Brianna LaPaglia’s Micro ‘Game of Thrones’ Tattoo Celebrates Resilience

The content creator and SI Swimsuit model showed off her many tattoos while on set with the brand in La Quinta.

Brianna LaPaglia was photographed by Katherine Goguen at The Austin Estate. Swimsuit by Christopher Esber. / Katherine Goguen/Sports Illustrated

Barstool Sports personality Brianna LaPaglia is, without a doubt, a force to be reckoned with. Connecting with her millions of followers across social media, the 25-year-old Boston native has resonated deeply with audiences through her hilarious and relatable content. Embracing a no-filter persona, she’s served as a source of both entertainment and inspiration over the years as people across the globe tune into her podcast episodes, TikToks and Instagram shares. Since deciding to drop out of college and create online content full-time, she’s amassed a major following on her many platforms.

The social media trailblazer graces the cover of the January SI Swimsuit digital issue, being photographed at The Austin Estate in La Quinta, Calif. by Katherine Goguen for a gorgeous spread of images. While on set, LaPagalia discussed internet fame, her tumultuous split from country singer Zach Bryan and the new era of her life where she's prioritizing her well-being and putting herself first. During a deep dive, she divulged her early career aspiration, her favorite hair color she’s had and her favorite fast food.

The brand also did a tattoo tour with LaPaglia, where she went through every piece of ink on her body and shared an explanation. From heartwarming tattoos like matching ink with her sister, one in honor of her dad and one celebrating camping memories from childhood to more lighthearted art like a mushroom on her hand and a unique design for her cats, she’s got a lot of great stories for her tattoos.

There are so many great ones to pick from, but one of our favorites is her Game of Thrones tattoo. Showing off a tiny cartoon ghost on her finger, LaPaglia explained that it’s actually in honor of the direwolf from the HBO fantasy mega-hit, named Ghost. The sweet animal belongs to the character Jon Snow, who leaves his family with his direwolf in the first season for the unknown. As he reunites with his siblings later on, the character Sansa Stark declares, “The lone wolf dies but the pack survives,” signifying resilience for the family. The direwolf serves as the sigil for House Stark.

The direwolves of Game of Thrones, particularly Ghost, who manages to survive until the end, symbolize hope and perseverance. Though LaPaglia’s ink is a fun illustration of a ghost, it’s easy to connect the theme of resilience with her own journey.

In November, LaPaglia accused her ex-boyfriend of emotional abuse during an episode of the BFFs podcast, sharing that “the last year of [her] life has been the hardest year of [her] life” and revealing that Bryan had offered her $12 million and an apartment to stay quiet on their relationship—an offer she rejected. “He made me hate everything that I loved about myself,” she stated. The tumultuous relationship was incredibly difficult for the internet personality, who is now learning to value self-worth as she moves on.

For the content creator, getting to connect with fans who have gone through similar situations has served as a major highlight for her. “During the hardest time of my life, it’s probably been one of the most rewarding things that has ever happened to me, to be able to help people in a way that I feel is a lot more meaningful than what my old content was,” she told SI Swimsuit. “I know posting silly stuff and having fun videos for people to watch is also helpful, and it helps people get out of the reality, but to actually change lives with coming forward and being able to give people a shoulder to lean on, or a person to cry to, it’s just out of this world.”

Each of LaPaglia’s tattoos means something to her, even the smallest, blink-and-you’ll-miss-it art.