HBO MAX, HOTD PLACE LIFE-SIZE DRAGON ATOP NEW YORK'S MOST FAMOUS BUILDING
OVERVIEW
In partnership with HBO Max, the Empire State Building helped turn the return of House of the Dragon into a bold, city-stopping fan experience built for viral attention, cultural conversation, and destination impact. The challenge was to create a campaign that could break through the crowded entertainment landscape: giving HBO Max a massive real-world platform for Season Two awareness, fan participation, and franchise storytelling, while driving visitation, ticket purchase, social buzz, and premium cultural relevance for the Empire State Building.
The result was a weeklong Westeros-inspired takeover that transformed the building into a full-funnel entertainment experience, featuring an Iron Throne photo opportunity, a cast visit and lighting ceremony, an interactive “Game of Thrones” universe photo booth, green tower lights, a Tipsy Scoop dragon fruit sorbet pop-up, a premiere watch party giveaway, and a 270-foot Vhagar the Dragon installation coiled around the Empire State Building’s mast.
SOLUTION
We turned the Empire State Building into a real-world extension of Westeros, designed to drive Observatory visitation while giving HBO Max a landmark-scale platform for fan engagement, franchise storytelling, and viral cultural visibility. The campaign connected ticketed experiences, immersive photo moments, cast participation, social-first content, themed food and beverage, dynamic tower lights, and a massive 270-foot dragon installation into one cohesive takeover. Each layer gave fans a new reason to visit, share, and choose a side, while extending House of the Dragon beyond traditional premiere marketing and into a physical New York City spectacle.
MY ROLE
I spearheaded the digital strategy that converted one of ESB’s most viral cultural moments into measurable business impact, using real-time audience demand, remarketing, geofencing, paid media, and urgency-led messaging to drive ticket sales within a limited one-week window. As the creative and agency lead, I directed asset capture and campaign optimization to move audiences from social discovery and earned attention to qualified traffic, immediate purchase behavior, and nearly $2M in incremental revenue above forecast.
CAMPAIGN IN
ACTION
RESULTS AND IMPACT
6.7B+
Media Impressions
Featured by NY Post, Gothamist, Supercar Blondie, Newsweek
576M+
Social Engagements
Fans interacted across posts, shares, comments, and partner amplification
+$1.8M
Net Revenue
More than projected for the same period prior to the activation.
social channels featured
STRATEGY&
LONG-TERM VISION
Make the idea impossible to ignore.
The strategy was to create a visual moment so unexpected that it could stop people in the street, travel across social feeds, and instantly communicate the scale of the partnership without needing a long explanation.
Turn fandom into public participation.
The campaign tapped into the Team Green vs. Team Black rivalry, giving fans a reason to choose sides, visit the Observatory, sit on the Iron Throne, create content, and feel part of the world of Westeros.
Use spectacle as the media plan.
The 270-foot Vhagar installation turned the Empire State Building into the campaign’s biggest creative asset. The building was not just hosting the activation. It became the visual hook driving press, social conversation, and fan curiosity.
Connect internet buzz to destination value.
The dragon created mass attention, while the Iron Throne, cast visit, photo booth, themed treats, watch party, and ticketed Observatory experience gave audiences a reason to move from online awareness to in-person engagement.
Make the absurd feel premium.
The creative challenge was making a giant dragon on a skyscraper feel intentional, cinematic, and brand-right rather than gimmicky. Every touchpoint needed to support the fantasy world while still elevating ESB as a premium destination.
Prove that bold ideas drive cultural relevance.
Long term, the campaign reinforced the Empire State Building’s ability to turn high-concept creative into real-world impact, showing how an iconic landmark can become the center of internet conversation, fan participation, and entertainment marketing.
