It Took Heaps of Cash to Keep This Game of Thrones Nude Scene Secret

According to fans who’ve read ahead in the series and won’t stop threatening to spoil various plot twists, the next season of Game of Thrones will feature a big, dramatic nude scene—for the purposes of plot, not titillation. And filming it apparently cost a Lannister-sized fortune. (Spoilers ahead.)

So, keeping it pretty vague: Cersei is supposed to walk out of a King’s Landing church naked. Fans say the scene is serious and crucial to her character arc. The production already ran into trouble with the local religious authorities, who didn’t want it filmed on their doorstep. But they found a workaround and arranged a four-day shoot. The bill to keep everything under wraps? Try $50,000 per day. TMZ (they are ON IT) reports:

According to our GoT spies … more than 200 security guards were hired to protect the set while shooting the “Walk of Shame” scene — where Lena’s character Cersei walks stark naked out of a church and through town. We’re told the 4-day shoot in Croatia got so pricey because of the added crew — and producers having to pay local shop owners to shut down and leave the area.

Cell phones were banned on set so photos wouldn’t get leaked (oops!) — and everyone signed confidentiality agreements that threatened $250,000 lawsuits for violators.

You’d think this was George Clooney’s wedding or something. And yet, the Daily Mail still got a photo of Lena Headey’s blood-smeared bare back.

The whole story is being spun as some crazy wild expense. But come on—it’s HBO. Their craft services budget could probably buy you a nice waterfront condo somewhere. As expenses go for keeping a big set piece under wraps and keeping a major lead happy (isn’t it standard practice to keep crews as small as possible during nude scenes?), $200,000 is probably chump change.