New Game Of Thrones Episode Set A Ratings Record, Despite Leaking

This past Sunday's episode of Game of Thrones, "The Spoils of War," set a ratings record for the franchise. 10.2 million people watched the fourth episode in Season 7 on HBO, beating out Episode 1, "Dragonstone," which tallied 10.1 million viewers at the start.

Note that these figures are for broadcast TV viewing on HBO. "Dragonstone" ended up passing 30 million views, when streaming, DVR, and repeat viewing figures are counted.

It's a return to form for Game of Thrones, as Episodes 2 and 3 drew around 9.2 million viewers each on HBO for their first run. All of these figures come by way of Entertainment Weekly, which has a summary of the news and more here.

The achievement for "The Spoils of War" is more impressive when you consider that it leaked online multiple days early from an HBO media partner in India, after the script leaked even earlier as a result of the supposed HBO hack. The episode was the shortest in Game of Thrones history, coming in at around 50 minutes.

As EW points out, the leak could have helped "The Spoils of War" perform better. Some people who saw the lower-res leaked version apparently sung its praises online, and might have watched it again themselves and encouraged others to do so when it was officially released.

For lots more on "The Spoils of War" and this coming Sunday's Episode 5, check out GameSpot's stories below.

• Game Of Thrones: The Biggest Moments From Season 7, Episode 4 [SPOILERS]
• Game Of Thrones: An Actual Armorer Weighs In On Jaime's Chances
• Game Of Thrones Creators Discuss Season 7 Episode 4
• Game Of Thrones Had Another Celebrity Cameo Tonight
• Game Of Thrones Season 7, Episode 5 Trailer Previews What Comes Next
• How Game Of Thrones Season 7 Did The Incredible Battle Scene In "The Spoils Of War"