Emilia Clarke Worried That Beyoncé Would Hate Her Over Daenerys’ ‘Game Of Thrones’ Heel Turn

Warning: Game of Thrones spoilers will be found below.

Game of Thrones has now wrapped up for good, and anyone who thought that the series would end with Daenerys Targaryen sitting on the Iron Throne was in for a rude awakening over the course of Season 8. After going full-on Targaryen Mad Queen and killing thousands of innocent men, women, and children in King’s Landing, Daenerys was ultimately stabbed through the heart by her lover-nephew, Jon Snow, and perished just feet away from the throne that she had fought so hard to win.

The twist must have been a huge burden for actress Emilia Clarke to bear, as she had to hold the secret in for more than a year after filming completed. This was more than apparent in a since-resurfaced viral red carpet interview (with Entertainment Tonight) in which Clarke was asked whether or not she was happy with how things ended for her character.

But the moment that apparently gave Clarke the most anxiety apparently happened during an Oscars after party thrown by Beyoncé and Jay-Z at the Chateau Marmont earlier this year. While sitting at the bar with friends, none other than Queen Bey approached her to compliment her work on Thrones. And, well, like many of us would — Clarke kinda lost it a little bit, as she told The New Yorker:

“I see this vision, this angel, this incredible woman float towards me, and Beyoncé says to me, ‘Oh, my goodness, it’s so wonderful to meet you. I think you’re brilliant.’ I just couldn’t handle it! I was on the verge of tears. I could see myself reflected in her eyes. I could see her go, ‘Oh, no. I misjudged this. This girl is crazy and I’m not going to have a real conversation with another celebrity. I’m having a conversation with a crazed fan who’s looking at me like a rabbit in the headlights.’ Which is exactly what I was. I said, ‘I’ve seen you live in concert and I think you’re amazing and wonderful! Wonderful!’ And all I wanted to scream was ‘Please, please still like me even though my character turns into a mass-killing dictator! Please still think that I’m representing women in a really fabulous way.’ ”

“I was just, like, Oh, my God, my absolute idol in life is saying that she likes me,” she continued. “And I know for a fact that by the end of this season she’s going to hate me.”

For the record, it’s doubtful that Beyoncé or anyone else hates Emilia Clarke, who was just acting out the script as she was told. Heck, most people don’t even hate Daenerys, who fans feel was given a rough shake in this past season. If anything, she seemed to come off as a tragic character, who suffered loss after loss and ultimately was destined to follow in her mad father’s footsteps.

But as someone who immersed herself in the character for the better part of a decade, it’s certainly understandable why she would feel that way. R.I.P., Daenerys.

(Via The New Yorker)