When it comes to Game of Thrones, you win or you die. And there have been many, many deaths over the course of HBO's series. There have also been many iconic images associated with the show, from dragons to White Walkers, but nothing so defines this story as the Iron Throne itself. It is the seat of power in the realm of Westeros and the thing that almost every character is either specifically vying for, looking to overthrow, or otherwise preoccupied by. Its very construction (that of swords all melted together) creates an uncomfortable and brutal structure for a monarch to sit in -- one that, in the books at least, can also harm the person sitting on it (Joffrey often got small cuts from it).
So as Game of Thrones wraps up with this final season, the natural question is: Who will sit on the Iron Throne in the end? Who will win the game? Our Collider Editors have each made our picks (with some caveats for each) about who may end up in the seat of power -- if anyone. With the Night King coming, it's very possible the throne itself may cease to exist ... -- Allison Keene
Vinnie Mancuso: Daenerys Targaryen
Dany. It’s always been Dany. Honestly, the only reason Dany isn’t currently on the Iron Throne is that endless sojourn in Mereen saving slaves and having such wild sex with Daario Naharis where he literally turned him into another, less attractive person. Understandable. She’s like 26, we all make mistakes on our ascent to greatness. But it’s right there in the name, right? A Song of Ice and Fire. I got a D in biology but I’m relatively sure fire wins. You ever thrown a snowball into a fireplace and been like “who will emerge victorious?”
You’re probably wondering about Jon Snow, the other, more amenable Ice to Daenerys' fire. Reason would suggest that Daenerys winning the Throne would also mean Jon wins the throne. Thems the rules. The only thing rewarded more heavily in Westeros than a ruthless cunning and severe alcohol addiction is a willingness, nay, desire to bone a close blood relative. But the thing with that theory is that Jon Snow is totally going to die. Again. Jon Snow is Game of Thrones’ most Extra Boi. He might not be Ned Stark’s biological son, but he did inherit that man’s ability to look at any reasonably escapable situation and ask, “But how could I die for honor here?” Remember when every single person in the entire North was like, “Now Jon, don’t let Ramsay goad you with his trickery,” and then Jon charged Ramsay’s army by himself? Season 8 is going to be that times one thousand. There is literally no arc more on brand for Jon Snow than dying for a noble cause, being brought back to life, and then dying a second time for a bigger, noble-er cause. It will be hilarious. The Night King is gonna’ offer to settle this thing in single combat against his ice dragon and Jon Snow’s gonna’ raise his hand like he’s Hermione Granger in Potion’s class.
No matter who wins—Daenerys, it’s going to be Daenerys—I just hope the show acknowledges the moment as the empty victory it is. I mean, an ancient race of magical, homicidal snowmen just brought endless death and destruction to the entire living world, but hey at least you won that chair everyone was fighting over. That’s like if a hurricane wiped out your entire house but you were able to save a DVD copy of Ready Player One. Congrats. Congrats on your victory. -- Vinnie Mancuso
Adam Chitwood: No One
Game of Thrones, as a series, has always been about subverting expectations. We thought Ned Stark was our hero, then he lost his head. Robb Stark was then expected to avenge his father and be our knight in shining armor, then he bit the dust. Over and again, Game of Thrones has refused to follow the traditional storytelling route, so my hunch is that continues in the finale.
This has all been building to someone taking the Iron Throne, but as we’ve seen through various kings, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Would Dany sitting on the Iron Throne really feel satisfying, when we know throughout the show’s history that it’s only a matter of time before she overplays her hand or gets usurped? No, my guess is that Dany and/or Jon and/or Sansa is victorious in the end, and he or she smashes the Iron Throne to pieces, opting instead for a democratic state of being. Then a 50/50 chance we get a coda that foretells doom because of course.
Or maybe I’ve got this all wrong. While Game of Thrones made its reputation on being surprising, these last couple of seasons have been shockingly predictable. From Jon Snow’s resurrection to Dany’s last-minute dragon rescue north of the wall, perhaps we are building to a more traditional conclusion. Maybe that does put Dany on the throne, Jon by her side living happily ever after. Heck, maybe a dragon sits on the throne. It could happen!
As for who should sit on the Iron Throne, the only correct answer is Sansa, the most formidable and bravest character on the entire series, who was put through absolute hell and came out the other side not just a survivor, but a hero.
But yeah, right now, given all the information at my disposal (i.e. six seasons and 67 episodes), my guess is the throne is either empty or non-existent by the series finale.
