As Daenerys Targaryen, Emilia Clarke wore a wig for most of Game of Thrones, but colored her hair for the final season. That didn’t go well.
Daenerys Targaryen’s platinum blonde hair was one of the most iconic visuals Game of Thrones gave us. To this day, there are probably still fans who don’t realize that actor Emilia Clarke is actually a brunette; that’s how good the Game of Thrones wig team was. “That wig did wonders — bloody hell,” Clarke recently told InStyle. “It was like walking around with a permanent bounce.”
The only other character on the show with hair anywhere close to Daenerys’ was Jon Snow, and that was all Kit Harington’s real locks. That should give the two of them something to talk about when they think back on their days on set. “I was reminiscing with Kit the other day about the hours we pulled and how hard the work was,” Clarke said. “There’s a grieving process that goes on after the show, obviously, but I think we are now both finally at the point where we can say, ‘What bits do we miss?’ It’s kind of like remembering a relationship.”
Although Clarke wore a wig for most of the show, she decided to go the extra mile for the final season and color it Targaryen blonde, although that ended up having some adverse effects. “My hair was so fried that I basically had to cut it all off, like a proper Leonardo DiCaprio, Romeo + Juliet boy cut,” she said. “Now my hair has naturally grown out. I give it more nourishment than you could possibly imagine. It’s my proudest achievement, and I don’t plan on cutting it ever again. I’m going to be 90 with it down to my bum — that’s my plan.”
If you’re wondering what she means:
Anyway, let Clarke’s experience be a lesson to all the actors playing Targaryens in House of the Dragon, HBO’s upcoming Game of Thrones prequel series.
Man, the wig workers on that show are going to be MVPs. I can’t wait to see a whole new generation of bleached blonde dragon-riders come 2022.
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