To Fix the 'Game of Thrones' Pilot, HBO Called a Secret Weapon

The latest in pop-culture news, recaps, and reviews, plus close reads, profiles, interviews, and more from Vulture.com. [Brand Logo]( chapters [To Fix the Game of Thrones Pilot, HBO Called a Secret Weapon]( The blockbuster dragon show may have never taken flight if not for the efforts of a trusted fill-in director. Photo: HBO HBO has always set itself apart, whether in making real an inward-gazing drama about depressed mobsters, a boundary-pushing comedy about the sex lives of four independently minded women, or an unsparingly violent portrait of a once-great American city brought low by corruption and capitalism. HBO executives proudly took risks. But Game of Thrones was a unique beast. Series creators and showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff worked with author George R.R. Martin for years to adapt his dense, lore-filled A Song of Ice and Fire novels before GOT’s April 2011 premiere. The fantasy series would be distinctly different from HBO’s other airing dramas, including the gangster-focused Boardwalk Empire and the campy, sexy True Blood. [Read More]( Devour pop culture with us. [Subscribe now](for unlimited access to Vulture and everything New York. The Latest TV Recaps • The Serpent Queen: [Trust No One]( • The Real Housewives of Potomac: [Off-Field Drama]( • American Gigolo: [Maybe It Fades]( • The Walking Dead: [Train Reaction]( • The White Lotus: [Picture It, Sicily, 2022]( • Interview With the Vampire: [Somebody to Love]( [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( Stories We Think You’ll Like [The Best Horror Novels of 2022 (So Far) In the mood for some transgressive splatterpunk?]( [Shirley Jackson Captured What Every Housewife Knows About Gothic Horror The late author conjured up the kind of hauntedness that only a homemaker acquainted with the complications of domestic comforts could imagine.]( [Let’s Rewatch Buffy’s ‘Halloween’ Episode From 25 Years Ago Vulture’s TV Club will revisit the silly, goofy episode that one writer has fully imprinted on.]( By Bethy Squires [The RHOBH Reunion Extravaganza The three-part reunion comes down to a feud between sisters (and Rinna) in this edition of the Housewives Institute Bulletin.]( By Brian Moylan [The True Story Behind The Good Nurse Behind bars, Charles Cullen can no longer take life, yet he’s found a way to give it — in the form of an organ transplant.]( [Rihanna’s Return Is a Careful Balancing Act “Life Me Up” is closer to a prayer than a proper comeback single.]( [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( [Today’s Crossword]( 19-Across, Six Letters: Like a candle or like a witch. Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos Courtesy of A24, Dark Age Cinema and Screen Archives/Getty Images Join the Vulture Movies Fantasy League Illustration: Vulture Top Gun did it. Hocus Pocus did it. James Cameron won’t stop doing it. 2022 is the year of the sequel, so in that spirit, Vulture is bringing back a classic of its own — our movies fantasy league. Like its predecessor, this year’s game invites readers to compete against one another — and the Vulture staff — in a test of box-office foreknowledge and awards-season prognostication. [Read up on the how the game works](, and when you’re ready, [select your team]( before the draft window closes on November 21st! [Read more from Vulture]( A Saturday newsletter from the people who make New York Magazine. [Sign up]( to get it every week. [logo]( [facebook logo]( [instagram logo]( [twitter logo]( [unsubscribe](param=vulture-daily) | [privacy notice]( | [update preferences]( This email was sent to {EMAIL}. Was this email forwarded to you? [Sign up now]( to get this newsletter in your inbox. [View this email in your browser.]( You received this email because you have a subscription to New York. Reach the right online audience with us For advertising information on email newsletters, please contact AdOps@nymag.com Vox Media, LLC 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, 12th Floor Washington, DC 20036 Copyright © 2022, All rights reserved