The “most glorious” moment of Emilia Clarke’s career: “I thought I was going to spontaneously combust”
Although being on Game of Thrones came with all types of challenges, it was also a rewarding experience for the stars who played the show’s most iconic characters.
One of the biggest surprises that Emilia Clarke had during the peak of Game of Thrones’ popularity was how many other celebrities were completely obsessed with the show.
Due to the many different entertainment options available on different mediums and on a wide range of streaming services, it’s very rare for a film or television series to become a monocultural event that seemingly draws people together. It’s a feat that’s occasionally accomplished on the big screen with franchises like The Lord of the Rings or The Avengers, but on the small screen, nothing was bigger than Game of Thrones.
Although the show’s reputation has suffered greatly because of the backlash to its disappointing final season, it created a fanfare that inspired speculation and enthusiasm from members of the industry who weren’t involved in its production. In order to capitalise on the show’s success and serve a good cause, Sean Penn invited the stars to join his annual charitable auction gala, in which attendees could bid to watch an episode of the new season with stars like Emilia Clarke.
It was certainly a jaw-dropping moment for the Game of Thrones cast, as they were finally able to see the true impact that they had on their peers; however, Clarke had a particularly surprising experience when she was bid on by one of the event’s most high-profile guests.
“Brad fucking Pitt comes to my rescue!,” Clarke said to The Guardian, “I thought I was going to spontaneously combust. It was, to this day, the strangest, most glorious moment of my adult life”.
Brad Pitt may have been ultimately outbid by one of Clarke’s friends, but he has still shown a sign of respect that would be impossible to forget. He may be one of the biggest movie stars in the world, and one responsible for countless box office smash hits, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t want to get a sneak preview of what was happening next in the thrilling George RR Martin adaptation.
Clarke has been in an interesting position because a vast majority of her career has been defined by her time on the seven seasons on HBO. Some of her co-stars, like Peter Dinklage and Charles Dance, were already prominent actors before the series launched, even if it heightened their popularity; on the flipside, other Game of Thrones breakout stars like Richard Madden and Jason Momoa were killed off early on in the show, giving them time to take advantage of the buzz and find new parts to inhabit.
Clarke’s roles in the aftermath of Game of Thrones have been a tad disappointing, even if she isn’t really to blame. Few would turn down the opportunity to star as Sarah Connor in a new instalment in The Terminator franchise, but Terminator: Genisys was such a confusing misfire that there wasn’t much that she could do to save it, even if she did deliver a pretty solid impression of Linda Hamilton. Nonetheless, Clarke might be able to have better luck by showing off her sense of humour, as she is set to co-star with Haley Lu Richardson in the spy comedy Ponies for Peacock.
