Game of Thrones Makes People Watch More Porn
While the prudish might call Game of Thrones porn itself, with its cornucopia of sex scenes and nudity, it clearly isn't porn-enough for those who just wish it was porn. Pornhub recently shared some data about the show and how it correlates to traffic and searches on their site. Thrillist asked them to give a little extra and there's some — ahem — fun stuff in there.
Data from searches on Pornhub show that thinking about and watching Game of Thrones makes people a little randy for some Game of Thrones-themed extra-curricular viewing. Over the course of April, searches related to Game of Thrones started to rise like, um, I don't know. I can't think of anything that rises. Yeasty bread?
It culminated in a 370% increase in related searches by the day of the Season 6 premiere. That's a combination of users searching for porn parody versions of the show and some of the more lewd clips from the actual show.
Basically the only thing that can stop people from watching porn on a Sunday night is Game of Thrones. So, while the show doesn't satisfy viewers blood lust for some porn, porn doesn't satisfy their blood lust for Game of Thrones. It's a dragon eating its own tail.
Adjusted for time zones, the site saw a significant drop in traffic immediately before, during and after the season premiere. Even a relatively small percentage drop here is huge, considering the site averages 60 million visitors a day.
In fact, during Season 5, basically every episode got people in the mood to search for some historical fantasy-themed sex.
Unsurprisingly, the season premiere and the season finale generated the most interest. But what happened during Episode 7 that got people using their favorite keywords so feverishly? One can only guess... but that was the episode where Tyene Sand teased Bronn while they were both in prison, baring herself into the bars for him. Maybe the sexual content of the episode is driving people to... you know.
Thillist asked Pornhub, if the dips in traffic were still happening this season, and if it was more than a weird coincidence. Turns out, the correlation holds up.
People are still turning off porn to watch Game of Thrones, and even when the show isn't on, it's influencing other viewing decisions.
Valar dohaeris.
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Dustin Nelson is a News Writer with Thrillist. He holds a Guinness World Record, but has never met the fingernail lady. He’s written for Sports Illustrated, Men’s Journal, The Rumpus, and other digital wonderlands. Follow him @dlukenelson.