Can you guess the series and the species? (Don’t peek!)
Scientists Just Brought Back This Formerly Extinct Animal—And It’s Partly Thanks to a Hit HBO Show
Published on Apr. 09, 2025
Most of us saw Jurassic Park and its many sequels as a cautionary tale. Some scientists, however, apparently saw it as a game plan. While no one has brought dinosaurs back (yet), Texas-based genetic engineering company Colossal Biosciences did resurrect another species that went extinct around 12,500 years ago and made a memorable appearance in a very popular TV series.
According to Colossal’s April 7 announcement, the company created three of these long-extinct animals. “It was once said, ‘Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic,'” said Colossal CEO Ben Lamm. “Today, our team gets to unveil some of the magic they are working on and its broad impact on conservation.”
So what is this magic? And to paraphrase the immortal words of Jeff Goldblum in Jurassic Park (aka Dr. Ian Malcolm), just because scientists could do this, should they have done it? Read on to find out which species is getting a new life, which series inspired this scientific endeavor and whether you’ll be seeing these adorable animals in the wild soon.
Get Reader’s Digest’s Read Up newsletter for more news, humor, cleaning, travel, tech and fun facts all week long.
Which extinct species was brought back to life?
Welcome back, dire wolves! Two male pups, named Romulus and Remus, were born on Oct. 1, 2024, while a female pup, Khaleesi, was born on Jan. 30, 2025. As noted above, these distinctive wolves haven’t walked the Earth for more than 12,000 years. The three pups are currently around 80 pounds, but they’ll eventually weigh around 140. For comparison, they are 25% larger than gray wolves, their closest living wolf relative.
Here’s the thing, though: These animals aren’t actually dire wolves. Not fully, anyway. Scientists extracted DNA from two dire wolf fossils—a tooth thought to be about 13,000 years old, found in Ohio, and a 72,000-year-old skull from Idaho—and assembled a high-quality genetic history. Using this information, they made 20 edits in 14 genes of the traditional gray wolf before cloning the most promising cell lines and transferring them into donor eggs from domestic dogs. Large mixed-breed hounds then acted as surrogate moms.
“We aren’t trying to bring something back that’s 100% genetically identical to another species,” Beth Shapiro, Colossal’s chief science officer, told CNN. “Our goal with de-extinction is always create functional copies of these extinct species. We were focusing on identifying variants that we knew would lead to one of these key traits.”
What show inspired scientists to do this?
As you may have guessed from the female dire wolf’s name, the show is Game of Thrones. While Emilia Clarke’s Daenerys Targaryen character never actually met or owned a dire wolf, Jon Snow did. The creature was a mascot, or sigil, of the North, where the Starks ruled. The five Stark children, along with Snow, adopted six orphaned dire wolves found on the side of the road in the very first episode.
However, GOT fans still haven’t forgiven Jon Snow (Kit Harrington) for ghosting his beloved Ghost. In the bloody Battle of Winterfell, the true Iron Throne heir sent the albino dire wolf away with Free Folk buddy Tormund, so the animal could live out his life in the wide-open spaces beyond the now-broken wall. Really?!
Which VIP has already met the pups?
George R.R. Martin, the writer of the original Game of Thrones fantasy-book series. Not only did he sign on as a Colossal’s cultural adviser and investor, but he also flew to meet Romulus and Remus at their private preserve. Martin said in a statement, “Many people view dire wolves as mythical creatures that only exist in a fantasy world, but in reality, they have a rich history of contributing to the American ecosystem.” (So far, nobody else from the show’s ensemble has chimed in on the news.)
Oscar-winning Lord of the Rings filmmaker Peter Jackson was also involved in the big reveal. Jackson, an investor in the biotechnology company, loaned Colossal the official touring 330-pound Iron Throne prop that was used in promotions for the series—which he bought at an auction last year for $1.49 million—so Romulus and Remus could be photographed lounging atop the fictional seat of power.
How do fans feel about these show characters coming to life?
Well, considering that the fans have patiently waited 14 friggin’ years for Martin to deliver his sixth GOT novel, Winds of Winter, the answer is: not great. After news broke that the author had worked with Colossal on the project, several die-hards took to social media to complain of his priorities. One disgruntled fan on Reddit huffed, “Anything but writing a new damn chapter,” while another sniped, “He is dedicated to various activities, except for writing his book.”
Will we see packs of wolves roaming the country soon?
For now, the animals will remain in captivity, per Colossal. And maybe that’s for the best. After all, in their ancient heyday, dire wolves were quite a bit bigger than the modern gray wolf, and their massive teeth once gnashed horses and bison across the North American plains. What happened to them? Here’s an interesting science fact: When many prey species became extinct—probably in part because of human hunters—the dire wolf may have been doomed, and the gray wolf swept down from northern Canada and Alaska to fill the ecological void.
What other animals does Colossal plan to do this with?
Winter is coming with another one of Colossal’s projects. Colossal was founded in 2021 with the goal of bringing back the woolly mammoth. Since then, the company, has expanded its plans to include the Tasmanian tiger and the dodo bird too.
Last month, Colossal revealed it had genetically engineered the woolly mouse, which shared some coat characteristics with a woolly mammoth, plus longer, lighter-colored hair with a rough, woolly texture. “This is a very, very big step for us because it proves that all of the work we’ve been doing for the last three years on the woolly mammoth is exactly what we predicted,” Lamm said at the time.
Sounds interesting … but the power grid had better not shut down during the grand tour.
Why trust us
At Reader’s Digest, we’re committed to producing high-quality content by writers with expertise and experience in their field in consultation with relevant, qualified experts. We rely on reputable primary sources, including government and professional organizations and academic institutions as well as our writers’ personal experiences where appropriate. We verify all facts and data, back them with credible sourcing and revisit them over time to ensure they remain accurate and up to date. Read more about our team, our contributors and our editorial policies.
Sources:
- New York Times: “Scientists Revive the Dire Wolf, or Something Close”
- People: “‘Game of Thrones’ Fans Upset Direwolf Survived Epic Battle Only to Be Ghosted by Jon Snow”
- CNN: “Scientists say they have resurrected the dire wolf”
- USA Today: “Dire wolf returns from extinction? Company reveals ‘magic’ it’s using to bring back species”
- The Hollywood Reporter: “Dire Wolves Have Just Been Brought Back From Extinction — and No This Isn’t Some ‘Game of Thrones’ Fantasy”
- Game Rant: “Game of Thrones Fans Confused Why George R.R. Martin Can Help Create Dire Wolves but Not Finish Winds of Winter”
