Emilia Clarke‘s experience on “Game of Thrones,” where she portrayed Daenerys Targaryen, required more than just acting skill. Beyond the courage needed for the series’ infamous nude scenes, Clarke encountered a unique challenge that nearly overwhelmed her. Instead of stripping down, it involved delivering a crucial Dothraki speech in the show’s final season, a task she described as terrifying.
Clarke was merely 25 when the show premiered on HBO, fresh from drama school, and was thrust into a demanding role. In Season 1, she faced numerous scenes requiring nudity, which she found overwhelming. These demands put her in a position where she felt pressured to conform. In an interview on Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert, she candidly discussed her disagreements with the showrunners over these scenes, stating, “I’ve had fights on set before where I’m like, ‘No, the sheet stays up,’ and they’re like, ‘You don’t wanna disappoint your Game of Thrones fans.’”
However, it was not the nude scenes that she found most daunting. Clarke highlighted, in the “When Winter Falls” documentary, how the Dothraki speech stood out as her most challenging moment on the show. The actress spent an immense amount of time memorizing the speech, emphasizing its significance. “I knew that speech was going to be really important, and I spent a huge amount of time learning it. And for the first time in my whole Game of Thrones career, I got that word perfect,” Clarke shared. The fictional language was a test of endurance, pushing her to the brink. “I’m being so brutally honest here – I was in hell learning that speech. This pretend language was literally eating me up. I couldn’t do it.”
Her dedication to mastering the speech paid off, creating a memorable moment that resonated with audiences. Speaking in the fictional Dothraki tongue proved tougher than any physical challenges she faced on the series. Despite this, the experience contributed to maintaining her memory health, particularly during a period when she suffered from an aneurysm. In an interview with Stephen Colbert on The Late Show, Clarke mentioned that memorizing her lines for the series helped her stay conscious and alert.
The role of Daenerys brought Emilia Clarke numerous challenges, blending opportunities with intimidating tasks. Despite the explicit scenes and intense language recitations, Clarke’s journey as the Mother of Dragons was ultimately rewarding, marked by her ability to overcome hurdles and deliver a compelling performance. “Game of Thrones” remains available for viewing on Max, where audiences can revisit Clarke’s remarkable portrayal.
