Game of Thrones star Emilia Clarke made waves yesterday when she expounded on her feelings about on-screen sex in an interview with the Daily Mail:
“Sex scenes should be more subtle, I’m British, so I cringe at that sort of thing anyway — I can’t stand it. I don’t want to have sex thrown in my face and I’ve always thought the suggestion is so much more titillating than the act itself. Most sex scenes you see in films or on TV are gratuitous and they’re usually just to attract an audience. On screen, the subtler the better.”
Translation: Daenerys Targaryen hates the sex scenes in Game of Thrones.
OK, so that’s not exactly what she said — but the subtext is there.
In many ways, GOT has been characterized by its shock and awe approach and that’s the case whether we’re talking about violence or sex. The Dothraki wedding is a great example of both and features Daenerys cringing in much the same way Ms. Clarke says she does when the on-screen action gets a bit too gratuitous.
Clarke has been asked to disrobe several times for her role on the show, so perhaps this is just her subtle way of speaking out against what she sees as objectification. Fans will remember that GOT alum Oona Chaplin (Talisa Maegyr) told reporters in 2013 that an actress from the show had refused to shoot nude scenes in the future, and quoted her anonymous colleague thusly “I want to be known for my acting, not for my breasts.” Many have speculated that Clarke is the actress that Chaplin was referring to, but that has never been confirmed.
Of course, there’s always the possibility that Clarke just made an offhand comment about how she doesn’t like overt displays of on-screen sex. If you’re asking us, however, there’s plenty to read in between those lines.
Game of Thrones returns for its sixth season in April 2016.
