23 details uncovered in the 'Game of Thrones' season 8 episode scripts

Dany Jon final scene Game of Thrones compared to Pieta HBO

The episode scripts for the final season of HBO's "Game of Thrones" are now available to read at the Writers Guild Foundation library in Los Angeles.
We've already outlined the most significant scenes found in the scripts that were cut from the final episodes here.
Below you'll find more details, changed scenes, and stage directions written in the scripts that shed new light on the last six episodes of "Game of Thrones."
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The six final episodes of HBO's "Game of Thrones" premiered earlier this year, and now all the scripts are available to read at the the Writers Guild Foundation Shavelson-Webb Library in Los Angeles. Penned by the series' showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, as well as Dave Hill and Bryan Cogman, the scripts reveal details about scenes you wouldn't have known based on the aired episodes.

Keep reading for a look at the most significant changes, background details, and other fun facts we found inside the "Game of Thrones" season eight scripts.

One stage direction note from Dany's arrival to Winterfell explains her isolation in the North.

Throughout the scripts for these final six episode, the writers (Dave Hill, Bryan Cogman, David Benioff, and D.B. Weiss) include small stage directions that indicate what characters are thinking. Many of the notes for Dany's character chart her season eight arc from heroic queen to slaughterer of innocents.

The first of these in the scripts come when Dany and Jon are riding towards Winterfell.

When Dany noticed the townspeople staring at her — in a "sullen and suspicious" way, according to the scripts — Jon tries to say he warned her about Northerners' mistrust of outsiders.

At first Dany nods in response, thinking "she can handle it." Then Rhaegal and Drogon fly overhead, terrifying the smallfolk and making them duck in fear.

"The barest hint of a smile crosses Dany's face," the scripts stage direction says. "Eat me, northerners."

More of Dany's mindset is explained when she meets Sam Tarly for the first time.

In the script, Sam tells her it's an honor to serve her and that they'd stand no chance in the war to come without her.

"Finally, some bloody gratitude," the script says. "Dany likes this guy."

Dany's growing isolation was apparent throughout the early episode of "Game of Thrones" on the screen, but it's interesting to read more of how miffed she felt upon arriving to Winterfell and getting the cold shoulder from Sansa and the other Northerners.

There is extra tragedy layered into this moment given that Dany so quickly warmed to Sam when, just moments later, she had to tell him that she had executed his father and brother. She came very close to having an important friend and ally in Winterfell, but that was taken from her, too.

The comedic beat that happened when Jon and Bran reunite wasn't planned out in the script.

Other details in the scripts show how some of the stars on "Game of Thrones" interpreted stage directions slightly differently, changing the original intention of scenes.

When Jon finally Bran again, he remarked on how Bran was a "man" now. Then Bran replied, in his odd way, with a simple "almost."

The script says that "Jon is too happy to be reunited with his little brother to clock the oddness of the statement."

But in practice this moment played much more comically when actor Kit Harington's face dropped slightly in reaction to the statement. He definitely "clocks the oddness" in the final version of the episode.

Dave Hill, the credited writer for "Winterfell," had a cameo has one of the guards killed by Theon as he saves Yara.

There were many notable cameos throughout the final season of "Game of Thrones," including actors Rob McElhenney ("It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia") and Martin Starr ("Silicon Valley") who played other guards killed in this very same scene.

Hill's cameo was specifically scripted for this episode, though, setting it apart from some of the other famous faces seen on "Game of Thrones."

Theon and Yara also originally had a heart-to-heart about how he abandoned her on season seven.

After escaping from Euron's ship, the finished episode jumps to Theon and Yara discussing their strategy against their uncle. But in the script, Theon starts the scene by gingerly touching a bruise on his face left from Yara's headbutt.

"Don't be a girl," Yara says in the script.

"It's hard for Theon to talk about the night be betrayed his sister and jumped overboard, but he finally brings himself to say the words," the script's stage direction reads.

Then Theon calls himself a coward, and Yara tells him he wasn't a coward the night before when he saved her. He tries to press the point of how he wasn't there when she needed him, but Yara says there's no point talking about it. Then they move onto the dialogue we hear in the final version.

This was the last time Theon and Yara spoke before his death, so it would have been a more explicit closure for them (instead of the implicit closure they had when he rescued her).

The writers also give nods to the behind-the-scenes production team leaders like Michele Clapton.

Throughout their scripts, the writers often penned stage directions or descriptions of scenes and actors with nods to the people bringing those scenes to life. On the first episode of the season, the script introduces Cersei in a scene for the first time and gives a shout out to the lead costume designer Michele Claptoon.

"[Cersei] wears black, but not the glittering triumphant black of [season seven]," the script says. "This outfit is brooding and somber, a Michele Clapton masterpiece."

There's also a funny aside about Emilia Clarke needing to act opposite the "green foam head" stand-in for Drogon.

Again on the first episode of the season, Daenerys and Jon Snow go to visit her two remaining dragons.

