Top 10 Outside Bets for the Iron Throne in Game of Thrones

Our first outlying contender for the throne is Ser Davos Seaworth. The beloved Onion Knight is a tough, no-nonsense ex-smuggler who would certainly make a practical king, and his connection with the peasants of Westeros would make him a much kinder ruler than most of the other candidates. Davos’ past allegiance with the insanely throne-hungry Stannis Baratheon and subsequent loyalty to King in the North Jon Snow may mean that he would more comfortable serving at the side of a ruler, or perhaps as kingsguard. But if his king were to perish and the people had a say in it, King Seaworth doesn’t sound so preposterous.

Arya is the most ruthless remaining member of House Stark, and has returned to Westeros as a face-changing assassin. She has seen most of her family brutally betrayed and murdered, and has vowed revenge on those responsible by putting them on her kill-list. Many of the listed have already met their grizzly ends, but one notable remaining name is Queen Cersei. Could the youngest remaining Stark kill Cersei and then take the Iron Throne for herself? It’s unlikely, but stranger things have happened in Westeros.

The night may be dark and full of terrors, but few people are more terrifying than the priestess of the Lord of Light, Melisandre. Whilst her premonitions seem to be flawed at times, her ability to summon fire, birth shadowy demon babies, and bring people back from the dead all shows that she has access to some serious powers. The Red Woman’s history of terrible acts (including burning children alive) proves that she will stop at nothing to see the Lord of Light’s plans achieved. Let’s just hope he doesn’t plan for her to be Queen.

As the only remaining bastard child of Robert Baratheon, Gendry is one of the few characters with an actual claim to sit the throne. Robert’s brothers are dead, and given that we know that Cersei’s children are the product of twincest with Jaime, Baratheon had no legitimate children when he died. One foreseeable problem with Gendry’s claim is that he would need to be legitimised as a child of Robert, and the only person who can do that is the current ruler, Cersei. And no one can see that happening.

The ever-so-briefly Queen of the Iron Islands, Yara Greyjoy is a fierce and powerful woman who could probably have a chance at taking the Iron Throne if she really wanted it. She was brought up as the surrogate son of Balon Greyjoy and, an experienced and talented warrior, she has plenty of experience leading men. Unfortunately, as of the season 7 finale, she was a prisoner of Euron Greyjoy, the uncle that killed her father and took the Iron Islands. Hopefully little brother, and habitual coward, Theon, can redeem himself and rescue his sister, but only time will tell.

Over the course of the series, we have seen Sansa blossom from a spoilt and naive little girl into a strong and intelligent woman. Her bad treatment in the care of others has toughened her, and her time in King’s Landing has given her a knowledge of her enemies’ weaknesses. With the revelation that Jon Snow is not in fact a son of Ned Stark, and Bran now the Three-Eyed Raven, Sansa could become Queen of the North and decide to command the northern armies southward to take the throne for herself.

Another ruthless contender for the Iron Throne is the sketchy Euron Greyjoy. This is a man cold-blooded enough to kill his brother to take his throne on the Iron Islands. If Cersei lives up to her promise and marries Euron, he would have a chance at being ruler of the Seven Kingdoms. He’d have to kill his new wife to wield any power, but something tells us he’s not exactly above the idea. Unfortunately for him, Cersei’s twin brother/lover, Jaime, makes his hatred for Euron no secret, and just a toe out of line is all it would take for Jaime to end Euron’s ambitious campaign . . . and life.

Varys is a mysterious character, but it is no secret that he has far more sway in the Seven Kingdoms than his outwardly humble attitude would suggest. It’s hard to know what exactly he wants, or if he would even want to sit on the Iron Throne himself if it were an option, but the scheming Master of Whispers could be hiding intentions of ruling. Through his network of spies, or “little birds” as he calls them, Varys is arguably the best informed character on the show; and as we all know, knowledge is power.

Bran Stark is the oldest of the male Stark children, excluding Jon Snow, and so he is technically the heir to Winterfell. This gives him a lot of strength as he would have the houses North behind him should he ever decide to seize the Iron Throne. He also has the power to see the past and present, giving him a distinct edge over his enemies. It’s questionable whether Bran has any drive to lead, though, or if he is even technically Bran anymore, now that he is the Three-Eyed Raven.

Oh Sam. He is the hero the Seven Kingdoms needs, but not the one they deserve. Smart, loyal, kind and brave, Samwell Tarly may not desire to rule, but we know he would make a good job of it. He certainly has found his voice as the show has gone on, and has proven himself far more capable than most would have believed . He killed a walker! He killed a Thenn! He cured greyscale! He would make a better king than most men. And we can’t deny that we’d love to see Queen Gilly and Prince Little-Sam at his side.