From conspiracies to spurned lovers to the shocking deaths of some key characters, episode 4 of season 8 of Game of Thrones had a lot to unpack. But the moment that seems to have really gone viral with fans is one in which a keen-eyed Twitter user spotted Daenerys sitting at a table with a coffee mug, during a scene where the heroes celebrate their victory in the Battle of Winterfell. Many assumed that that the cup looked like it was from Starbucks.
After much speculation on social media about Starbucks expanding it business to fantasy realms, HBO acknowledged the goof up in a statement released to Variety. “The latte that appeared in the episode was a mistake. Daenerys had ordered an herbal tea,” they said.
Bernadette Caulfield, the show's executive producer, also reacted on the blunder in a radio interview with WNYC. “Westeros was the first place to have Starbucks, it's a little-known fact. If that's the worst thing that they're finding, we're in good shape,” she said.
Game of Thrones art director Hauke Richter pointed out that considering the sheer scale of the production of the show, it was not unusual for random items to end up misplaced on set, go unnoticed and appear in the final cuts.
“Things can get forgotten on set. (The coffee cup error has been) so blown out of proportion (because) it has not happened with Thrones so far," he said.
Mystery solved!
(With inputs from PTI)
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