STACK NZ Jul #64

INTERVIEW

CINEMA

As Khaleesi in Game of Thrones.

scale Hollywood production was extremely daunting but also, of course, exciting. “This is the kind of iconic story that everyone grows up watching and ever since I was a little girl I've dreamed about making films like this,” she says. As a child, it’s unlikely she could have imagined how gruelling such an action-packed shoot could be: “I did a lot of weapons training and you also need to be strong to lift those guns,” she explains, recalling how she trained for up to six hours a day. “I did a lot of weightlifting and kickboxing that got me into the best shape of my life. I did a lot of weightlifting and kickboxing that got me into the best shape of my life.

Matt Smith, Jason Clarke, Emilia Clarke and Jai Courtney in T erminator Genisys

T he last episode of the fifth season of Game of Thrones has come to a bloody, dramatic close – no spoilers here – and even Emilia Clarke, better known to GoT fans as Khaleesi, Daenerys of House Targaryen and Mother of Dragons, admits to worrying about her character’s fate at times. “You never know who's going to get killed!” she laughs. “It's part of the intrigue and mystique of the series that it surprises you and shows you what a dangerous world she lives in. You get very caught up in the constant sense of menace and the kind of threatening environment that is constantly providing audiences with all sorts of shocks.” At 28 years old, Emilia Clarke still appears flabbergasted by her fame. She joined the Game of Thrones cast a year out of drama school, and within no time, the series was being watched by millions per episode. Her old life was behind her. “I hated working in a call centre and I remember how thrilled I was that I didn't have to do that job anymore,” she recalls. However, being a leading actress in the series doesn’t necessarily mean job security, considering the producer’s willingness to kill off main characters with abandon.

I may not be as tough as my character, but at least I felt that I could handle the physical demands of working on the film.” While she’s ready for life as an action hero,

Clarke warns that getting ready for a round of red carpet promotion is an entirely different story. “There are no captions on red carpet photos that say, 'This girl trained for two weeks, she went on a juice diet, she has a professional hair and

In her next starring role away from the franchise, Clarke ditches the long blonde wig, becoming Sarah Connor in Terminator Genisys , a reboot of the legendary franchise co-starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jai Courtney. "This is such an amazing project and I'm proud to become part of the legend that is already in place and be able to create something new... Every day, you're like, 'OK. It can't get any more insane, or big,

makeup person, and this dress was made for her.' I just wish they'd say, ‘It ain't the truth.'"

or epic, or exciting,' and it just does," she says. Clarke admits that working on such a large

Terminator Genisys is in cinemas on July 1

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