Emilia Clarke continues her charm offensive ahead of the release of Solo: A Star Wars Story this weekend, talking to The Age about subjects new and old alike. For example, here’s something I’ve wondered for a while: Why did Clarke, a natural brunette, finally decide to dye her hair Daenerys blonde to film season 8 after playing the character for seven years?
It was like, ‘Well, it’s now or never.’ So I did it and it’s cut [hair and makeup] time in the morning, so my 3am [wake-up] turned into 3.30am. I was like, ‘Why didn’t I do this eight years ago?’
Why indeed? “It’s like you’re continually wearing an accessory,” Clarke continued. “You’re like, ‘I don’t need to put jewelry on, I have bright blonde hair!’”
It’s not all sunshine and rainbows, though. Clarke gets recognized more often now, which can be “a leetle tricky.” Still, I think fans appreciate her commitment. Interestingly, Sophie Turner (Sansa Stark) has gone the opposite route; after dying her hair red for years, the natural blonde switched to wigs for seasons 7 and 8.
Anyway, with Game of Thrones near an end, Clarke is at the state where she’s thinking about what playing Daenerys has meant for her career. “Khaleesi allowed me to be [a strong woman], she allowed me to be one in my career at a young age, which is kind of unheard of – or at least it was,” she says.
The scope of the change that happened to me because of the show was nothing that I was expecting and will leave its mark on me forever. It has given me confidence, it has given me bloody wide open doors that were never open before. I will be forever grateful.
Before you get up in arms, I think we can forgive Clarke for calling Daenerys “Khaleesi” — that’s what the interviewer calls her, and you can probably only correct people so many times before your just go with it. Clarke also went along with having the character described as a “strong woman,” something she’s been speaking out against lately:
Being on a huge show like Game of Thrones prepared Clarke well for roles in blockbusters like Solo, where she plays Han Solo’s childhood friend Qi’ra. “What I can say is, she’s a badass – obviously!” she said of the character. “She’s an enigma, she’s mysterious. You know she cares for Han, you know they have a relationship, but more than that, you’re kind of in the world of femme fatale.”
Some paradoxically, Clarke says that, after Game of Thrones, her plan is to “downscale” from doing blockbusters. Probably shouldn’t have joined a Star Wars movie, then, but she’s only 31, and has plenty of time to try other things. With both of these mega-franchises under her belt, she’s definitely in the right headspace to navigate Hollywood. “There’s a lot of money, there’s a lot of ego, there’s a lot of stuff flying around, and if you try and keep your cool in the heat of that, and realise what’s going to help you and what’s going to hinder you … then you shouldn’t have too hard a time.”
I’m looking forward to the continuation of women demanding to be heard and demanding to be seen for what they are. That’s really exciting and exhilarating. I’m just looking to see what it is that makes me tick now, what it is that I relate to, what it is that gets me going now, in this climate. The questions I’m asking myself when I’m reading scripts are, ‘Why is someone making this movie now, where’s the relevance?’ and that’s going to be a narrative throughout the rest of my career choices.
You can read the rest of the interview, which gets into Clarke’s childhood and other parts of her life, at The Age. I have include these two bits, though:
- Emilia Clarke on being single: “There ain’t no rush. I’m havin’ fun, life is good, everything’s chill. I’m a busy bee working my tushie off. Let’s see what happens. Let’s see what my 30s have to offer.”
- When Clarke told her dad she wanted to be an actor, he said she only needed to learn one line: “Do you want fries with that?”
We’re happy she got a chance to learn a few more.
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