"She and Drogon share a connection that is deep and intimate but non-verbal," the script says. "Emilia Clarke conveys this depth and intimacy while interacting with a green foam head."

Dany's feelings of isolation were exacerbated on the second episode of the season, and it shows the most when Theon arrives to Winterfell.

As we explored back when the episode aired, "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" did a lot of work to show just how alone Daenerys was in the North. The script makes this isolation and unease apparent when Theon says he wants to fight for Winterfell and then he and Sansa embrace.

"Yet another of her subjects whose loyalties seem to lie with House Stark over her," the script says as Dany watches the hug.

After Jaime knights Brienne, the script says she's "in love with" him.

In the script, Brienne's knighting scene is imbued with a lot of varying emotions from the characters in the room. After Brienne tries to tell Tormund she doesn't even want to be a knight, writer Bryan Cogman's script notes that "Pod looks askance at her, because he knows this is patently untrue."

Then Cogman indicates that Jaime sees this look exchanged between Brienne and Pod.

"He looks at Brienne. Tormund's right. F--- tradition," the script says.

That's when Jaime's dialogue kicks in, and he convinces Brienne to come and kneel before him so he can knight her. Afterwards, the script's stage directions say Brienne "sits down and looks at Jaime."

"Dammit. She's in love with him," the script reads.

On the actual episode, the scene ends with Brienne still standing and smiling as the room of men applaud her. But the love she and Jaime feel for one another in the moment is palpable nonetheless.

During the mini Night's Watch reunion on the battlements, the scene originally included a little moment of remembrance for how much Rast sucked.

Just before the battle, Sam reminisces about where he, Jon, and Edd all started. Then he mentions their fallen brothers in black — Grenn and Pyp.

In the script, Jon replies and mentions Rast — one of the Night's Watch men who tormented Sam and mutinied against Lord Commander Mormont. He was eventually killed by Ghost at Craster's Keep.

"F--- Rast," Sam would have replied.

The final version of the episode just skips over Rast altogether, instead leaving the moment as a small tribute to Grenn and Pyp (who died during the Battle of Castle Black at the end of season four).

There was a small line from Beric cut for the final episode, perhaps because of its implications for Jon Snow.

The night before the battle, on "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms," Sandor Clegane and Beric sat together on the walls of Winterfell. There's a small scene in the script that never made it into the final episode.

When the Hound tells Beric to get some sleep, the Lightning Lord replies: "Haven't slept since the first time I died. No point starting now."

Both Jon Snow and Beric were resurrected using magic from the Lord of Light. If Beric says he hasn't slept since he first died and was brought back to life, this would likely be true of Jon Snow, too.

Our best guess for this line getting axed by the final episode is that it raises too many logistical questions about the rest of Jon's life.

During the "Jenny of Oldstones" montage, Bran was going to get his own little moment.

Towards the end of "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms," Podrick Payne sings a song called "Jenny of Oldstones" and the episode cuts to a montage of all the various characters on the eve of battle.

The episode created the montage almost exactly as it was written out in the script, but with one omission: Bran Stark, the future King of Westeros.

The scripts originally said we'd see "Bran sitting in his chambers" during the montage "awake" and "alone."

While a very small thing to drop, this would have been an opportunity to highlight Bran as an important character during this tumultuous time in the kingdom, especially given that the series ends with him as the primary ruler of the country.

The script shows cut moments which would have explained what Bran was doing during "The Long Night."

A commonly asked question after "The Long Night" was, "What exactly was Bran doing?"

After Bran's eyes go white when he skinchanges in the godswood, the script says we were going to see "a massive flock of ravens, bigger than last time [episode 705], converge on Winterfell from all sides, all piloted by Bran."

Then, from the ravens' point-of-view, Bran would have seen Jon Snow on Rhaegal nearby, and also Daenerys off in the distance on Drogon.

Bran was effectively helping scout the location of all the troops during the battle. Or at least that's what the script makes it seem like he's doing.

Instead, the show's version goes from Bran skingchanging to the ravens flying by the Night King, and then never returned to other vantage points to indicate how Bran was tracking the ongoing battle in Winterfell.

Several miscellaneous characters have names in the scripts, even if we never hear them on the episode.

The young girl with burn marks on her face (who reminded Ser Davos and Gilly of little Shireen Baratheon) is named "Teela."

One of the wights who attacks and injures Arya during the Battle of Winterfell is called "Bertram" in the script.

And the massive giant who kills Lyanna Mormont is called "Crum."

There's also a man named "Fergus" in the script. He's the one who gets soup from Ser Davos on "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms," lamenting about not being a soldier. In the script for "The Long Night," Fergus is mentioned a couple more times as we were supposed to see him next to Davos when the battle began, and then later on fighting.

The script had clear directions for the camera to not focus on Arya's Valyrian steel dagger when we first see her on "The Long Night."

Arya's slaying of the Night King was something Benioff and Weiss wanted audiences to be very surprised by.

Keeping this in mind, they noted in the script for "The Long Night" that she should be wearing the Valyrian blade at her waist before the battle begins, but director Miguel Sapochnik was meant to keep things subtle.

