Lena Headey has been making the rounds talking about the final season of Game of Thrones lately, but a lot of it has been pretty tongue-in-cheek. But she got a little more raw when speaking to the Huffington Post, revealing what happened after she filmed her last scenes as Cersei Lannister:
I didn’t think I was going to be emotional. It was [sad], yeah. I thought I wasn’t going to let myself get to that point because I had the last day to get through. And then when I left and I got in the car, I broke down in tears and I was, yeah, devastated.
When the screen fades to black after the season 8 finale, I imagine a lot of us will feel the same way…although obviously Headey’s emotions are more acute.
Although saying goodbye is hard, Headey is excited about what her time on Game of Thrones has done for her career:
I mean, listen, we all know if you’re visible, people look at you differently. You’re allowed in rooms you were never allowed in before, you get meetings with people, and people listen to what you have to say. So in regards to that, it’s obviously changed my ability to start making and doing and developing things, which I’m thrilled about. I’ve wanted to do that for a long time. ‘Thrones’ changed my life in that way, and I’m incredibly grateful.
Those “things” include potentially producing and directing her own projects, something we’ll look forward to. As for acting, she’s going to go over roles that, like Cersei, are dynamic and interesting. “Nobody wants to play a character who’s really fucking dull and has no history,” she said. “It’s always more interesting for me whether it’s a history that you create for a fictional character or one you look into while researching real people.”
As for the Game of Thrones finale, Headey was naturally mum on details, but did say that she was “absolutely satisfied” with how the show ends. We’ll take her word for it. Season 8 premieres April 14.
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