Foxtel CEO Patrick Delany shocked attendees at the premiere of the long-awaited Game Of Thrones prequel series House Of The Dragon by referring to Daenerys Targaryen actress Emilia Clarke as a ‘short, dumpy girl’.
Delany made the comments about the screen and stage actress during a speech at the event in Sydney ahead of a screening of the first episode of House Of The Dragon.
Telling an anecdote about how he was late to begin watching Game Of Thrones when the series started, he reportedly said: ‘I was like, “What’s this show with the short, dumpy girl walking into the fire?”‘.
Attendees said the remark did not go down well with audiences at the event.
‘It felt like he was expecting us to laugh along but people in the room were obviously shocked by it,’ an audience member told Crikey.
‘There was a bit of a gasp,’ another said.
The Foxtel Group responded to Crikey with a statement, saying: ‘The aim was to convey that for him, Games of Thrones was something very different for television in 2011 and that Emilia Clarke went from relatively unknown to one of the most recognised and most-loved actors in television and film.
‘On behalf of Mr Delany, the Foxtel Group apologies if his remarks were misunderstood and caused any offense.’
Set 300 years before the events of Game Of Thrones, House Of The Dragon will follow the Targaryen family history, starting right at the formation of Westeros.
It features an all-star cast including Paddy Considine, Matt Smith, Olivia Cooke, Emma D’Arcy, Rhys Ifans, Eve Best, Steve Toussaint, Fabien Frankel, and Graham McTavish.
House Of The Dragon will be the first in a number of planned spin-off series to arrive from HBO – including one focused on Jon Snow – offering a deeper dive into the history and mythology of Martin’s creation.
Metro.co.uk has contacted reps for Emilia Clarke and Foxtel for further comment.
House of the Dragon will premiere on Sky Atlantic and streaming service NOW on August 22 2022.
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.
