One of the standout things about Game of Thrones is the cast’s eye-catching looks. Take House of the Dragon — it’s a prime example with the Targaryen family and their platinum hair. But at the same time, the show ran for eight seasons, which was basically like a lifetime of filming.
What do you do when other projects come up and you can’t change your look? Natalie Dormer weighed in on this, since while she was filming scenes for the HBO series, she was also working on a movie.
Natalie Dormer And Her Style Strategy For Game of Thrones
Game of Thrones has been one of the most successful series since it premiered, earning global recognition. However, the fantasy genre can be pretty demanding when it comes to the look of its characters.
To bring characters from fictional worlds to life, the cast often has to wear elaborate and exotic costumes. Makeup and hair are just as crucial. In Game of Thrones, the women were the most affected, especially those with prominent roles in the story.
In a 2014 interview with the Daily Beast, Natalie Dormer, who played Margaery Tyrell in GOT, talked about her roles in the series and in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1. It was particularly interesting to learn about her hair at the time, considering her character in the franchise had a rather unique look.
With part of her hair shaved off, how did she manage to make it work for her appearances in the HBO episodes? Wig.
I was very grateful that we had the foresight before I started Thrones to go, “You know what? There might be roles you want to take that would require different hair.”
Kit Harington was mentioned in the interview, as he had chosen not to use any hair extensions and preferred to keep his hair natural. Dormer joked:
[Kit] was an idiot. Lena, Emilia, and I are laughing because we sorted the wig thing out nice and early.
Nowadays, wigs are incredibly helpful in the characterization process, but the truth is that even if some actors choose not to wear them, it can still limit their ability to take on other projects. In the end, Harington was totally “stuck” with Jon Snow.
Natalie Dormer Surprised Everyone With Her Haircut For The Hunger Games
Cressida was one of the most iconic characters in The Hunger Games, largely because of her stylish look, which perfectly matched her personality and character. Dormer even discussed the entire casting process and the idea for the haircut with the Daily Beast:
I was a massive fan of the first movie and hadn’t read the novels, but then I got the phone call about Cressida and did an audition tape at home on a Canon 7D with my hair scraped back in a really tight ponytail, and sent it off to Francis. I got the phone call saying, “They love you. They want to know if you would be up for shaving your entire head.” I took a deep breath and said, “To be a part of The Hunger Games, yes.” But I got off lightly because I had a conversation with Francis and we came to the conclusion that we’d shave off just half the head.
When she radically changed her hair in the third film of the saga, it stirred quite a bit of talk, especially since the new look was first revealed on the Screen Actors Guild red carpet in 2014.
In an interview with the Daily Mail at the time, she mentioned that the cut was the work of the film’s hair team. According to the actress, the experience of shaving her head felt terrifying at first, but was also liberating.
The change was so talked about that Dormer ended up discussing it further in another report from the same media outlet. She provided more details, explaining that her character also had a tattoo on the side of her head, which required daily maintenance:
Every single day it was clean-shaven – to put the tattoo transfer on everyday, so it was bare skin for nine months.
Since she was working on this project alongside Game of Thrones, she was asked which one she preferred. Dormer said she couldn’t choose, simply stating that she felt very lucky to be part of two “incredible families”.
