Lena Headey

GoT role: Cersei Lannister.
GoT status: Alive.
You’ve seen her before GoT in: She had a strong repertoire before becoming one of the most contentious characters in the show. You may not remember her in The Brothers Grimm (2005) opposite Heath Ledger and Matt Damon, but you cannot have missed her as Queen Gorgo in Zack Snyder’s 300 (2006). Yes, the woman loved by Gerard Butler. 
Since GoT: As expected, she continued to act in films like Dredd (2012) alongside Karl Urban, where she was the primary villain, and The Purge (2013) opposite Ethan Hawke. And then she reprised the role of Queen Gorgo in 300: Rise of an Empire (2014). All this while she was busy playing the game of thrones. She will next be seen in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies with GoT co-star Charles Dance.

Michiel Huisman

GoT role: Daario Naharis.
GoT status: Alive.
You’ve seen him before GoT in: He was quite the star in the Dutch film and television scene but you may remember him from Nashville and in his bit role in World War Z.
Since GoT: He is equally delectable as Cal Morrison in Orphan Black (2014-present) and has had a romp with Reese Witherspoon in Wild (2014). He was also Blake Lively’s love interest, Ellis, in The Age of Adaline (2015). 

Aiden Gillen

GoT role: Petyr Baelish.
GoT status: Alive.
You’ve seen him before GoT in: You couldn’t have missed him if you’ve watched the shows Queer as Folk and The Wire.
Since GoT: In between scheming and plotting, he has acted in films like The Dark Knight Rises (2012) and will be seen in the films Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials (2015) and Knights of the Round Table: King Arthur (2016).

Richard Madden

GoT role: Robb Stark.
GoT status: Dead
You’ve seen him before GoT in: Well, he was more a theatre actor before hitting big time with GoT.
Since GoT: Ever since he was stabbed to death, he has played the love interest of Rebecca Hall in the French film A Promise, and Prince Kit in Kenneth Branagh’s Cinderella. He will also star in American action film Bastille Day alongside Idris Elba.

Pedro Pascal

GoT role: Oberyn Martell.
GoT status: Dead (why, oh why?!) 
You’ve seen him before GoT in: You won’t believe it but you’ve seen him in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and TV shows The Good Wife and The Mentalist, before he became the sexy Oberyn. 
Since GoT: He has been signed up for action ensemble film The Great Wall with Matt Damon, Andy Lau and Willem Dafoe. He will also be seen in 2015 Netflix crime series Narcos.

Sophie Turner

GoT role: Sansa Stark.
GoT status: Alive.
You’ve seen her before GoT in: Nothing. GoT was her first acting do. 
Since GoT: Her big movie break is coming up in 2016; she is all set to play the young Jean Grey in X-Men: Apocalypse. She will also be seen as Mary Shelly in Mary Shelly’s Monster (2016).

Gwendoline Christie

GoT role: Brienne of Tarth.
GoT status: Alive.
You’ve seen her before GoT in: Supporting roles in Terry Gilliam’s films Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus and The Zero Theorem.
Since GoT: The audience-favourite character has gone on to land roles in two of the biggest movies of 2015 — Commander Lyme in Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 2 and Captain Phasma in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. She will also be seen in a British film called Swallows and Amazons.

Mark Addy

GoT role: Robert Baratheon.
GoT status: Dead. 
You’ve seen him before GoT in: The Full Monty, The Flintsones in Viva Rock Vegas, A Knight’s Tale, Robin Hood. Yep, all of these and in pretty meaty roles.
Since GoT: He has not done anything major apart from playing Hercules in the BBC series Atlantis (2013-2015), and Trollied (2011-2013). 

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau 

GoT role: Jaime Lannister.
GoT status: Not dead.
You’ve seen him before GoT in: Black Hawk Down and Wimbledon, some of the English language films he has acted in. 
Since GoT: He’s been part of  Spanish-Canadian supernatural horror-fantasy film Mama (2013) with Jessica Chastain, the Tom Cruise film Oblivion (2013), and the rom-com The Other Woman (2014) with Cameron Diaz and Kate Upton. And he will be seen as Horus in Gods of Egypt (2016).