Haleigh Foutch: Jon Snow
If there’s anything we should know by now, it’s that trying to predict Game of Thrones is a fool’s errand -- at least to a point. When it comes to George R.R. Martin’s epic novels, many a fan theory was proven true when the show surpassed Martin’s speed-of-writing, including Jon’s resurrection, R+L=J, the Hound still being alive, Sam heading to the Citadel — hell, even the ice dragon! But when it comes to guessing who lives and who dies, go ahead and ask Ned Stark about how predictable that’s been. All the same, we do know Martin based his books on the War of the Roses, so we have history to guide us. And by now, we have a sense of the kind of storyteller he is, mythic and punishing. Which means Dany and Jon ruling together is pretty much off the table immediately — no one gets that happy of an ending in Game of Thrones.
Euron seems more of a contender in the books, but he's barely a player in the show. Cersei and Jaime are almost certainly fated for doom, likely at each other's hands (and it would be a little too anti-climatic if the Mad Queen just... stayed the queen). Tyrion and Arya, love them though we do, are not rulers at heart. Bran, powerful as he is, seems to have an altogether more mystical destiny. The Night King? Well, the Night King actually has a shot, but no matter Martin's plans, I doubt HBO wants to lead into their spinoff series on that note. Which means we're ultimately left with a few key players: Jon, Dany, Sansa, and lest we forget, Gendry -- the bastard son of Robert Baratheon.
If you've been paying attention to the prophecies; either Jon or Dany is almost certainly Azor Ahai, the Prince Who Was Promised, and if prophecy holds up, one may have to kill the other to forge the weapon that saves mankind. Now that they're rocking boats together, they're probably going to have a little dragon wolf baby to rule them all; and their marriage will be important. Taking it back to the War of the Roses, they would be a fitting parallel to the marriage of Henry VII and Elizabeth Woodville -- a unity of bloodlines to create a lasting dynasty.
But again, no one gets that happy of an ending in Game of Thrones. So my big guess is that Dany will die, either to bring about a new Lightbringer should the prophecy hold true, or perhaps to save one of her living dragons (or maybe I'm just hopeful she's on the way out because I don't think she's that great of a ruler. Fight me. But I also think it will be Jon because symbolically he already represents that marriage as the son of a Stark and Targaryen.) Jon will rule as King of the seven realms with their dragonwolf pup as his heir, and hopefully, with Sansa as his Hand (that girl has survived too many courts not to finally serve on one.) This would fulfill Martin's historical fixation, fulfill his characters, live up to the mythology and prophecies he built, and basically hit a home run.
But and this is a big but, Jon Snow ending up on the throne would be just a little too cliche for Martin — after all, he has consistently rejected happy endings and, especially, traditional heroes. Jon is nothing if not a traditional hero. So here’s my second guess and this is the one I’d really like to see happen. Jon and Dany both die heroes. The prophecies were never what they seemed on the surface (they so rarely are). The marriage that unifies the realm? Sansa and Gendry (remember, Ned changed Robert’s will to simply say “heir”), ideally with Tyrion as Hand. This is what I hope happens in my truest heart, but it seems too damn good to be true.
All that said, we don’t even know if Weiss and Benioff will stick to Martin’s original ending at this point, so the prophecies might not mean a damn thing and the War of the Roses could be but a forgotten piece of history to the writers' room. Who knows! Place your bets on Hot Pie. Honestly, it's as good a guess as any. -- Haleigh Foutch
Dave Trumbore: Hot Pie
When it comes to Game of Thrones, viewers and readers have come to expect the unexpected. And while HBO’s wildly successful adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s novels may differ wildly from the source material when it’s all said and done, fans everywhere desperately want to end their time with Jon Snow & Co. on a positive note. So how do you balance the value of shock and awe with the desired hope and optimism?
Put Hot Pie on the Iron Throne.
Now, to be clear, the chances of the portly orphan baker sitting the throne and ruling over Westeros are about as good as that of an old Valyrian surviving the Doom, but there’s still a possibility that something this insane could happen. And honestly, it’s the one I’d prefer. Literally anyone else ascending to the throne will be either boring and predictable (see Daenerys Targaryen and Jon Snow) or crushingly nihilistic (see the Night King). Anyone from the remaining royal houses of Westeros who wins the throne will likely continue the progress of the ever-spinning wheel, whatever their intentions. It would take a true outsider, commoner, and survivor to break that wheel and change the future of the known world. That person is Hot Pie.
It’s a rare character, be they lead or supporting, who survives the harsh world of Game of Thrones, but Hot Pie has managed to keep on trucking since Season 1. He’s been recruited by the Night’s Watch, imprisoned by the Lannister loyalists at Harrenhal, captured by the Brotherhood Without Banners, and hired as a baker at the Inn at the Crossroads. In addition to his almost supernatural survival skills (i.e. pure luck), Hot Pie has fed both victuals and vital information to many of the major players in the war. He might just be the perfect puppet/pawn/surrogate to put on the throne since he has no loyalty to one house or another, appreciates a good bake more than a good brawl, and would, if nothing else, make sure the common folk of all realms had some tasty bread to fill their bellies.
