In filming its final season, Game of Thrones was not about to take any chances with potential leaks. The series has experienced major spoiler problems in previous seasons, often from both physical photographers and cameras attached to flying drones. That's how intel regarding Jon Snow and Daenerys' big Season 7 meet came out, among other details. For Season 8, the crew knew what they needed to do: put an end the drones through high-tech means.
To do that, Game of Thrones' staff members employed technology characterized as a "drone killer." Star Sophie Turner, who knows something about high tech, was the first to tease the lengths the show went to avoid spoilers. Sharing the story at New York Comic Con (via EW), the actress brought up the ultra-modern method implemented to keep spoilers to a minimum.
Suffice it to say, Game of Thrones did not hold back, using an instrument that was to drones what Qyburn's giant crossbow was to Daenerys' dragons. Sophie Turner said:
If a drone flies above sets, there's a thing that can kill the drones, which is really cool. It creates a field around it and the drones just drop. It's very X-Men.
If anybody on this show knows when a piece of technology seems like it's from the X-Men, it's Sophie Turner. She plays Jean Grey in the film franchise, and her upcoming Dark Phoenix film has presumably fought back against spoiler leaks as well.
The device, Sophie Turner described should prove pivotal for spoiler-sensitive productions filming outside. The method Game of Thrones used seems to have worked, since few images from Season 8's production have circulated. While spoilers have not always been an avoidable issue, due to the series being based on George R.R. Martin's books, the show has been operating "off-book" since Season 6. So the various plots are completely new, making them bigger targets for onlookers.
In comparison to previous seasons, the final chapter in the on-screen saga means the stakes for Season 8 are the highest they've ever been. Therefor, for Game of Thrones to take this high-tech step makes total sense. Along with using "drone killers," the show also tossed out the use of paper scripts, solely relying on digital formats that were only accessible by the concerned parties through a secure app.
It's still not confirmed yet if Game of Thrones doubled up on hiding its ending by filming multiple versions. Even if they were using drone killers to get the job done overhead, it would still be sensible to further security on the ground by filming fake footage. Nevertheless, the anticipation surrounding that ending remains high, and since our wait isn't set to end until some point next year, there is still lots of time left to speculate about it.
Find out how Sansa and the rest of the show's numerous characters' stories conclude, when Game of Thrones' eighth and final season premieres on HBO in 2019. While fans wait, there are a lot of shows returning and debuting over fall that should help them pass the time between now and the HBO hit coming back.