Peter Dinklage

GoT role: Tyrion Lannister.
GoT status: Alive (Yipee!).
You’ve seen him before GoT in: Elf, The Station Agent, Death at a Funeral, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian and more.
Since GoT: He’s played big baddie Bolivar Trask in X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014), been Robin Williams’s younger brother in The Angriest Man in Brooklyn (2014) and sported a mullet as the badass Eddie Plant for this year’s Pixels. He is also giving voice to The Mighty Eagle in the Angry Birds (2016) and starring with Melissa McCarthy in Michelle Darnell (2016).

Emilia Clarke

GoT role: Danaerys Targaryen.
GoT status: Alive.
You’ve seen her before GoT in: Two small roles on TV. She’s also had a stint on stage before becoming the Mother of Dragons.
Since GoT: She has been busy all these years working her way towards the Iron Throne before getting caught up in the affairs of Meereen and the only major film roles she’s had since then are that of the lead’s daughter in Dom Hemingway (2013) and Sarah Connor in Terminator Genisys. She is reportedly set to play the lead in Voice from the Stone (2015). 

Natalie Dormer

GoT role: Margaery Tyrell.
GoT status: Imprisoned, but alive.
You’ve seen her before GoT in: The Tudors, another historical drama high on sex and gore, where she played Anne Boleyn. She also had a brief role in Captain America: The First Avenger.
Since GoT: She had small roles in films like Rush (2013), The Counsellor (2013) and The Riot Club (2014). She played Irene Adler in the TV show Elementary (2013-2015) and Cressida in the films Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 1 (2014) and Part 2 (2015).

Jason Momoa

GoT role: Khal Drogo.
GoT status: Dead.
You’ve seen him before GoT in: Nowhere really if you’ve missed him in shows like Baywatch Hawaii, Stargate: Atlantis and The Game. He also starred as Conan in the remake of Conan the Barbarian in 2011.
Since GoT: He directed, wrote, produced and starred in the film Road to Paloma (2014). Momoa is all set to play Aquaman in the upcoming Superman v Batman: Dawn of Justice (2016) before playing the same role in a solo film in 2018. 

Sean Bean

GoT role: Eddard Stark.
GoT status: Dead.
You’ve seen him before GoT in: The Lord of the Rings Trilogy as Boromir and as Lieutenant Richard Sharpe in the Sharpe series.
Since GoT: Since his death in GoT, Bean has been a part of movies like Mirror Mirror, (2012), Jupiter Ascending (2015) and Pixels (2015). His role as cross-dressing teacher Simon in television series Accused won him an International Emmy Award for Best Actor and the Royal Television Society Best Actor Award. He is part of Ridley Scott’s space drama The Martian, which releases this October.

Michelle Fairley

GoT role: Catelyn Stark.
GoT status: Dead, as of now. 
You’ve seen her before GoT in: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 1 in a blink-and-you-miss scene before her memory is obliviated by her own daughter Hermione, and in some other small roles.
Since GoT: She hasn’t come back in the series like in the book yet, but she’s been part of other TV shows like Suits and 24: Live Another Day. She will be seen in the film In the Heart of Sea starring Chris Hemsworth (2015).

Maisie Williams

GoT role: Arya Stark.
GoT status: Alive but blind (!)
You’ve seen her before GoT in: Nowhere. Like best pal Sophie, GoT was her first break.
Since GoT: Well, the young ’un is busy training as an assassin in Braavos and being a teenager off the sets of GoT. She has taken time off to play the lead in The Falling (2014), about two best friends in an all-girls school. She has the geek world in a tizzy with her scheduled appearance in the upcoming season of Doctor Who alongside the present Doctor Peter Capaldi.

Kit Harington

GoT role: Jon Snow.
GoT status: Uncertain.
You’ve seen him before GoT in: Nowhere, because he just did a play (War Horse) before auditioning for GoT.
Since GoT: He made his foray into films with the terrible Silent Hill: Revelation 3D (2012) before showing off his abs in Pompeii (2014) and voicing Eret in How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014). He acted in World War movie Testament of Youth (2014) and had a small role in the film Seventh Son (2014). He played Will Holloway in Spooks: The Greater Good earlier this year and is filming for the thriller Brimstone along with Guy Pearce and Dakota Fanning.

Jack Gleeson

GoT role: Joffrey Baratheon.
GoT status: Dead (Hurray!)
You’ve seen him before GoT in: Reign of Fire and Batman Begins.
Since GoT: No matter how much we hated him we were sad to hear Gleeson has quit acting to pursue a career in academics.