Westworld creators reveal how they landed cameos from Game of Thrones creators

HBO aired the second episode from Westworld’s third season on Sunday, featuring a rather surprising cameo from Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss.

Benioff, 49, and Weiss, 48, were spotted in a brief scene as Westworld techs, who were seen discussing whether or not they could make off with the massive dragon, which was none other than Drogon from Game of Thrones.

Westworld creators Lisa Joy and Jonathan Nolan spoke with Variety on Sunday night following the episode, revealing how they brought the Thrones creators on board. 

Nolan and Joy, who are married and have two children together, had met Benioff and Weiss when they were filming the first season of Westworld, with Nolan stating that Benioff and Weiss are, ‘the f***ing nicest guys in the world.’

‘They were so welcoming and so kind to us at a moment in which we were struggling through a first season and trying to figure out how it will work. We’ve remained friends,’ Nolan added.

The writers added they were also friends with Game of Thrones author George R.R. Martin, who had constantly been pitching a crossover between Game of Thrones and Westworld.

Nolan added that in the original Westworld movie, released in 1973 and based on Michael Crichton’s book, there was a ‘Medieval World,’ and they, ‘couldn’t resist’ a crossover.

Joy added that she just, ‘had to see them in those tech suits,’ while Nolan added they were both, ‘fully up for it.’

Benioff is married to actress Amanda Peet, with Joy revealing that the best reaction to the cameo came from her.

‘She writes to me and she’s like, “You needed an actor. And the person you called was my husband, the worst actor of all time?!”‘ Joy said.

Just before their scene, Ashley (Liam Hemsworth) tells Bernard (Jeffrey Wright) that the park is still closed and techs are waiting to see if they get laid off.

When Ashley and Bernard walk past, we see what the techs are working on – a clone of Drogon, the last of Daenerys Targaryen’s (Emilia Clarke) last dragon in Game of Thrones, talking about whether or not they can steal it and flee to Costa Rica.

When asked who came up with the idea to have the techs talking about stealing the dragon and going to Costa Rica, Joy said it was her husband’s idea.

‘That’s the kind of weird s— that gets you going,’ she said, while Nolan said they pitched it to them, ‘And they thought it was great fun.’

When asked if the dragon was just digitally copied and pasted into Westworld, Nolan revealed it was a ‘real’ physical dragon.

‘We were working with their vendor, Pixamundo, who built the dragons for them. So it’s the real dragon,’ Nolan said.

Joy added, ‘I remember there was a whole big debate about which season dragon for its size because the dragon grew.’

When asked if the cameos meant they were creating a Game of Thrones-themed world within the sprawling theme park, Nolan added with a laugh, ‘I guess that’s definitely open to speculation, before stating, ‘No, we couldn’t.’