EXCLUSIVE

The most coveted boobs on TV may stay covered ... and you can blame the church.

Everybody -- actually 90% of men based on Kinsey and probably 40% of women -- are drooling at the prospect of ogling Cersei Lannister's royal cans.

Here's the problem. The scene calls for Cersei -- played by Lena Headey -- to walk out of a church and onto the streets of King's Landing in the buff. The scene is supposed to be shot in Dubrovnik, Croatia, where the church has a lot of power and a rigid policy against public displays of sexuality.

We're told the local film commission will not give producers a permit to shoot the scene because they take their cue from the church -- in this case the Church of St. Nicholas.

Sources tell TMZ ... they can't cut the scene because it's crucial to the story line and it's an iconic moment from the book.