The fiery loot train attack (which needs a better name) in the fourth episode of “Game of Thrones” Season 7 was the most explosive set piece so far, so of course the amount of effort that went into making it was also huge.
HBO released a 14-minute featurette on YouTube Monday that breaks down how multiple teams — including actors, props, VFX, horse wranglers and more — put the scene together, which yes, includes setting a lot of things on fire (or making it look like a lot of things were set on fire).
There’s a lot to unpack here, but one of the highlights of the video involves how Emilia Clarke (who plays Daenerys) rode on Drogon. Of course it wasn’t a real dragon, but rather a rig done up to simulate the movements of the dragon. It’s like riding a mechanical bull but without the atmosphere and way more green screen.
“Being on this theme park ride… and you’re strapped in and then looking like you are controlling it when there’s so much going on, you just have to harness every single bit of imagination you have and just use it,” Clarke said.
It’s also the most amount of time the audience has ever seen a dragon on screen in “Game of Thrones.” VFX supervisor Joe Bauer said in Season 6, there were 11 shots of Daenerys riding the dragon. In just the loot train battle alone there were more than 80.
You can watch the full featurette above.