See a giant inflatable dragon wrapped around the Empire State Building!
New Yorkers are used to seeing fairly odd things all around the city on a daily basis, but a giant dragon attached to the Empire State Building? That’s stuff we usually deal with at the movies.
This weekend, the inflatable creature was attached to the iconic midtown landmark for the better part of Sunday as part of a massive city-wide promotion behind HBO’s Game of Thones prequel, House of the Dragon, which premiered on the network last night.
According to the New York Post, the “real life” version of Aemond Targaryen’s dragon Vhagar, whom we originally met on Game of Thrones, was secured on the building by 154 rigging points, 1,700 pattern pieces and over 600,000 sewn stitches. The dragon will be there through June 19.
Look up, New York City. Vhagar has landed. #TeamGreen #RaiseYourBanners#HOTD premieres tonight on @StreamOnMax. pic.twitter.com/rLPFv0fdKH
— Game of Thrones (@GameOfThrones) June 16, 2024
Check out this video of the massive undertaking, from the perspective of those who actually did all the work.
But there’s more: in addition to the inflatable, the Empire State Building is hosting a temporary pop-up exhibit all about Game of Thrones now through June 19 (which is just two days away, so you better head there ASAP if you want to catch it).
Adult tickets to the experience cost $46 and they include the chance to sit on the legendary Iron Throne for a nice photo op on the Observatory’s Grand Staircase, plus a number of interactive activities.
And if you’re feeling a bit hungry while on-premise, indulge in a House of the Dragon-inspired dragon fruit sorbet infused with tequila and orange liquor, and garnished with a mini dragon toy figure—courtesy of Tipsy Scoop. The local ice cream shop will be serving the delight through tomorrow on the 86th floor of the Empire State Building.
The Empire State Building is known for lighting up in different colors every few days in honor of grand events, premieres, holidays and more—but this is the first time in recent memory that the landmark has put on such a spectacle, complete with an enormous inflatable figure. Although it looks odd… we’re kind of into it?