One of the biggest television shows of the past few years, HBO's megahit fantasy series Game of Thrones set records with its season 2 finale. Now, the show has taken over Comic-Con 2012, with the Game of Thrones season 3 panel on Friday making announcements right and left about casting for the next season.

Novelist George R.R. Martin, author of A Song of Ice and Fire series, on which Game of Thrones is based, acted as moderator of the panel. Panelists included cast members Alfie Allen, Michelle Fairley, Richard Madden, Rose Leslie, and Emilia Clarke, as well as executive producer Carolyn Strauss.

At the beginning of the panel, Martin introduced a video showing the casting for season 3 of Game of Thrones. The next season will cover roughly the first half of Martin's A Storm of Swords, which greatly expands the scope and scale of the epic fantasy series.

To accommodate this epic season, tons of new cast members have been announced via the video below.

Diana Rigg has been confirmed to play Olenna Tyrell, the Queen of Thrones. Rigg is best known for her portrayals of Emma Peel in the television series The Avengers and Countess Teresa di Vicenzo in the James Bond film, On Her Majesty's Secret Service.

Thomas Brodie-Sangster has been cast as Jojen Reed. The 22-year-old actor made a name for himself in films such as Love Actually, Nanny McPhee, and The Last Legion. Brodie-Sangster also stars in the hit cartoon Phineas and Ferb as the voice of Ferb Fletcher.

Richard Dormer has been cast as Beric Dondarrian. Dormer, an actor from Northern Ireland, is perhaps best known for his star portrayal of Alex Higgins in the play Hurricane, which he wrote himself. He also spent time at the Theatre Royal portraying characters in classic plays such as Much Ado About Nothing. In Game of Thrones, Dormer's character, Beric Dondarrian, is the leader of the Brotherhood Without Banners.

Paul Kaye has been cast as Thoros of Myr. Kaye is an English comedian known best known for his portrayal of shock interviewer Dennis Pennis. The Pennis character made him infamous across England. Kaye has also appeared in Skins, Being Human,and Spaced.

Other announcements at the panel included the casting of Ellie Kendrick as Meera Reed, Clive Russel as Blackfish, Nathalie Emmanuel as Missandei, and Kerry Ingram as Shireen Baratheon.

Watch the full video of the Game of Thrones season 3 casting announcements below.

Storm Storm