi has long been a fan of putting power into the hands of the people, so it makes sense that she should be the one to usher in a new era of democracy, put an end to the landed aristocracy, and offer the commonfolk the chance to choose their own leaders.

And, as we’ve mentioned previously, Daenerys has attracted such a huge following because she offers them something they have never been offered before: the freedom to choose.

Missandei (Nathalie Emmanuel), the Unsullied and the Dothraki all believe in Daenerys. They have chosen to follow her based on her actions, not because of her impressive lineage. Even Jon Snow, who refused to bend the knee when Daenerys demanded that he do so, has since chosen to do so because he has seen the woman she is – and truly believes she is the right ruler for Westeros. 

Perhaps more important, though, is the fact that Jon only decided to bend the knee to Daenerys after learning she can’t have children of her own – because, in doing so, he has been one of the first GOT rulers to recognise that women are so much more than the sum of their body parts. That a queen’s role does not have to be reduced to anything as base as “lie back and bring forth children for your king”. That they can rise to be so much more than the head of home and hearth. That they can be brave, and smart, and calculating. That, most importantly of all. that they can be rulers in their own rights, making valid and vital decisions about the future of their own people.

As one savvy viewer points out, “the Game of Thrones can only ever end when the throne is removed from play”. But will Daenerys be brave enough to do it? We’re tempted to think so. Especially after seeing the official poster for the final series…

That’s right: it may look like the Iron Throne but, upon closer inspection, you’ll notice a pair of glowing orange eyes, arguably located where the armrests should be.

They are, of course, the eyes of a dragon, with the rest of the throne doubling up as the head of Daenerys’ scaly pet. Undoubtedly, the implication is that there’s more at stake than just a fancy chair. And that Drogon will play an important role in who sits (or doesn’t sit) on it, too. 

To read more about this theory in detail, and see the other compelling predictions for Game of Thrones season eight, check out our article here. 

Image: HBO