Top 20 Best Characters in Game of Thrones

A ranking of the top 20 characters in Game of Thrones like Jon Snow, Cersei Lannister, Tyrion Lannister, and Arya Stark. This list is also primarily based on the best of what these characters have to offer instead of considering the abysmal directions they go in during the later seasons.

Thank you to my Patrons: Sean Clancy, The_Henne, Valarmorgulis, Florida Buqmeti, Jaywantsacat, Dean D, Luis Andino, Ingsea, and Jordan Frey.

Music:

King Of The North (Season 1)

Tsushima Suite - V. Seiiki _ Ghost of Tsushima OST

The Witcher 3 OST - The Slopes of the Blessure

The Witcher 3 OST - The Temple Of Lilvani

Skyrim OST - Dawn

Little Nightmares 2 - Main Theme

Warrior of Light - Game of Thrones | Epic Version

Elden Ring OST - Regal Ancestor Spirit

House Stark Theme x The Force Theme | Game of Thrones & Star Wars Mashup

Timestamps:
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[SupercutsDelight]

Honorable Mentions:

Theon Greyjoy - I think his arc in season 2 is perfect, but I don’t really like the reek character arc. It’s very repetitive because in almost every scene, Ramsay is torturing Theon, and after a while, I got a bit bored of it. Not to mention that that lasts for 3 seasons of him serving Ramsay. So Theon doesn’t really have much to do besides getting tortured for most of his screen time. Him escaping and reconciling with his sister is pretty good and is another well-done aspect in the later seasons. However, by that point, I wasn’t that attached to him.

Sansa Stark - Sophie Turner did a great job in her role and her performance was always amazing. The main issue I have with Sansa is that she never has any impact on the story and is mostly passive throughout her whole journey until the end of season 5. And by that time her character was getting butchered by David and Dan. So in essence, I think she has a similar pitfall to Dany in that the later seasons should have been her best, but weren’t. Leaving me to judge her first 5 seasons in which she didn’t have a lot to do. However, Dany had a much better first 4 seasons than she did.

Samwell Tarly - Sam as a character isn’t really flawed, but I don’t think he can really compete with the characters on my list. The two best aspects are his humorful spirit that contrasts the dreary mood of the Night's Watch and his character arc of becoming braver. The character arc though is pretty generic and right away that would make me put him under other characters. Not to mention he spends a lot of time with Gilly and I think she’s genuinely a boring character.

Hodor - Hodor

Khal Drogo - I LOVE JASON MAMOA, so it pained me not to include him. His portrayal as Khal Drogo was excellent, but when looking at the actual character there’s not a lot of depth. His small arc is pretty straightforward and he sadly dies right when he starts getting great :(

Sir Jorah Mormont - He’s a cute man whose main function is serving Dany and doesn’t have a lot going on for himself, besides just serving Dany and loving her. So right away I don’t think he can compete in the top 20. The traitor scene was great, but once that happens he kind of gets deleted out of the story until he bumps into Tyrion.

Brienne of Tarth - Besides the scenes where she’s talking about her past with Podrick and calling out Jaimie for being a wimp, I never really connected with Brienne on an emotional level. I like her backstory and the concept of her character is cool. It’s just that, most of her time is spent traveling around and there are barely any good dialogue scenes for her character. She kind of peaks during her travels with Jaime and It’s also ironic that one of her best scenes comes from season 8.

Davos Seaworth - Davos feels like a neutral character. He doesn’t do a lot that I love nor does he do anything that I dislike. Thus making me consider him more for a top 30 instead of 20.

Tormund - He’s a really fun character who’s definitely uplifted by the great work of Kristofer Hivju. It’s just that, he isn’t really complex. I think he’s similar to Bronn but he lacks different aspects that makes Bronn work so well. He’s also a character that primarily gets most of his screen time later on in the show which was when the writing took a dive.

[andersonn]

Ned Stark appeared in 9 episodes and is one of if not the most memorable and impactful characters in the entire series. pretty amazing how well written and acted he was. his death makes the story great but it’s a shame we didn’t get more of him

[mandaloretheultimate]

Tywin is the best villain hands down, I think its shown when he tells Tyrion: "you'r a fool if you think He (Joffrey) is the most powerful man in Westeros. And in the scene where he walks up to Joffrey who is sitting on the throne, you see how small Joffrey is, and how much more of a commanding presence Tywin is.

[openthemind]

Robb is one character where I can't blame D&D, because in the books he actually gets MUCH less attention.

