In the unforgettable Season Five finale of Game Of Thrones, viewers were captivated by the public humiliation endured by Cersei Lannister.
Portrayed by Lena Headey, Lannister was stripped down and had her hair sheared off before being compelled to walk through the streets of Kings Landing amidst jeers, insults, and objects hurled at her, all while accompanied by a Silent Sister ringing a bell and incessantly chanting “Shame.”
This pivotal moment in the show’s narrative garnered significant attention, with Headey facing criticism for opting to employ a body double rather than performing the scene herself.
Towards the culmination of season five, Lena Headey embodied a vulnerable Cersei Lannister on Game of Thrones.
The once-mighty ruler had transitioned into a defenseless captive subjected to public ridicule.
As audiences may recollect, Lannister embarked on a penance walk wherein she bared herself, underwent a drastic hairstyle alteration, and traversed the squalid alleys as hostile spectators disparaged her.
Accompanying her, a solemn-looking Silent Sister mechanically tolled a bell and repeated the damning word, “Shame!”
Reflecting on the backlash, the 42-year-old actress candidly shared with Entertainment Weekly, “Some people thought I was less of an actress because I didn’t get my tits out.”
Headey elaborated, “You know what?
It was really a bit shocking.
I’ve done nudity.
I’m not adverse to it.
But I know I’m a very emotional actor and I get really driven by that.
In order to do my job, I allow myself to be really vulnerable.
I don’t know any other way to do my job.”
She continued, “Things really affect me.
And the thought of being n^ked for three days and trying to contain her in the way she would be…
I think I would feel very angry.
I didn’t want to be angry.
I don’t think Cersei would be angry.
I did what I thought she would do, emotionally.
And wonderful Rebecca [Van Cleave, Headey’s stand-in] was able to contain herself and be n^ked.
She found it very difficult, obviously.
It’s not a natural thing to do.”
Opening up about her character’s trajectory in season six, Headey expressed, “Now she really has nothing to lose and she has everything to gain from a horrible position she finds herself in.”
Despite the transformative experiences, Headey hinted at Cersei’s unyielding nature, remarking, “I don’t think she’s found any humility.
She’s even more self-preservatory.
She can’t believe that happened to her, of all people.
It’s fueled her desire for power and her desperation to prove that she’s somebody worth considering.”
