Isaac Hempstead Wright reveals extreme security lengths to keep GoT finale a secret during filming

Desperate to keep the final moments of Game of Thrones secret, HBO went to unprecedented lengths to keep the public from snooping.

With every single media outlet around the world desperate to uncover spoilers during filming of the Game of Thrones finale, the extreme lengths HBO went to in order to keep it under wraps have been revealed.

Isaac Hempstead Wright – who played Bran Stark since the show’s very first episode – told news.com.au details of just how top secret the GoT set was for the eighth and final season, referencing a final scene with the Stark siblings.

Filmed in Dubrovnik, Croatia, Hempstead Wright said shooting on location for the pivotal moment resembled a “CIA site”.

“It was ridiculous, the security and secrecy,” he said.

The top secret Starks farewell scene.

“When we shot in Dubrovnik for that scene where we’re saying goodbye to Jon Snow, I’ve never experienced anything like that, it was like being a secret agent.

“We came into the country on a chartered flight so nobody would see us, we stayed in this hotel and they booked out the entire hotel just for us.

“We weren’t allowed to go out, we couldn’t walk outside.”

As if renting out an entire hotel for the core cast members to stay in wasn’t enough, Hempstead Wright said producers took further precaution when shooting the scene on the dock.

“On that day, HBO rented out every single apartment and every single hotel room that could possibly overlook where we were shooting,” he added.

“We had coast guards patrolling just outside in the water to check no boats were coming by.

“When we were coming in and out of cars we had to be covered in coats, and when we flew back we were the last people on the flight and we had to sneak in.

“It was really amazing that people loved this story so much and were so desperate to get any nugget of information. You had a pinch yourself moment every day.”

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Throughout the show’s eight-year run, the series – which streams on new Aussie streaming service Binge – was built on speculation as to which character would take the Iron Throne.

Stark siblings Maisie Williams as Arya Stark, Isaac Hempstead Wright as Bran Stark, and Sophie Turner as Sansa Stark. Picture: Macall B. Polay/HBO

Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) was a main player, as well as Jon Snow, Sansa Stark and Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey).

Warning: Spoilers ahead. If you haven’t yet watched Game of Thrones, stop reading.

No one was more shocked than Hempstead Wright, 21, to find out it was Bran the Broken who would end up ruling the Seven Kingdoms.

Binge is Australia’s new streaming service offering the best drama, entertainment and movies from the world’s best creators. Get your two week free trial at binge.com.au

“I did not see it coming at all. A lot of the time it was fans and friends talking and saying ‘I feel like it’s got to be Bran’, and I said ‘You are so wrong, it’ll be someone else.’

“Even when I read the script I thought, ‘Is this really true?’

“I wasn’t entirely sure, but I was pretty sure it wasn’t Bran. I thought it was going to be an obvious one, maybe Sansa.

“(But) no complaints there. It couldn’t have gone any better for me. It went badly for other people.”

It’s been just over a year since the finale aired, and Hempstead Wright said he’s returned to a nice level of normality after a wild decade since signing on to the show at only 10-years-old.

Hempstead Wright was 11 when GoT began filming.

He is set to appear in the upcoming movie Voyagers alongside Colin Farrell and Lily-Rose Depp, and is studying neuroscience at the University College London, but apart from that he’s been enjoying coronavirus isolation with his girlfriend, his family and their two dogs in the English countryside.

Of course, Hempstead Wright’s version of normality means he is still recognised most places he goes. Except for, he says, the busy and bustling London Underground tube.

“It’s certainly more normal now, I’m enjoying actually doing something different and living a normal life, getting on the tube everyday,” he said.

“It’s a really funny one, I will still get recognised elsewhere like at pubs and restaurants often I’ll have someone clocking me, but on the underground, never.

“People are just so focused on getting to work, the misery of commuting is that even seeing Bran Stark isn’t exciting,” he laughed.

As for whether he stays in touch with his GoT family, despite reports emerging last year Hempstead Wright said the group WhatsApp chat was “dead”, the young actor is happy to report that comment was sensationalised and the chat is very much alive.

“Let me put this rumour to bed, it got misconstrued, I said ‘It’s a bit dead at the moment’ and then suddenly headlines were like ‘GoT cast hate each other’, that’s not at all the case,” he laughed.

The cast are still in touch via their group WhatsApp. Picture: @emilia_clarke/Instagram

“Particularly during the pandemic there’s been more activity, everyone has been checking in on everyone especially given it’s been a year since the last episode.

“Everyone is in contact with each other.”

Hempstead Wright also wanted to add how lucky he was to have a beautiful family that helped him stay grounded during his whirlwind run on arguably the biggest TV phenomenon of all time.

“Whenever there was excitement around it, or somebody wanted to take pictures of me or gave me a free ticket or clothes, they (family) were very adamant that doesn’t make you special,” he said.

“(They’d say) ‘You’re incredibly lucky, this could’ve been anybody else.’

“I think that’s when people lose it is when they suddenly feel they’re entitled. I feel as though I won the biggest competition ever, a 10 year prize.”