Emilia Clarke has revealed she tuned down the lead role in Fifty Shades Of Grey because she was frustrated at always being asked about being naked on screen.
Her character Daenerys features in several nude scenes in the first series of Game Of Thrones, but Emilia admits she became “sick and tired” of being constantly asked about it.
This led to her turning down the role of Anastasia Steele in 2015’s Fifty Shades Of Grey, which eventually went to Dakota Johnson.
Emilia told The Hollywood Reporter: “Well, Sam [Taylor-Johnson, the director] is a magician. I love her, and I thought her vision was beautiful. But the last time that I was naked on camera was a long time ago, and yet it is the only question that I ever get asked because I am a woman.’
“And it’s annoying as hell and I’m sick and tired of it because I did it for the character — I didn’t do it so some guy could check out my tits, for God’s sake.”
The 32-year-old star also discussed how she felt nudity for women on screen led to “pigeonholing”, but also recognised she expected to be asked about stripping off on screen.
“I was like, ‘I can’t.’ I did a minimal amount and I’m pigeonholed for life, so me saying yes to that, where the entire thing is about sensuality and sex and being naked and all of that stuff,” she said.
She added: “I was just like, ‘No way am I going to voluntarily walk into that situation’ and then never be able to look someone in the eye and be like, ‘No, you can’t keep asking me this question’.”
Emilia previously revealed that she “took a very long walk around London in a daze” after first reading the scripts for the final season of Game Of Thrones two years ago.
She said: “Now, finally, people are going, ‘Oh, now we understand why this season hit you hard’.
“I had no idea what to expect for this last season. I hoped for some juicy things to get into, as I always do for each season, but I didn’t see this coming.”
Posting on Instagram after the last ever episode aired, Emilia paid tribute to her character, writing: “This woman has taken up the whole of my heart.”
As Ramsay Bolton (Iwan Rheon) once said, "If you think this has a happy ending, you haven't been paying attention."
Through almost eight seasons of the show, fans had cheered for the dragon queen as she rose from an abused, scared child to a Khaleesi set on reclaiming the Iron Throne, the birth right that was taken from her.
That was prior to Season 8, Episode 5, however.
There was no coming back after Daenerys torched King's Landing in the penultimate episode, seemingly unnecessarily killing thousands upon thousands of innocent people after the city had sounded its surrender bells. After that, it was only a matter of time before the bell tolled for her.
Following the destruction of King's Landing, Daenerys talked about liberating the rest of the world, and Jon just couldn't be cool with it. He told her she would always be his queen before stabbing her in the throne room with a dagger.
In the game of thrones, all men must die. But Daenerys was not a man. She was the Mother of Dragons. R.I.P.
Following Dany's death, her last dragon, Drogon, arrived in the throne room and, rather than doing anything to Jon Snow, just took out his anger on the tacky furniture. Like many had predicted, Drogon melted the throne. He then picked up his mom's body and flew out of sight.
But uselessness be damned. Following a council to decide who will rule Westeros, Bran was elected king.
The outcome was heavily hinted at in Episode 4 of the final season. In that episode, following the victory against the army of the dead, Bran told Tyrion he doesn't "want" any more. Later Varys (Conleth Hill) told Tyrion the best ruler is someone who "doesn’t want to rule."
If anything, you've just got to be impressed with Bran for implementing that "Survivor" strategy of just coasting around and doing nothing then winning it all at the end.
Jon revealing the truth of his parentage to Daenerys, that his father and mother are really Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark, and that he's the heir to the Iron Throne, was one of the catalysts that drove the Mother of Dragons to burn King's Landing.
After he became the Queenslayer, Jon was eventually sent to the Wall as punishment. There, he was reunited with Tormund (Kristofer Hivju) and finally (finally) petted Ghost.
Tormund seemed to foreshadow this would be the outcome for Jon in Episode 4 when he told him he has the "real North" in him, and Jon talked about wanting to go North with the Wildings. Well, you got your wish, bud. Hope it works out for you.
The final shot is Jon traveling with the Wildlings, possibly going the route of "Dexter" and becoming a lumberjack beyond the Wall.
Tyrion is what's left of the legacy of House Lannister.
He started out on the show drinking and knowing things, but as time went on he seemed to do less and less of both. Tyrion's character was one of the biggest victims after the show surpassed George R.R. Martin's books around Seasons 5 and 6. Over the final seasons of the show, he continually made poorer and poorer decisions, even to the point where he trusted his sister Cersei (Lena Headey) to send the Lannister army north to fight the undead.
However, like so many white guys before him, Tyrion failed up. Despite all his bad decision making over the final seasons of the show, Tyrion ended with a cushy office job, Hand of the King to Bran.
Sansa (Sophie Turner) knew what she was doing when she revealed the truth about Jon's parentage to Tyrion in Episode 4. The information spread like dragon fire in King's Landing and eventually caused the downfall of Daenerys Targaryen, putting the Starks in control of Westeros.
Now, after eight seasons of being beaten, broken and ignored at every turn, Sansa ended "Game of Thrones" as the ruler in the North, now an independent kingdom.
For Northerners, lemon cakes are coming.
She's done all there is to do in Westeros. Now, she's ready for her next adventure.
A girl left the Six Kingdoms to see what No One has ever seen.
But, since Martin's books say there could be some deadly butterflies there, our guy should probably pack some bug spray.
At Master of Coin, the new Lord of Highgarden, Ser Bronn of the Blackwater (Jerome Flynn).
Samwell Tarly (John Bradley) gets as close to being a wizard as he probably ever will, becoming a Grand Maester.
And Ser Davos (Liam Cunningham), the Onion Knight, is now Master of Ships.
Tyrion is, of course, Hand. And Bran the Broken -- they really need to work on that name -- is the final winner of the Game of Thrones.
Long may he reign.