Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead are probably the two most popular, buzzed about dramas on television right now, what with their dragons and zombies, respectively, and their legions of passionate fans of their source material. But perhaps you’ve noticed that The Walking Dead, despite having higher ratings and airing on a basic cable network that is in more homes than HBO, does not appear to be quite the star-making vehicle Game of Thrones has become. Turns out there’s a reason for that.
You see, The Hollywood Reporter looked into why your Dinklages and Clarkes and Coster-Waldaus seem to be landing more movie roles than your Lincolns and Reeduses and, in addition to having a less “fresh feel” than the largely European Thrones cast, it turns out, well, running from zombies just ain’t sexy.
Market research firm E-Poll found that both programs have equally high appeal ratings, but CEO Gerry Philpott says Thrones has the edge because it is “produced more like a feature with rich colors, sets and costumes, and most of all, [the characters] are made to be extremely attractive and sexy.” On the contrary, says Philpott: “When you’re being chased by a dead person, it’s hard to make them look as appealing.”
There’s certainly a point to that. The cast of Game of Thrones gets to deliver dramatic lines in a regal British accent while wearing fine period attire and/or suits of armor, while the cast of The Walking Dead wears sleeveless plaid shirts that are covered with sweat and farm dirt. It’s not exactly fair, but them’s the breaks, I suppose. And if they’re really that concerned about it, they can always try sending their scripts back to the writer’s room with “runs from zombies” crossed out and replaced with “sexily runs from zombies.” Worth a shot.
