Happy birthday, Emilia Clarke!

Emilia Clarke, aka Daenerys Stormborn of the House Targaryen, First of Her Name, the Unburnt, Queen of the Andals and the First Men, Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, Breaker of Chains, and Mother of Dragons, turns 31 today. We wish her a happy

birthday

nameday!

Clarke’s importance to Game of Thrones cannot be overstated. Like many of her fellow cast members, she didn’t have much experience before landing the show — she’d appeared in a short film called Drop the Dog and in Triassic Attack, one of those campy monster flicks from the Syfy channel. But as it did with Kit Harington and John Bradley and Maisie Williams and many others, HBO took a chance on Clarke, and it paid off handsomely. Over the past several years, she’s gone from obscurity to household name, turning Daenerys Targaryen into an iconic character and nabbing headlining roles in movies like Terminator Genysis and Me Before You. She’s even the female lead in the upcoming Solo: A Star Wars Story. Between Game of Thrones fans and Star Wars fans, she’s pretty much set for life.

Back when HBO was first casting Game of Thrones, Clarke may not have been what immediately jumped to mind when thinking of Daenerys. “The role of Khaleesi is tall and willowy and blonde, I’m short and round and brown,” Clarke told The Wrap in 2015. “So they weren’t, like, she can do that role, easy!”

What set Clarke apart was her ability to take Daenerys on an emotional journey, from a scared child bride to a powerful leader of men. Her success has made Daenerys one of the most recognizable characters on TV today. And we should all take a moment to acknowledge how convincingly Clarke pulls off made-up languages; it’s a lot harder than she makes it look.

Filming on the eighth and final season of Game of Thrones begins today, and Emilia Clarke is about to don Daenerys’ silver-white wig for the last time. We’re excited to see how she brings Dany’s journey home. Whatever happens, she’s already left her mark — on Game of Thrones, on TV, and on fantasy fiction.

Happy birthday, Emilia Clarke.

Next: We rank the episodes of Game of Thrones season 7 from worst to best

To stay up to date on everything Game of Thrones, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.

Watch Game of Thrones for FREE with a no-risk, 7-day free trial of Amazon Channel