15 Greatest Costumes In HBO's Game Of Thrones Franchise
Faith Roswell is a Senior Writer on Screen Rant's Classic TV team. Since earning her degree in Creative Writing over a decade ago, Faith has written articles on film and TV from a variety of different angles. Faith now combines her knowledge of psychology with her love of monster movies to give more insight into what makes the best ones.
You may have read her Screen Rant lists and features covering horror, sci-fi, and fantasy, or read her Amazon Top 10 book, "Movie Monsters of the Deep."
Faith has had an extensive career as a writer, appearing on BBC live radio, researching true crime for Rotten Mango podcast, and writing for publications including Mental Floss, Atlas Obscura, and The Daily Jaws before beginning here at Screen Rant.
Game of Thrones is one of the few groundbreaking shows that changed the TV landscape with its immense budget, epic scale, and attention to detail in the settings and outfit styles. Taking place across a variety of locations within many different cultures, few shows pay as much attention to worldbuilding as the Game of Thrones franchise, and one of the show's greatest indicators of place and status is in its costumes.
Of all the TV shows with excellent costume design, Game of Thrones stands out. That said, there is more to Michele Clapton and April Ferry's costumes than just visual impact. Virtually all the main characters in the Game of Thrones franchise are fashion icons, with many showing the changes in their circumstances and allegiances through the garments that they wear, with most of the outfits carrying hidden meanings for viewers who look closely.
The Hound's Dog-Inspired Armor
Sandor Clegane, better known as The Hound, is Joffrey Lannister's bodyguard and one of the most formidable fighters in Game of Thrones. Brutal, cynical, and with a lifelong terror of fire after his brother burned his face, he is also one of the most complex characters. Not everyone could pull off the giant dog's head helm he wears in combat, but it suits him perfectly.
House Clegane's sigil is three black dogs, so the helm is fitting for his family name, but it also covers most of his face when open, hiding his burns from onlookers and keeping people from getting too close due to the menacing design. Actor Rory McCann was rarely seen wearing it onscreen due to its weight, but this allowed the costume to make an impact every time it appeared.
Sansa Stark's Wedding Dress
Sansa's wedding dress looks extravagant and luxurious at first glance, but there is more to the costume than meets the eye. Virtually all of the costumes in Game of Thrones tell stories of their own, and this is one of the best examples in the show. Forced to marry Tyrion so that the Lannister family could seize control of the North, the dress is a physical representation of the gilded cage holding Cersei Lannister's "little dove."
The flowing fabric disguises the fact that the dress is extremely restrictive, and while most characters who marry in the show wear the colors of their own House or a combination of the two Houses involved, Sansa is draped in Lannister gold. The embroidery shows a lion licking at her arm, and one stamped on the back of her neck, making the dress one of Sansa Stark's most symbolic costumes.
Alicent Hightower's Green Gown
Alicent Hightower's green gown is objectively beautiful and fitting for a fantasy TV series like House of the Dragon, but just as in Game of Thrones, the moment she appears in it is loaded with symbolism. When House Hightower calls its people to war, its beacon turns green, and when Alicent, who previously wore Targaryen colors, appears in the gown in the episode "We Light The Way," it is a signal that she has chosen a side.
The scene is one of the best in the series, with Alicent interrupting King Viserys' speech at Rhaenyra's wedding, both stealing the attention from the couple and calling her allies to war in the only way that she can as a woman in the court. This moment sets up the battle between the Greens and the Blacks, while highlighting the power of a showstopping entrance and outfit.
Jaime Lannister's Shining Armor
Jaime Lannister makes an impression, with his shining golden armor and hair resembling a typical fairytale prince in an attempt to combat the reputation Jaime has as "the Kingslayer." His first scenes in Game of Thrones establish Jaime as an excellent fighter and his family as extraordinarily wealthy, and even when he is denied the opportunity to fight Robb Stark, the armor appears to say it all for him.
However, we find out almost immediately that the armor is working exactly as intended, not just protecting Jaime from enemy blows, but from people who might look too closely. Dazzled by the visual impact he has, his dark secret remains hidden. Jaime Lannister's evolution through Game of Thrones plays out through his clothing choices, but first impressions are hard to forget, and this costume is one of his greatest.