But honestly, the more compelling argument is that, like Martin himself, Hot Pie is a big-bellied fella with a food obsession, so I could absolutely see the indulgent author putting himself on the throne via Hot Pie. Could you really blame him if he did? -- Dave Trumbore
Allison Keene: Tyrion Lannister
While the nihilist in me is kinda cheering for The Night King at this point, my gut instinct is that Jon Snow, the literal "song of ice and fire" will unite the realm, and Daenerys may or may not have a role to specifically play in that happening. But in terms of who deserves the Throne and who might be the greatest leader, Tyrion is certainly an interesting consideration. He is the one whose hand has united Jon and Dany in the first place, and he has always proven himself to be a capable leader -- one who is fair, tactical, and has the diplomatic charm to get what he wants. Tyrion has played on the edges of this game board from the beginning in a much more genuine way than Littlefinger ever did. Yes, he's been beaten down and nearly broken a number of times, but who better to understand the plight of the common people? He's a Lannister, yes (potentially a Targaryen even), but it doesn't really matter because no house has ever really claimed him. He's never had the same kind of wealth and power given to the lords of these great houses, but through many trials and humiliations he's won it for himself.
Tyrion has also acted somewhat as an avatar for author George R. R. Martin within the story, so it could be a kind of vain inside joke that he wins it all. Regardless, it would go along with Martin's desire in the books to subvert typical fantasy tropes. Whether Weiss and Benioff stick with that remains to be seen, but they have allowed Tyrion to position himself in a place of great trust and power behind Dany as well as Jon. And with both of them making such big mistakes (Daenerys especially with her poor control of her dragons, leading the Night King to have one of his own that broke down The Wall), Tyrion could well be in his rights to shut that whole operation down for the good of the people.
Given how warmly most of the series' main characters feel towards Tyrion, he doesn't feel like a controversial choice among them (Cersei is obviously excluded but we know she's not making it out of here alive). Ultimately, Tyrion feels like he has politically flown under-the-radar enough that when all of the dragons and zombies and backstabbing and warring comes to an end and everything settles down, what will be left is one little person ready to build it all back up again. For the Realm!
Matt Goldberg: No One
If you look at the entirety of Game of Thrones, two elements jump out. The first is that sitting on the Iron Throne is inherently short-lived, and that heroism in the show is exemplified not by those who seek to rule, but those who believe in self-governance.
We’re now at the final season of Game of Thrones, and in the show’s entire run, at no point has there been a character where the audience could say, “Yes. It is good that this character is on the Iron Throne.” Before the show even began, we had the Mad King Aerys II Targaryen, who was noted for A) being insane; B) see “A”. Then we moved to Robert Baratheon, who was a war hero that had gone to seed by being on the throne. He was succeeded by Joffrey Baratheon, a sadist. He was then followed by his brother Tommen, who was too sweet, naïve, and young for the job. And then after Tommen committed suicide, he was followed by Cersei, who is ruthless and cunning, but as far as being a good ruler? Assuming there was no Army of the Dead marching from the North, does anyone think that Cersei really has the best interests of her subjects at heart?
Even the power of the throne is diminished as there’s an outsized importance on the Hand of the King, who may technically be a chief advisor, but depending on the king’s interest on actual governance, can be more like a Prime Minister. So for all of the importance the show’s marketing puts on the Iron Throne, the show’s narrative never treats the Iron Throne as something bestowing greatness, power, or permanence. As Daenerys points out, power is like a wheel with different houses on top but the wheel just keeps spinning, indifferent to the goals of its various leaders. “I intend to break the wheel,” says Daenerys.
Whether she’s the one that breaks it or not, I don’t expect to see a ruler on the throne at the end, because then the story doesn’t really get an ending, and we’re left to wonder what all this was for other than defeating the White Walkers. If the story goes on with a new ruler on the Iron Throne, then we have to assume that sooner or later, that ruler will be bumped off, conflict will return, and the wheel keeps spinning.
That doesn’t really fit with whom the show champions—people deciding to be free. When Robb Stark led a rebellion against the crown, he was hailed as a champion not because he wanted to rule Westeros, but because he wanted to make the North its own kingdom. He was “The King in the North,” a reference to a time when the ruler of the North was independent. Later in the show, we see that the freefolk are championed not because they want to come from the North and take over everything South of the wall, but because they just want to be free.
For Game of Thrones to justify itself, it has to have some kind of lasting impact. The world has to be changed. I think the Army of the Dead winning would be too nihilistic for even David Benioff and Dan Weiss, and so the major change that justifies the entire series is that the long-coveted Throne is no longer the prize. Westeros breaks into separate kingdoms with each kingdom ruling over its own lands and perhaps a council of some sort for serious disputes. But in the end, I suspect the only way to “win” the Iron Throne, is to give it up entirely. – Matt Goldberg