--- description: A British departure from the E.U. could see the HBO fantasy series deprived of significant funds. Here's why. title: Game of Thrones Has a Lot at Stake in Brexit. Seriously. image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta0c5e20ddb63c57e/69889808fb4eac2a8188dee2/game-of-thrones-episode-9-4.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [E.U.](/tag/e-u/) ## E.U. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # _Game of Thrones_ Has a Lot at Stake in the Brexit Vote. Seriously. ## Video: Why 'Brexit' Will Be the Most Important Decision Britons Will Ever Make [Watch (HLS stream): Why 'Brexit' Will Be the Most Important Decision Britons Will Ever Make](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/IAHL35u6.m3u8) (2:26)  _Published 2016-04-15. A look at what's at stake in Britain's June 23 vote on wether to leave or remain in the European Union_ by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 23, 2016 4:12 AM CUT  HBO by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 23, 2016 4:12 AM CUT The long-running debate over whether Britain should [leave the European Union](http://time.com/4379231/brexit-vote-economy/?xid=homepage "undefined") has reached a crescendo in recent weeks, with both sides — the “Remain” camp and the “Leave” camp — making their final arguments this week ahead of Thursday’s [Brexit](http://time.com/money/4369522/what-brexit-britain-european-union-vote-means-for-economy/ "undefined") vote. What neither side has yet accounted for, however, is the [impact](http://foreignpolicy.com/2016/06/21/the-brexit-could-be-bad-news-for-game-of-thrones/ "undefined") it could have on _Game of Thrones_. According to _Foreign Policy_ magazine, a British departure from the E.U. will see the massively popular HBO fantasy series deprived of a significant amount of funding for shooting on location. One of the show’s major shooting locations is in Northern Ireland, where last week’s epic ‘Battle of the Bastards’ was filmed. Because it films there, HBO currently benefits from subsidies from the European Regional Development Fund. A [Brexit](http://time.com/money/4369522/what-brexit-britain-european-union-vote-means-for-economy/ "undefined") would see Northern Ireland leave the E.U. along with the rest of the U.K., and potentially cut off that source of funding for HBO’s flagship program as well as several British movies and TV shows that have benefitted from it in the recent past, FP reports. As the proud houses of Westeros continue to ponder their allegiances on screen while, the U.K. considers its own in real life, filmmakers are hoping that Thursday’s vote won’t result in a ‘Wexit.’ \[[_Foreign Policy_](http://foreignpolicy.com/2016/06/21/the-brexit-could-be-bad-news-for-game-of-thrones/ "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4379290/game-of-thrones-brexit-vote-impact-europe-eu-uk/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4379290/game-of-thrones-brexit-vote-impact-europe-eu-uk/"},"headline":"Game of Thrones Has a Lot at Stake in the Brexit Vote. 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