Daenerys Targaryen's Final Outfit
Many of the Game of Thrones characters could be considered among the best dressed characters in TV history, and Daenerys Targaryen has been a style icon from her very first scene. Virtually all of Emilia Clarke's costumes are incredible feats of design and symbolism, but her final evolution into the "Mad Queen" gives us a design that is both striking and disturbing.
Red and black are the Targaryen colors, but Daenerys' outfit turns this into a symbol of her bloody past, with the outfit changing from black to red the further to the ground it goes. As Daenerys is not yet a queen, she never wears a crown, but the triple dragon head chain is a clear symbol of intent, with the flowing material at her shoulder resembling a great dragon wing, while her Dothraki past shows in her most elaborate braided hairstyle yet.
Prince Maekar Targaryen's Armor
The Targaryen family have a very distinctive preference and style, which could present a challenge in telling the individual characters apart on the battlefield, but the costume designers have ensured the brothers Baelor and Maekar's armor is instantly recognizable, with even their horses reflecting the designs and aesthetic preferred by their riders, with Maekar's including extra detail and embellishments that make him a little more striking.
Maekar is one of the best of the Targaryen family, and his armor provided the perfect opportunity for the designers to be creative. The spikes and dragon teeth at his shoulders and neck ensure that he is dangerous on another level, with the armor serving as its own weapon if an opponent is unlucky enough to get close to him. The spiked mace design was the perfect final touch as a strategic choice, highlighting his lethality.
Rhaenyra And Daemon Targaryen's Wedding Robes
Rhaenyra and Daemon Targaryen have a traditional Valyrian wedding, a sacred Targaryen tradition that feels ancient, primal, and bloody, in keeping with many Game of Thrones weddings. However, with their union being done for love, the wedding feels less violent, with the smearing of blood being part of the ceremony, and the couple wearing complementary robes to show that they are equals in their marriage.
The costume design makes the wedding scene stand out amid the many other Game of Thrones weddings, which tend to include sumptuous gowns and elaborate looks. The rough fabrics, striking blood red and cream color scheme, and Rhaenyra's headpiece prove that sometimes simplicity and a well-chosen color can be just as effective as elaborate embroidery and flowing rivers of brocade.
Khal Drogo's War Paint And Leather
Khal Drogo's costume easily proves that a well-chosen look can make a character into an icon. Drogo's leather belt, gold accessories, long braid and striking blue war paint have become the definitive look associated with him, despite this not being his everyday outfit. The Dothraki might have a reputation for being barbarians, but these comparatively rich details show him to be a warlord.
Game of Thrones won four Emmy Awards for its costumes.
These details make Drogo look impressive and do not detract from the story, but when looking closely, a lot of work has gone into telling his story through his costume. Blue is not a common color in the plains, and the craftsmanship involved in Drogo's golden belt is rare, yet he uses this paint during ceremonies and is so wealthy that he is able to melt down the belt for the infamous "golden crown" without a second thought.
Sansa Stark's "Queen In The North" Coronation Outfit
Game of Thrones ends with Sansa becoming Queen in the North, and after one of the best style evolutions throughout the series, the Stark heir has found her own look at last. Sansa spent much of the show being dressed by others, first copying the style of Cersei Lannister, then being influenced by Margaery Tyrell, and finally combining the furs of the North with the armor that she has come to embrace after years in light dresses.
This outfit is another of many symbolic pieces that Sansa wears, with this one showing her entire journey, with Weirwood leaves and fish scales on the sleeves, branches on the top half, and a crown featuring a stylized wolf. The fact that Sansa always wanted pretty dresses and a throne is reflected in her coronation scene, with the outfit giving her everything she wanted, but in a very different way to the future she imagined.
Daenerys Targaryen's Blue Robes
Blue is a surprisingly rare color in the Game of Thrones color palette, with so many of the main characters favoring warm colors like golds and reds, or blacks, greys, and neutrals. This immediately allows Daenerys to stand out wherever she is, while also reflecting Khal Drogo's ceremonial color, and the blue costume Emilia Clarke wears in the third season is one of Daenerys's best outfits in Game of Thrones.
The asymmetrical design allows the dress to do several things at once. The flowing cape evokes dragon wings without feeling too literal, while the color makes her an instantly recognizable figure at the head of the Unsullied despite being much shorter than the formidable army. While the costume looks like a flowing gown from shoulder to waist, the bottom half allows her to move, and the uncovered right arm becomes more significant than it might seem, with it leaving Daenerys free to swing the whip, or to drop it.
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