"The valyrian steel dagger is in Arya's belt, but we do not call special attention to it," the script says.

Jaime felt "like a traitor" after he slept with Brienne for the first time.

On the fourth episode of the season, "The Last of the Starks," Jaime and Brienne have sex for the first time.

There's a wordless shot of Brienne sleeping soundly in their shared bed, while Jaime lays awake.

Here's what the description in the script says of this scene: "Brienne sleeps the sleep of the happily drunk and devirginized. Jaime can't sleep, however. He just helped save the world. So why does he feel like a traitor?"

By the end of the episode, Jaime leaves Brienne to return south and be with Cersei in her final moments — a narrative choice which left many fans with whiplash over losing the almost-happy couple just as they got together.

In a removed scene, Tyrion and Jon explicitly talked about how Dany might not let people surrender in King's Landing.

On the fifth episode of the season, "The Bells," Tyrion and Jon talk briefly before the battle for King's Landing starts. The final version of the episode only shows Tyrion reminding Jon that the bells mean surrender. But the script's longer version of this scene has them discuss the innocent people in the city.

"A million people live in that city," Tyrion says to Jon.

"I know," he replies.

"If you hear the bells ring, they've surrendered, " Tyrion says. "Call off your men."

"I don't think she's letting anyone surrender today," Jon says.

"We have to try," Tyrion replies. "How many children are in there? She's not her father."

Then the script indicates that "Jon nods, unconvinced." The aired version of this scene is shortened down to just Tyrion's line about the bells, and then a cut to Jon's barely noticeable nod.

The script also reveals what Dany was thinking just before she decided to burn down King's Landing.

This scene had no dialogue in both the script or the final episode. Instead, actress Emilia Clarke was given stage directions for Dany's mindset.

The script says Dany looks down and see Lannister red mixed in among the people of the city, and knows she has won.

"But she sees the Red Keep," the script continues. "The castle that her family built, that belongs to her. Occupied by the False Queen. She has come so far and she will go further. Oh, blood will out. It cannot be contained. Drogon takes to the sky."

The "blood will out" line is a quote from a Robert Frost poem titled "The Flood."

Read our full analysis of this section of the script and why the Frost poem is significant to learn more.

"The Bells" was originally going to end with Jaime and Cersei's death, not the scene with Arya and a horse.

Arya finding the horse was originally meant to be her "escape" from King's Landing, not a slow and poetic end to the episode. Instead, the script shows the episode ending with the ceiling collapsing on Jaime and Cersei.

The slow-motion scene between Arya and the horse sparked a lot of discussion about the animal's significance and potential symbolism. But it turns out it was only ever supposed to be a way Arya could quickly leave the city.

The episode's director, Miguel Sapochnik, was likely the one who thought ending on Arya's emotional survival was the better final note.

In the script for both "The Bells" and "The Iron Throne," Benioff and Weiss use several real-world wars and tragedies as comparisons for the battle in King's Landing.

When the smallfolk are trying to get into the walled city for shelter on "The Bells," the script says "they shout like the throngs outside of the US Embassy during the Fall of Saigon."

Later, when Arya is stumbling through the streets and trying to avoid Drogon's fire or falling buildings, the wrote that "it's like being on the ground during the bombing of Dresden."

On the series finale, Tyrion walks through the city and the script says the scene should remind audiences of a 2015 movie about the Holocaust.

"We follow him, 'Son of Saul' style, tight on his face as he passes through the gates, "

Tyrion is also described in the script as passing by "human silhouettes on the dragon-scorched ground where ashes have blown away, the negative image of Hiroshima silhouettes."

The script also adds explanation about Jaime and Cersei's deaths that is missing from the episode.

On "The Bells," Jaime and Cersei find themselves trapped in the lower dungeons beneath the Red Keep. The ceiling caves in, leading to their deaths. But when Tyrion found their bodies on "The Iron Throne" episode, there were clear patches of ground nearby.

This led some watchers to believe, based on this background detail, that all Jaime and Cersei had to do to survive was just stand in a different part of the room.

In the original script for "The Bells" and "The Iron Throne," it says the room was overrun with flames in addition to the crumbling ceiling.

"All of the skulls have been blackened and scorched by the extreme heat of the fires that raged for hours," the script says when Tyrion finds their bodies.

This little detail would have closed up the loophole of Jaime and Cersei's survival for some fans had it been left in the show.

The script evokes a statue of the Virgin Mary and Christ for Dany's death scene.

After Jon kills Daenerys in the throne room, the script says she "lies dead, Pieta-style, as the snow drifts down."

The Pieta is a famous sculpture made by Michelangelo around 1500.

The statue shows the Virgin Mary holding the body of Christ after his crucifixion. The choice of motif is an interesting one, since it places Daenerys in the role of Christ following her death. But earlier in the script, when Daenerys is addressing her soldiers, Benioff and Weiss refer to her as "Satanic Majesty."

The contradicting analogies are not explained further in the script.