Who plays Daenerys Targaryen in the Game of Thrones TV series?
Daenerys Targaryen
Well received by critics and fans alike, Clarke received Primetime Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her performance as Daenerys in the HBO series in 2013, 2015, and 2016. She has also earned many other nominations and accolades for her portrayal.
Daenerys Targaryen is the daughter of King Aerys II Targaryen (also referred to as "The Mad King") and his sister-wife Queen Rhaella, and is one of the last survivors of House Targaryen. She serves as the third-person narrator of thirty-one chapters throughout "A Game of Thrones", "A Clash of Kings", "A Storm of Swords", and "A Dance with Dragons". She is the only monarch or claimant to a throne given point of view chapters in the novels. Thirteen years before the events of the series (sixteen in the television series), after her father and eldest brother Rhaegar were killed during Robert's Rebellion, Daenerys was born in the midst of a great storm, earning her the nickname "Stormborn". Rhaella died in childbirth and Daenerys was whisked away to Braavos with her older brother Viserys by the Master of Arms of the Red Keep, Ser Willem Darry. Darry died when Daenerys was five and she and Viserys spent the following years wandering the Free Cities. By the beginning of "A Game of Thrones", Daenerys has been a guest of Illyrio Mopatis in Pentos for half a year. "Game of Thrones" creators D. B. Weiss and David Benioff described Daenerys as a combination of Joan of Arc, Lawrence of Arabia, and Napoleon.
Reign (TV series)
Kane auditioned when she was filming a recurring role on the third season of MTV TV series "Teen Wolf". When Kane got the part, the "Teen Wolf" writers wrote her character off the show. Kane is part Scottish on both her mother and father's sides, and is possibly a descendant of the real Mary, Queen of Scots through her mother. Kane did research on the historical Mary Stuart in preparing for the role. Toby Regbo was cast as Dauphin Francis before March 1, 2013, and British newcomer Celina Sinden was cast as Mary's lady-in-waiting Greer on that date. Torrance Coombs was announced as having been cast as Sebastian, one of the leading characters, in March 2013. Sebastian is an original character created for the show, so Coombs didn't have as much research in preparation for the role, though he faced the challenge of changing his performance from that in "The Tudors", another historical TV series he'd been involved in. Alan Van Sprang, who was cast as Henry II of France, modeled his performance after Bill Clinton. In November 2013, Amy Brenneman was announced as having been cast as Mary Stuart's mother, Mary de Guise, a role that initially went to Brenneman's "Private Practice" co-star Kate Walsh, who was unable to commit due to conflicting filming commitments. On March 10, 2015, it was announced that Rachel Skarsten has been cast as Queen Elizabeth, a role that debuted in finale of season two and become a regular in season three. Showrunner McCarthy described the addition of Elizabeth as expanding the scope of the series, and that she will be part of season three's focus on the show's three queens.