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Game of Thrones' Nathalie Emmanuel Is All For House of the Dragon's Female Empowerment

Nathalie Emmanuel, who stars in Sony's The Invitation, discusses the parallels between the movie and her role in HBO's Game of Thrones.

By Cydney Contreras Aug 23, 2022 8:35 PMTags
Watch: Thomas Doherty & Nathalie Emmanuel Talk The Invitation

Nathalie Emmanuel is all about girl power.

The Game of Thrones alum stars in the upcoming movie The Invitation, a dramatic film that follows Evie (Nathalie) across the pond to England for a wedding, where she meets her long lost family. It's there that she meets the alluring and attractive Walter (Gossip Girl's Thomas Doherty), who woos her with gifts and charm. 

But it's not all sunshine and daisies. The movie has a surprise twist that sees Evie fighting for her life—much like Nathalie's character Missandei did in Game of Thrones. However, there's a big difference between the two characters' methods of survival: "Evie really fights for herself," Nathalie told E! News. "I think Missandei had a much more quieter strength about her."

She continued, "Her sort of rebellion came in a much more subtle way, because, previously to being transferred to Daenerys' (Emilia Clarke) camp, her rebellion had to be very subtle because it was a matter of life and death. I think Evie is very modern, like 'I'm going to challenge you on everything.'" 

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2022 TV Premiere Dates

In contrast—and without spoiling too much of the ending—we'll just say Evie ensures no one will ever be able to oppress another woman ever again. "I love that I got to burn it all down," Nathalie said. "She's very active in a way that Missandei wasn't, so it was fun to play the other side a bit." 

Sony Pictures Entertainment

But Nathalie gave credit to the Game of Thrones writers for creating "complex female characters," adding that she's excited to see House of the Dragon continue to empower women. "I'm here for it," Nathalie said. "The way women are represented in TV and film, it has taken huge steps but there's still a long way to go."

She added that she'll definitely be tuning into the prequel series, which premiered Aug. 22 on HBO. 

To hear more from E!'s conversation with Thomas and Nathalie, including how they think their Invitation characters would fare in Gossip Girl, keep watching above!

The Invitation premieres in theaters Aug. 26.

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