Gwendoline Christie talks landing the role of Brienne, balancing Game of Thrones with Star Wars

Gwendoline Christie is currently experiencing a problem that I am sure most people would complain bitterly about…she is being stretched thin between two jobs. Of course, when those two jobs are as Brienne of Tarth on HBO’s Game of Thrones and Captain Phasma in the first live-action Star Wars film in ten years, complaining is the last thing you will hear her do. Gwendoline was recently a guest on Live with Kelly and Michael, where she talked about her roles in both projects, and explained how her Game of Thrones gig came about.

I love how the story about how Christie “googled” herself and saw that she was everyone’s dream casting choice for the role of Brienne, and how looking up the character led her to read the books. That’s certainly one way to become a Song of Ice and Fire fan.

Next, Christie spoke with Made in Hollywood about her role as Captain Phasma in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

Here, the actress confirms that Phasma is part of the Dark Side, and that she is a “Boba Fett-style character,” meaning she is not in the forefront of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, but she does have a lot of impact. Something cool here is that Christie got the call for The Force Awakens while she was at the premiere for Game of Thrones Season 3…that seems like ages ago. Check out this interview if you want to hear her talk more specifically about her Star Wars role.

Finally, Christie talked with Refinery 29, where she talked about wearing Brienne’s armor one day, and then Captain Phasma’s armor the next:

"Yeah. [Laughs] I’ve grown used to Brienne’s armor, although it can be very heavy. And I did think, ‘I feel so phenomenally lucky. Yesterday, I was Brienne on Game of Thrones! Today, I get to be Captain Phasma in Star Wars! This week is amazing! My life is absolutely off the hook, this is off the scale! Is it real? Don’t depend too much on the fact that it’s real, because if you wake up, you’ll be really disappointed.’ So, there was that."

It’s great to see that even though she has reached the status of an elite actor, Gwendoline Christie is still a fan of both Game of Thrones and Star Wars at heart. You can see Gwendoline as Captain Phasma on December 17 and 18 when Star Wars: The Force Awakens hits theaters worldwide, and as Brienne when Game of Thrones returns to the small screen in April 2016.