‘Game of Thrones’ Star Lena Headey ‘Wanted a Better Death’ for Cersei

It’s no secret that Game of Thrones fans were less than thrilled with some of the ends that their favorite characters met in the show’s final season — even the ones for characters they didn’t like.
Lena Headey‘s Cersei Lannister is one character in particular that fans wished had a more spectacular final bow. The “evil” queen met her demise in the series’ penultimate episode, “The Bells,” as she was crushed by falling debris alongside her twin brother and sometimes lover Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau).
In a recent interview with The Guardian, the actress got candid about Cersei’s death, admitting that it wasn’t her favorite end for the popular character. “I invested as a viewer and I have my favorite characters. And I’ve got a few of my own gripes,” Headey said. “But I haven’t sat down drunkly with David [Benioff] and Dan [Weiss] yet.”
The actress then goes on to say, when she does have that conversation, she’d say, “I will say I wanted a better death.” Considering Cersei’s brutal nature and unforgiving ways, viewers had anticipated an equally brutal and unforgiving death, so to say her demise was a disappointment is a bit of an understatement.

(Credit: HBO)
“Obviously you dream of your death,” she said. “You could go in any way on that show. So I was kind of gutted.” She’s not wrong — Game of Thrones was known for its shocking deaths that became iconic in the world of TV such as the infamous Red Wedding or Tyrion’s (Peter Dinklage) shots at Tywin (Charles Dance) on the toilet.
Ultimately not everyone can be happy in the end, no matter the series, and that’s what Headey went on to say. “But I just think they couldn’t have pleased everyone,” she added. “No matter what they did, I think there was going to be some big comedown from the climb.”
Despite the show’s end and disappointment among fans, Headey also shared that she and her costars remain in touch long after filming wrapped. “We’re all on a giant WhatsApp group which is a daily pile-on,” she said. “It’s hilarious. “

Peter Dinklage

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau

Lena Headey

Emilia Clarke

Aidan Gillen

Kit Harington

Sophie Turner

Maisie Williams

Alfie Allen

John Bradley

Gwendoline Christie

Liam Cunningham

Nathalie Emmanuel

Jerome Flynn

Iain Glen

Isaac Hempstead-Wright

Conleth Hill

Kristofer Hivju

Hannah Murray

Carice van Houten

Indira Varma

Rory McCann

Joe Dempsie

Jacob Anderson

Pilou Asbæk

Ben Crompton

Richard Dormer

Staz Nair

Bella Ramsey

Daniel Portman

Richard Rycroft

Rupert Vansittart

Oona Chaplin

Michiel Huisman

Tom Wlaschiha

Iwan Rheon

Natalie Dormer

Michael McElhatton

Jonathan Pryce

Dean-Charles Chapman

Stephen Dillane

Jack Gleeson

Sibel Kekilli

Rose Leslie

Michelle Fairley

Richard Madden

James Cosmo

Mark Addy

Sean Bean

Harry Lloyd
⨁Full Cast & Crew