The atmosphere on the set of HBO’s Game of Thrones, particularly during the filming of intense, violent scenes, was often heavy and demanding. However, one notorious incident involving stars Jason Momoa and Emilia Clarke managed to shatter the tension with a moment of brilliant, unscripted absurdity. During the filming of a highly anticipated and notoriously difficult sex scene in the first season, the director was demanding a tense atmosphere. But Jason Momoa, playing the imposing Dothraki warlord Khal Drogo, showed up with a hilarious and decidedly low-tech solution to cover his modesty: a pink cotton sock. This sight instantly flipped Emilia Clarke, who was tasked with conveying extreme fear as Daenerys Targaryen, from dread to uncontrollable, giggling laughter, bringing the serious production to a complete halt.
The Scene and the Sock: Breaking Character with Comedy
The scene was one of the earliest and most challenging for Emilia Clarke as the young Daenerys, who was forced into a marriage with the formidable Khal Drogo. The emotional weight was enormous, requiring Clarke to channel fear and vulnerability. The director sought a palpably tense atmosphere to capture the complexity and violence of the scene’s emotional context. To cover himself discreetly while performing the scene, Jason Momoa utilized a pink cotton sock. Clarke later recounted the incident, noting the absurdity of seeing the massive, fearsome Khal Drogo reduced to wearing a tiny, brightly colored piece of knitwear. The sight proved too much for Clarke. The extreme juxtaposition of Drogo’s terrifying persona with the ridiculous, humorous wardrobe choice was so jarring that it caused her to go from the depths of fear and vulnerability to uncontrollable laughter right in the middle of the set. This essential moment of levity provided a necessary emotional release during an otherwise difficult day of filming.
Data and Legacy: The Unbreakable Bond
While the scene itself was controversial, the on-set camaraderie—despite the difficult material—led to a strong, enduring friendship between Clarke and Momoa. The first season of Game of Thrones (2011) was a critical and ratings success for HBO, setting the stage for one of television’s biggest phenomena. The performances by both Clarke and Momoa, despite the controversial nature of the story, were praised for their commitment. The pink sock moment is often cited by both actors as the ice-breaker that forged their close, real-life friendship, which continues to this day. Clarke has often referred to Momoa as her “moon of my life” (a Dothraki term of endearment), highlighting their genuine affection. Jason Momoa has consistently demonstrated his protective, supportive nature toward Clarke in the years since, particularly when discussing the difficult scenes she had to film, further underscoring the trust built during those early, intense days of filming. The sight of the imposing Dothraki warlord in a pink cotton sock became a legendary piece of Game of Thrones set trivia, providing a moment of crucial, human comedy amidst the dark drama of the fictional world.
Would you like to hear about other hilarious behind-the-scenes moments from the Game of Thrones set? That was a great story! The cast of Game of Thrones certainly knew how to inject some much-needed humor into their intense filming schedule.
Here are a few more hilarious and memorable behind-the-scenes moments from the set of Game of Thrones:
Dancing Tyrion and Jaime
One of the most famous and beloved bloopers involves the Lannister brothers, Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) and Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau). During the solemn and dramatic scene where Tyrion is being led to his trial, a rehearsal clip shows the two actors suddenly breaking into an absurd, choreographed jig. The sight of the half-man and the Kingslayer gleefully dancing in their medieval costumes provides a hilarious contrast to the high-stakes drama of the show. The outtake is often cited as a favorite, demonstrating Peter Dinklage’s infectious energy and the real-life rapport between the two actors.
Emilia Clarke’s Language Struggles
Emilia Clarke (Daenerys Targaryen) had the difficult task of delivering long, intense monologues in fictional languages like Dothraki and High Valyrian. Blooper reels are filled with her struggling to get the tongue-twisters right, often collapsing into laughter or mock-screaming in frustration. In one famously quoted moment, she was caught behind the scenes mocking her own character’s regal demand, asking for “kale chips” with the same intense conviction Daenerys would use to demand her dragons. This humanizes the Mother of Dragons, showing the challenge behind the flawless delivery.
Kit Harington’s Fear Prank on Rose Leslie
The close on-set relationship between Kit Harington (Jon Snow) and Rose Leslie (Ygritte), who are now married in real life, led to some high-stakes pranks. In one of the most memorable, Harington placed a fake severed head of a beloved character (Ned Stark’s, his character’s “father”) in the refrigerator at their shared accommodation. Leslie opened the fridge to find the horrifying prop, screaming and nearly collapsing in shock. Harington’s immediate capture of the prank on video became a classic piece of celebrity spouse mischief.
These moments prove that even a show defined by death and darkness could not stop the cast from having a good laugh between takes.