A scene from "Game of Thrones" [Photo/CGTN]

A zombie dragon, an illicit romance and satisfying revenge helped drive the season finale of "Game of Thrones" to a viewership high, HBO said Monday, as the seventh season drew record ratings.

A total of 12.1 million viewers watched Sunday's finale, titled "The Dragon and the Wolf," up 36 percent from the 8.9 million viewers who watched the season six finale.

Viewership from replays and streams on HBO's on-demand apps boosted the overall Sunday ratings to 16.5 million viewers.

The seventh and penultimate season of Emmy-winning "Game of Thrones" drew an overall 30.8 million viewers, up nearly 8 million viewers from last season and cementing it as the most-watched show on Time Warner Inc's premium cable network HBO.

The record ratings came after hackers stole data and content from HBO and leaked it online, including scripts and unaired episodes of "Game of Thrones."

A scene from "Game of Thrones" [Photo/CGTN]

The seventh season saw the show's lead characters head towards a great battle for the Iron Throne, with the winner becoming the ruler of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, while a zombie army of White Walkers, led by the undead Night King, march south and threaten mankind's destruction.

Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen finally came together and joined forces against the White Walkers and the remaining Stark children reunite at their home in Winterfell to enact their long awaited revenge against master manipulator Petyr Baelish.

The Lannister siblings also reunite in King's Landing in a tense meeting that puts their family ties to the test.

"Game of Thrones," a medieval fantasy based on George R.R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" books, has won numerous Emmy awards, including best drama series last year. It is not eligible for this year's Emmys due to its summer premiere after production was pushed back to capture more winter landscapes for the storyline, but it will be back in the lineup for next year's Emmy awards.

Ahead of the show's final eighth season next year, a range of spin-offs are being developed, including a prequel series from screenwriter Jane Goldman.

A scene from "Game of Thrones" [Photo/CGTN]