Emilia Clarke jokes about fake GoT pay claims: ‘I’d have been driving a couple of Porsches’
The actress says rumors of massive 'Game of Thrones' salaries were greatly exaggerated
Emilia Clarke is setting the record straight about long-circulated rumors surrounding the salaries of the main cast of Game of Thrones, saying reports of massive per-episode earnings were significantly overstated.
The 39-year-old actress, who portrayed Daenerys Targaryen throughout the HBO fantasy series’ run, addressed speculation that the show’s lead actors earned as much as $300,000 per episode.
“We didn’t earn that much,” Clarke said in an interview with Variety. “Can you imagine? I’d have been driving a couple of Porsches!”
Despite dismissing the rumored figures, Clarke acknowledged that her salary from the series was still life-changing, allowing her to pay off her parents’ mortgage.
The actress also reflected on her evolving relationship with the show that made her a global star, saying she has come to view the experience with greater perspective over time.
“I have gone through every circuitous route to get to the place that I am now, which is finally being able to be very grateful for everything that Game of Thrones did and has given me,” she said. “I no longer feel trapped in it… I feel just really lucky that it happened to me.”
Clarke added that she had no familiarity with the fantasy series when she first auditioned, recalling her confusion when her agent mentioned it.
“I was like, ‘You’ve just said gobbledygook. I have no idea what we’re talking about,’” she said, noting that she celebrated landing the role with weeks of celebration.
The actress also spoke candidly about the emotional challenges of fame, including her disappointment at losing the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series to Jodie Comer in 2019 for Killing Eve.
Clarke admitted she internalized the loss at the time, saying she felt as though the industry had moved on from her work.
“Everyone’s over Game of Thrones now — you’re old news,” she recalled thinking.
She later skipped the after-parties, a decision she now regrets.
“I do not like that person,” Clarke said, reflecting on her mindset at the time. “Because clearly I have a 13-year-old’s idea of success.”
In recent years, Clarke said she has shifted her approach to work and success, focusing less on awards and public validation and more on personal fulfillment.
Her perspective now centers on choosing projects she genuinely enjoys, rather than those driven by external expectations.
“My connection to a project ends when they say, ‘Picture wrap,’” she said. “It’s not for me to decide what people will think of it.”
