10 Game of Thrones Cameos You Completely Forgot About

Game of Thrones was a global sensation when it was on the air, and everyone wanted in on the action. The show had some neat celebrity cameos early on that served as Easter eggs, while the later seasons featured some heavy-handed appearances that were hard to miss. In fact, some fans complained that these appearances were distracting, and mocked the celebrities who wanted to visit Westeros so badly. For better or worse, they’re immortalized in this blockbuster series forever now, and they’ll be there on every re-watch from here on out. Here are 10 of the best celebrity cameos from Game of Thrones, including some you may have forgotten about.

Game of Thrones aired from 2011 to 2019 on HBO, drawing a bigger audience than the network had dared dream of and growing to become the biggest ratings powerhouse of its era. It has been credited with the rise in popularity for the fantasy genre in general, and to this day, many streamers and studios are trying to replicate its success. In hindsight, it’s hard to summarize how wide its reach was, but celebrity cameos are actually a great metric. They show interest from musicians, athletes, politicians, and anyone else with enough influence to get on the set for a quick appearance.

[RELATED: 10 Most Devastating Game of Thrones Character Deaths Ranked]

Game of Thrones is streaming now on Max, along with the prequel series House of the Dragon. Another prequel series, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, premieres later this year. Read on for 10 celebrity cameos in the original series.

Former President George W. Bush

One of the first and most controversial “cameos” in the series came in the Season 1 finale, when we see Ned Stark’s severed head impaled on a spike outside of King’s Landing. You’d have to squint pretty hard to notice, but the head on the left was originally a prosthetic likeness of former President George W. Bush. It wasn’t widely reported when it first aired, so it’s possible no one caught it, but showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss pointed it out in a DVD commentary track.

After that, HBO, Benioff, and Weiss publicly apologized. The writers said there was no political motive behind this depiction, but it was instead a matter of convenient access to cheap prosthetics. The scene has since been removed from the re-runs, streaming services, and subsequent hard copy releases, so it can be difficult to track down.

Will Champion

Season 3, Episode 9 might be the most famous episode of Game of Thrones for the event known as “The Red Wedding,” yet you probably don’t remember it for the cameo appearance of Coldplay’s drummer, Will Champion. Champion was playing percussion for the minstrels performing in House Frey’s great hall during the feast, and he even got a closeup as the band began to play “The Rains of Castamere.”

Sigur Rós & Of Monsters and Men

Early on, musicians got a lot of the cameo spots on Game of Thrones as the series needed bards and minstrels in big scenes. The Icelandic indie band Sigur Rós first got the honor in Season 4, Episode 2 as one of the groups performing at the wedding of Joffrey Bratheon and Margaery Tyrell — “The Purple Wedding.”

Of Monsters and Men, another Icelandic indie band, played a different group of minstrels with two appearances in the show. We first saw them in Season 6, Episode 5, “The Door” over in Braavos. They played the musicians playing alongside the actors that Arya watches in their dramatization of Westerosi politics. They returned in the very next episode when Arya gets to know the actors even better.

Royd Tolkien

Former presidents and NFL stars are one thing, but for die-hard fantasy fans, the most prestigious cameo was probably the appearance of J.R.R. Tolkien’s great-grandson in Season 5, Episode 8, “Hardhome.” He played one of the Wildlings living in the doomed village, but since we don’t see him again, it’s hard to say if he made it.

Mastodon

The metal band Mastodon also got two appearances on Game of Thrones, but they were more spread out this time. Weiss personally invited the group because he is a big fan, and they first appeared as wights in “Hardhome.” They returned again in the Season 7 finale, which makes sense since the White Walkers could raise the same dead soldiers again and again.

Steve Love

Canadian comedian Steve Love was getting a lot of traffic on YouTube for his impressions of Game of Thrones characters, and he eventually caught the attention of HBO. The network brought him on in Season 6, Episode 8 to play a member of the Brotherhood Without Banners. Love even got to do a press tour, telling his story on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, among other outlets.

Ed Sheeran

If any cameo is more controversial than the first one on this list, it’s Ed Sheeran’s appearance in the Season 7 premiere. The singer-songwriter played a Lannister soldier who encounters Arya Stark and spends an inordinate amount of time with her. This is what rankled some fans, who felt that Sheeran’s extended scene complete with a campfire song took away precious screentime that could have gone to the main story. That’s especially true in these last two seasons, where run time was limited.

Rob McElhenney and Martin Starr

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia star Rob McElhenney and Silicon Valley star Martin Starr made cameos together in Game of Thrones‘ final season premiere. They played two of the Ironborn soldiers guarding Yara Greyjoy, but they didn’t do a great job. Both were killed gruesomely when Theon and his forces arrived to rescue Yara.

As prominent as these shots look, a lot of fans didn’t notice McElhenney and Starr when the episode first aired. The two had to point out their appearances on social media, which contributed to the widespread criticisms of the show’s dim lighting. This is a trend we still see in prestige TV today.

CIA Deputy Director David S. Cohen

Maybe the most surprising person to get a cameo spot was the former deputy director of the CIA, David S. Cohen. He played one of the civilians in Winterfell as the castle prepared for the onslaught of the White Walkers. How exactly this collaboration came to be is not clear — maybe it’s classified — but Cohen and the CIA both promoted it on social media.

Aaron Rodgers

Finally, Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers got his cameo in the second-to-last episode of the entire series. He appeared as a member of the Golden Company — the mercenary army hired by Queen Cersei to defend her from Daenerys. This was before Rodgers became a controversial political and social commentator, but some fans still called this cameo gratuitous. Author George R.R. Martin famously has strong feelings about the NFL, yet he did not comment publicly on Rodgers’ appearance.

Game of Thrones is streaming now on Max, along with House of the Dragon. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms premieres later this year on HBO and Max. Martin’s novels are available now in print, digital, and audiobook formats.