House of the Dragon's Emma D'Arcy resents being asked about awards categories just because they're nonbinary

Emma D'Arcy plays lead character Rhaenyra Targaryen on Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon, one of the biggest shows on HBO right now. If you've seen them work, you know why D'Arcy has blown up; they're a compelling and charismatic performer, bringing something unique to Rhaenyra it's hard to imagine another actor doing. D'Arcy is also fascinating in interviews, as proven by when they went viral in 2022 for describing their favorite drink.

Then there are the striking, often gender-benging outfits that D'Arcy wears during public events. Once again, not many people are doing it like them. It's great to see a rising star cutting such a memorable figure. "I’m interested in identity and gender presentation as a set of ingredients that can be in flux, that can be played with, and that’s something that Rose [Forde, D'Arcy's stylist] understands so acutely," D'Arcy told The Guardian. "I get excited when I feel that I’m trialling personas, and thinking about how certain types of clothing interact with certain types of space. But in my day-to-day life I wear clothes primarily from charity shops, which I find very comforting. I like the idea that someone’s worn them in for me. I have a pair of boots that I bought secondhand that gradually fell apart. I had them cobbled about 20 times, and I eventually had them remade, so great was my love for them."

On the gender spectrum, D'Arcy is nonbinary, an ordinary aspect of their life that has also become part of their public persona. It sounds like D'Arcy has some mixed feelings about that. For instance, D'Arcy doesn't like being constantly asked whether awards shows should do away with Best Actor or Best Actress categories. "I resent being called upon as an authority on categories because I’m non-binary," they shared. "What feels really apparent to me is that the current categorization system is not serving the community of people it’s there to represent, but I don’t feel it’s my job to fix that."

D'Arcy also doesn't get too shook up about trying to find nonbinary characters in particular to play. "I’m not that bothered about the gender of a character, I’m happy to play anything," they said. "I’m much more interested in the psychology or positioning of that person."

It sounds a little like D'Arcy doesn't want to make too big a deal out of their nonbinary identity, but at the same time, they recognize the significance of a nonbinary actor like them having such a prominent role, something which isn't very common in Hollywood right now. “I suppose being a gender nonconforming person on screen feels like a real privilege,” D’Arcy told Them back in June. “Because when I was younger, I kind of thought that if I were able to act as my job, it would probably be quite separate from my identity, and maybe they would remain separate. I didn’t know it would be possible for those to sort of overlap and be in conversation with each other...Turns out there is, in fact, space.”

D'Arcy will return as Rhaenyra in House of the Dragon season 3, which probably won't be back on HBO and Max until 2026. In the meantime, you can see them onstage in the Greek myth-inspired drama The Other Place at the National Theatre in London.

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