What ‘Game of Thrones’ Actors Looked Like Before the Show

Since premiering back in 2011, Game of Thrones has emerged as one of the most popular dramas in all of television. While audiences around the world are familiar with the recognizable faces of the HBO series, most people likely wouldn’t have any idea what the actors looked like before appearing on the Emmy-winning show.

Over the years, several of the stars have grown up before the fans’ eyes and others have gone from playing small roles in random flicks to starring in blockbuster films. One detail that is consistent with almost all of the actors is that they have significantly changed since first landing a role on GOT. Check out what the stars looked like before Game of Thrones below.

First up — Jack Gleeson.

Gleeson played arguably the most hated character in television history during his turn as Joffrey Baratheon. Before portraying the sadistic ruler on GOT, Gleeson actually had a memorable role that slipped through the cracks of many moviegoers’ memories.

The 25-year-old star was featured in 2005’s Batman Begins. Gleeson played a little boy who was terrified of the dangers of Gotham City, who was saved by the caped crusader himself. Even though Gleeson skyrocketed to stardom with his role as King Joffrey, he had been getting screen time for years before the show.

Keep scrolling to see more GOT stars before they were famous.

Peter Dinklage

Peter Dinklage plays one of the most beloved characters on GOT as Tyrion Lannister. He won an Emmy for his performance, but he nearly didn’t take the role.

Before signing on for the HBO series, he had been keeping busy with small film roles and TV cameos. He voiced a character in the Ice Age franchise and appeared in both the American and British versions of Death at a Funeral. His most memorable role, however, was when he played Miles Finch alongside Will Ferrell in Elf.

The 48-year-old actor also stepped into the world of fantasy before playing a “Red Dwarf” on The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian.

Around 2008 is when GOT co-showrunners David Benioff and David Weiss approached Dinklage to play the role of Tyrion. Dinklage wasn’t sold right away, and felt concerned.

“I had one hesitation, because of the fantasy genre, I told him I didn’t want a really long beard and pointy shoes,” Dinklage said during a Reddit AMA.

“[Benioff and co-creator Dan Weiss] assured me this character and this world wasn’t that,” Dinklage wrote. “They told me about his complexity, the fact that he wasn’t a hero or a villain, that he was a womanizer and a drinker, and they painted a flawed and beautiful portrait of him, so I signed on.”

Maisie Williams and Sophie Turner

Two of the actors that have changed the most over the course of the series are Sophie Turner and Maisie Williams, who portray Sansa and Arya Stark, respectively. When Turner was cast on GOT, she was just 13 years old, while Williams was 12.

Before joining the show, Turner, now 21, said that she was involved with a theater group and had some acting experience. Because she was so young, Turner was unfazed by the fact that she was joining a star-studded cast.

“I was probably just coming out of that phase, at 13, where dressing up and sword-fighting was really exciting. I was part of a theater company … and I probably played it a million times with friends on stage,” she said during an interview with USA Today.

Turner and Williams were cast on GOT in July of 2009. The two actually have matching tattoos to commemorate the date.

As for Williams, now 20, she said that she was a regular student in school loving life before landing the role of Arya.

“I look back and I think I wasn’t really very happy because I didn’t have many friends,” she told Rolling Stone. “I had left school and I was working a lot and it was a strange time. I remember in maybe season two or three, other cast members coming up to me and saying, ‘Your life is going to change,’ and to me that wasn’t exciting. I was, like, ‘I don’t want it to change. I quite enjoy my life.’ “

Jon Snow

Kit Harington, who plays Jon Snow, didn’t always rock a beard and long hair as he does in portraying the King in the North. 

Before playing the brooding hero on GOT, the 30-year-old actor could be seen in a 2008 stage adaptation of War Horse. Photos from the theatrical production show a clean-shaven Harington sporting an old fashioned army getup.

In the play, Harington’s character starred alongside a mechanical horse that was manned by three puppeteers. A clip from his scene in the play can be seen on YouTube.

Emilia Clarke

One of the stars that is arguably the most unrecognizable out of character is Emilia Clarke.

The 30-year-old actress now plays the Mother of Dragons and Breaker of Chains, Daenerys Targaryen, on GOT. Before landing the role, she appeared in a handful of smaller projects such as portraying a woman named Savannah in a 2010 SyFy film titled Triassic Attack.

Clarke could also be seen on British TV series Doctors. In her other roles, Clarke rocked brown hair that isn’t nearly as noticeable as her silvery blonde tresses on GOT.