Published May 15, 2026, 12:56 PM EDT Clarke pulled back the curtain on a terrifying time on How to Fail with Elizabeth Day 'I had cheated death': Emilia Clarke opens up about the brain aneurysms she suffered during Game of Thrones Helen Sloan/HBO It would be the understatement of the century to say that Game of Thrones launched several careers when it premiered on April 11, 2011. An adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s fantasy saga A Song of Ice and Fire, Game of Thrones was a pop culture sensation that, even now, continues to thrive through several spin-offs such as House of the Dragon and, more recently, A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms . However, it wasn’t all easygoing for the cast, some of who dedicated 10 years of their lives to the eight-season fantasy epic.…