[diarmuiddoherty]

Tywin is deffo number one for me. Even own a framed autograph from Charles Dance. What a performance and character.

[pierrelhommet]

Game of Thrones has the beauty of having an almost perfect casting for all the characters. The class incarnate remains Charles Dance

[_CrissoN]

Awesome list, I'm just surprised alot of people overlook Theon Greyjoy. One of the most complex and well potrayed characters ever. Alfie Allen did an awesome job with his portrayal of Theon Greyjoy

[painkillerauflauf]

Davos is underrated af. Best character in the show in my opinion and stays it in the later seasons. His scene where he confronts Melisandre is peak

[Emanuel-oomc]

I feel like each of the Lannister’s have a some sort of ideal that speaks to what kind of character they were
Tywins was Legacy
Jamie’s was honor
Cersei’s was family
Joffrey’s was power
And Tyrion’s was wisdom

[alexsm]

Bran should've lowkey been number 1.





Who has a better story than Bran the Broken?

[relaxingcinema]

Sansa as a character is really underrated. I think the people that don't like her feel like she is naive and annoying and makes bad decisions, which makes her one of the most realistic characters in the show. She represents a character that aims to live the life she was born for and expected to have, but then what happens when that life gets derailed. She portrays innocence that breaks more and more with each episode as she gets engulfed in a brutal world that she clearly is not equipped for. Sure she is passive and at the mercy of other characters, but that makes perfect sense. A teenage girl who is surrounded by only enemies who want to use her is not going to have much power. And it's her powerlessness in an environment that is so hungry for power that makes her character compelling.

[yawthewonder]

i love ser davos, a regular person who is thrust into a conflict so much greater than himself, yet manages to have such a profound impact. he is the north pole of stannis's moral compass and a real breath of fresh air to a story about kings, queens, lord, ladys, warrior, assasins, and withces, he isnt special and he isnt rich and he isnt mighty. but hes an honest and good man

[acem]

Solid list, my only disagreement would be about Ned as I don't think the length or amount of screen time should factor in his case, I'd put him above Stannis for sure

[Velshin]

I am surprised you didn't include Theon I mean he was the only character ever in the show that didn't get ruined in later seasons and had a great ending for his story overall.

[jdosser]

I'd have put Olenna in the top 2 (alongside Tywin) since the two are probably the most brutal players of the game. Both put their family above all else. Tywin puts his family's name as the greatest priority and he will destroy anything that threatens that. Olenna is a lot more subtle, but just as brutal as Tywin. Also every time they share a scene, the scene is so interesting and they play off each other very well. Some of my favourite scenes in GoT are scenes with just Olenna and Tywin

[gillesdupouy]

They might not be the best written characters, but my favorite characters are ser Jorah Mormont and ser Davos Seaworth. Jorah starting as a spy trying to win his pardon and falling in love with Daenerys, being rejected but staying out of sheer love and devotion, and just his general knowledge and mentor vibe make him great to me. I loved the arena scene, and the scene when he comes back to Daenerys after Sam heals his grayscale.

Davos, on the other hand, is kind of the later equivalent of Ned, who was the stabilising force thanks to whom the Starks and to an extent the kingdom's politics remained stable, a man of honor and principles. Davos, while not being nearly as influential as Ned, stands out as a beacon of morality, honesty and genuine devotion to the good of the people, somewhat like Varys but unlike him, he refuses to use questionable or destructive means. His relationship with princess Shireen and his opposition to Melisandre, as well as his counseling to keep the main characters on track made him really stand out to me. And also, being the Onion Knight is pretty cool :)

[LFC_Fan]

I used to hate Catelyn but after reading the books and seeing her perspective more closely, she's easily my favourite in the series. Like you said, the emotional depth of her and all the self reflection, in my opinion, makes her loveable.
But if we are talking Show only, I'd say either Arya or Tywin are the best

[HighDarkDragon]

A characrer often overlooked is Syrio Forel.
He's so charismatic and cool that, despite the very short screentime, managed to win me over.
Overall though, my favourite characters are Tyrion and Tywin without any shadow of a doubt. Their relationship speaks volumes to the beautifully intricated, complex and dark events that unfold in both father and son lives, especially in the books.

[anais]

Margaery is my personal favorite. She was clever, beautiful and manipulating, but also kind and compassionate. I personally think they kind of butchered her character in season 6, but before that, I think she was brilliant. And Natalie Dormer is just radiant in the role ♡

[lucasbueno]

Cersei is one of the best written characters ever in a tv show