Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen is one of the many grey characters in House of the Dragon, the predecessor to Game of Thrones. Rhaenyra, who is portrayed by Emma D’Arcy, does have some redeeming characteristics, one of which is her love for her children, and the way she raised them. Because of this, fans were extremely saddened by the death of Lucerys (Elliot Grihault) in the Season 1 finale. The scene also made Emma D’Arcy nervous.
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Emma D’Arcy was nervous on the day of filming Lucerys’ death
D’Arcy recalled filming the scene in an interview with Awards Watch, “I was pretty nervous about that day because I suppose you’re acutely aware that you are being asked to deliver not just something on a character basis, but if I’m being real about it you’re also being asked to deliver an ending.”
“I think I was definitely nervous, but actually, I’ve said before, the massive turning point of the morning for me when me and Matt and [director] Greg Yaitanes were talking about it was Matt’s idea to deliver the news to me as we walked away from the camera. As soon as he said that I could just see the scene.”
The last episode was a “mountain range of big tragic events”
D’Arcy went on to explain her overall sentiments towards the Season 1 finale, “Actually, I don’t think I’m an actor who can often picture what the monitor will see, I’m broadly able to work outside-in like that. I guess I just loved it, so I could so feel how painful it would be to be held in suspension as the news that we as an audience already know is delivered that it just clarified so much.”
“Then I guess for the character, I was just aware that we’d seen this character wrung out multiple times, and especially in that episode, in episode 10 there’s not one mountain to climb. It’s a range. It’s a full mountain range of big tragic events.”
