Emilia Clarke defended Dany’s reaction to Jon Snow’s big news, and tbh, we totally get it
For the past two seasons, Game of Thrones has been building up to the revelation that Jon Snow is the true heir to the Iron Throne, and Season 8 has fully brought that conflict front and center. In the premiere of the series’ final season, Jon finally learned that his parents were Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryen. And in the second episode, “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms,” he broke the news to his new lover, Daenerys…meaning that the secret is finally out in the open.
But the Mother of Dragons was completely unfazed by the fact that she’d been sleeping with her nephew. Instead, she seemed more upset that her claim to the Iron Throne wasn’t as straightforward as she had believed. Thankfully, actress Emilia Clarke broke it down for viewers who were surprised by Dany’s reaction.
"The related thing, to her, is so normal," Clarke told Entertainment Weekly. "She could have easily married her brother. It’s not a thing. It’s a thing for Jon, but let’s just forget about that. The main thing is we’re up for the same promotion and I’ve been working for it for my entire existence."
Emilia Clarke defends #Daenerys reaction to learning #JonSnow's parentage on last night's @GameOfThrones: "The related thing, to her, is so normal…" https://t.co/lVUiQMni0a pic.twitter.com/KSi3tYOVR4
— James Hibberd (@JamesHibberd) April 22, 2019
As fans of the franchise know, the Targaryens married their siblings for generations. And as Clarke added, Dany has spent her whole life under the impression that she was the rightful ruler of Westeros and running from people who want to kill her for that reason.
"This is my whole existence," she told EW. "Since birth! Dany literally was brought into this world going: RUN! These f*ckers [in Westeros] have f*cked everything up. Now it’s, 'You’re our only hope.' There’s so much she’s taken on in her duty in life to rectify. There’s so much she’s seen and witnessed and been through and lost and suffered and hurt to get here…and Jon doesn’t even want it!"
Honestly, it would be hard to imagine Dany not being upset that someone is threatening her claim to the throne—even if that person is the man she loves. Still, it remains to be seen if she’ll take back Westeros with fire and blood, or if she’ll manage to reach a pact and rule together with Jon. We’ll just have to keep watching.
