What Happened to Tyrion After 'Game of Thrones'? Not Quite What You’d Expect

In the world of Game of Thrones, Tyrion Lannister’s fate at the end of Season 8 was rare: he survived. After Daenerys’s execution, not only was he spared, he was appointed Hand of the King to Bran Stark. It might sound like a happy ending, but look closer — what Tyrion received was less a reward, more a life sentence.

Hand of the King: privilege or punishment?

After King’s Landing was reduced to rubble, a council of lords gathered to choose a new ruler. Tyrion proposed Bran and, in turn, was named his Hand. But this wasn’t by choice; Bran made it clear Tyrion needed to "make up for his mistakes through service."

Tyrion became the linchpin of the new Westerosi political order. What awaited him wasn’t power, but grueling work: rebuilding a realm shattered by war and fear. He had to figure out how to divide dwindling resources, form a new Small Council, negotiate with Dorne and the Iron Islands, and somehow maintain an illusion of unity. There was no rest, no thanks.

Why didn’t he take the throne himself?

The council could have easily offered Tyrion the crown. He had the experience, the brains, and support from many houses. But he refused — for several reasons:

• He knew his own reputation: kinslayer, accused regicide, the man who freed Jaime and betrayed Daenerys.

• He was disillusioned with his record as an advisor; his counsel had led to Missandei’s death, Westeros falling to Daenerys, and the massacre in the capital.

• Above all, he believed power should belong to someone who didn’t seek it — like Bran. This conviction was forged by decades of court intrigue.

His personal life and loneliness

Tyrion is the last of the Lannisters. His brother and sister died in the final season. There are no children to continue the line. His ties with Sansa were severed; their romance never rekindled. The only people around him now are the new members of the Small Council — colleagues, not friends.

His loneliness is underscored in council scenes, where he jokes but no one laughs. He’s an outsider among Westeros’s new rulers.

What do we know from the books?

In the show’s canon, Tyrion remains as Hand. In George R. R. Martin’s books, his fate is still unwritten, though Martin has repeatedly said, "the ending will be different." The showrunners also admitted they shortened the finale and that Tyrion would have faced "even more pain."

So it’s safe to assume that serving Bran isn’t an honor, but a form of penance. The burden of political reform, rebuilding King’s Landing, and settling matters with Sansa (now leading an independent North) and Euron Greyjoy’s leftover fleet all fall on Tyrion’s shoulders.

He survived — but ended up the most exhausted man in Westeros.