Game of Thrones is an American fantasy drama television series created for HBO b

y David Benioff and D. B. Weiss. It is an adaptation of A Song of Ice and Fire,

George R. R. Martin's series of fantasy novels, the first of which is titled A G
ame of Thrones. The episodes are mainly written by Benioff and Weiss, who are th
e executive producers alongside Martin, who writes one episode per season. Filme
d in a Belfast studio and on location elsewhere in Northern Ireland, Malta, Scot
land, Croatia, Iceland, the United States, Spain and Morocco, it premiered on HB
O in the United States on April 17, 2011. Two days after the fourth season premi
ered in April 2014, HBO renewed Game of Thrones for a fifth and sixth season.[4]
The series, set on the fictional continents of Westeros and Essos at the end of
a decade-long summer, interweaves several plot lines. The first follows the memb
ers of several noble houses in a civil war for the Iron Throne of the Seven King
doms; the second covers the rising threat of the impending winter and the mythic
al creatures of the North; the third chronicles the attempts of the exiled last
scion of the realm's deposed dynasty to reclaim the throne. Through its morally
ambiguous characters, the series explores issues of social hierarchy, religion,
loyalty, corruption, civil war, crime, and punishment.
Game of Thrones has attracted record numbers of viewers on HBO and obtained an e
xceptionally broad and active international fan base. It received widespread acc
laim by critics, although its frequent use of nudity, violence and sexual violen
ce has attracted criticism. The series has won numerous awards and nominations,
including a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Drama Series for its
first four seasons, a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Television Series Dr
ama, a Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation in both Long Form and Short For
m, and a Peabody Award. Among the ensemble cast, Peter Dinklage won the Primetim
e Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series and the Golden G
lobe Award for Best Supporting Actor Series, Miniseries or Television Film for his
role as Tyrion Lannister.