Lena Headey, who brought life to the character of Cersei Lannister in Game of Thrones, has recently opened up about her experience with the infamous walk of shame scene in the series. Besides being famous for its storyline, Game of Thrones is also known for the array of intimate scenes with nudity.
However, the series was filmed at a time when intimacy coordinators were not common. Hence, the actors who had to do an intimate scene or scenes with nudity had to do so without any supervision, leading to vulnerability. In a recent interview with The Telegraph, Lena Headey opens up about what shocked her the most about Game of Thrones’ infamous walk of shame.
Lena Headey reveals what shocked her most about Game of Thrones‘ infamous walk of shame
It was quite unexpected for Lena Headey when she witnessed the reaction of Game of Thrones’ fans after they found out that the infamous walk of shame of her character, Cersei, was done by a body double, along with the use of CGI. She received immense backlash from the fandom as the viewers thought that she had “duped” them by standing up for herself and choosing not to do the nude scene.
She continues in the interview with The Telegraph, pointing out how she was with “3000 extras” and it “going anywhere” was “insane”. It cannot be denied that she does an impeccable job in depicting the depth and complexity of Cersei’s character in the series. For her, “acting is a joy”, however, doing the walk of shame scene without the use of a body double and CGI would have caused her to be in “full-on defensive mode”.
It would have been able to do the “emotional part of the job”. In another interview with Entertainment Weekly, Lena Headey added how many people thought that the use of a body double for the scene made her “less of an actress”. Though she is not averse to nudity, as she is a “very emotional actor” and gets completely engrossed in it, being “naked for three days” during the filming of the walk of shame scene in Game of Thrones would have impacted her immensely.
It would have caused her to “feel very angry” and she had no intention of depicting Cersei’s character in that manner. According to her, she did what Cersei would do “emotionally”. Lena Headey also speaks about the other actors who did the other intimate scenes in the series in her interview with The Telegraph.
She adds that the other actresses who had to do intimate scenes with nudity were “much younger and more vulnerable”. Though Headey was able to stand up for herself at the right time, it was not always the case. As she did not go to drama school, she “just got on with it” during her early days. When scenes with intimacy and nudity had to be filmed, she did not question her safety; rather, she would do the scenes and later feel the burden of her actions.
Looking back at these moments in her career, she notes how “rough” it was during that time. She also appreciates how young women are now able to speak up for themselves. Lena Headey is now bringing life to the character of Liza Simmons, an intimacy coordinator, in the audio drama, Intimacy.
In the drama, Headey’s Liza Simmons depicts her contrasting personal and professional life. On the surface, Liza is not afraid to speak about consent and helps actors be comfortable during filming. However, in her personal life, she is struggling to make ends meet when things get further complicated after her past resurfaces.
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Edited by KOUSHIKI ROY