Charles Dance
Role in “Game of Thrones”: The devious, tyrannical patriarch Tywin Lannister, now Hand of the King his grandson, who rules his House with a fist of iron and a heart of ice.
Yes, But Where Else Do I Know Him From? Dance, as you might expect, given his chilly gravitas and impeccable Received Pronunciation, is a Royal Shakespeare Company alum and a stage actor of repute, as well as appearing on screen since the 1980s. His first movie role was as an associate bad guy in Moore-era Bond “For Your Eyes Only” (a favorite of Robert Bresson’s, trivia fans), while he became a star in his native U.K. following his lead role in prestige TV miniseries “The Jewel In the Crown.” His innate Britishness made him a suitable villain when Hollywood was convinced that all superbaddies should speak in plummy tones, and so he played a demon in Eddie Murphy vehicle “The Golden Child” and the evil antagonist in John McTiernan’s recently reclaimed flop “The Last Action Hero.” He played expat again in “White Mischief” and took the key role of the doomed Dr. Clemens in “Alien 3,” and prior to decamping to Westeros popped up in movies like “Starter for Ten,” ”Michael Collins,” “Hilary and Jackie” Ozon’s “Swimming Pool” and Altman’s “Gosford Park” and in U.K. TV shows like “Fingersmith,” “Bleak House,” “Trinity” and “Strike Back.” Ever regal, he was also the King in “Your Highness” and ancient vampire royalty in “Underworld: Awakening.”
Fans Should Check Out: Dance has long been a mainstay of U.K. film and TV but probably his defining early moment is with Raj-set TV miniseries “The Jewel in the Crown,” which was a prestige period drama back when those were rare TV events.
Emilia Clarke
Role in “Game of Thrones”: Khaleesi, Mother of Dragons Daenerys Targaryen, now head of her own ever-expanding army and with an eye on crossing the sea to wage a war to reclaim her birthright, the Iron Throne.
Yes, But Where Else Do I Know Her From? If there’s ever a case of an actor being “made” by a show, with “Game of Thrones,” Clarke is it. In fact, she’s so deeply associated with this, her first major role that we have to say every time we see a pic of her as a brunette (her natural color) we double take. She will, however, undoubtedly go on to a career outside of the beloved character she plays here though, having already laid the groundwork by playing Jude Law‘s daughter in “Dom Hemingway” recently and having netted the role of Sarah Connor in the upcoming “Terminator: Genesis.”
Fans Should Check Out: Slim pickings for pre-’Thrones’ credits, though she does show up in Mat Whitecross’ “Spike Island.” Your best bet for another dose of Clarke is to head out and catch “Dom Hemingway” which is in theaters now, and which we liked quite a bit.
Michelle Fairley
Role in “Game of Thrones”: Original Tiger Mother Catelyn Stark, iron-willed matriarch of the Stark clan whose pride in her family and House is undercut only by a degree of pragmatism borne of her ferocious love for her children.
Yes, But Where Else Do I Know Her From? Fairley only became Lady of Winterfell after our beloved Jennifer Ehle, who had played her in the pilot, exited the project, but won us over nonetheless, delivering one of the steely female performances that makes ‘Thrones’ gender politics so endlessly fascinating. But her spectacular, bloody exit from the show won’t see her off our screens for long: she is currently filming miniseries “24: Live Another Day” in a recurring role, so she’ll be back when that show airs next month. And prior to all this, the Northern Irish actress had been a regular on U.K. TV for years, and also won small parts in films like the Kate Winslet-starrer “Hideous Kinky,” and the terrific “The Others” before taking over the brief role of Hermione Granger’s mother in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1” from original actress Heather Bleasdale. But more recently, she’s turned in eyecatching supporting roles in “Philomena” as Martin Sixsmith’s commissioning editor, in a recurring spot on TV show “Suits” and especially in Ralph Fiennes’ underseen “The Invisible Woman,” in which she plays the “fallen woman” companion of Charles Dickens’ friend Wilkie Collins.
Fans Should Check Out: It’s only a small role, but her scene in “The Invisible Woman” is a fascinating one, and we’d urge you to seek it out (no clip available as yet). In the meantime, here are some of her scenes, opposite John Hannah, from an episode of U.K. mystery series “Rebus.”
