Daenerys Targaryen. The name itself carries a weirdly heavy weight in the history of prestige television. When Game of Thrones first landed on HBO, nobody really knew it would become the global juggernaut it turned out to be. But right from the jump, people weren't just talking about the ice zombies or the political backstabbing. They were talking about the nudity. Specifically, they were obsessed with seeing the mother of dragons naked on screen, a creative choice that sparked a decade of debate regarding feminism, power, and the "sexposition" trope.
Emilia Clarke was basically a kid when she started. She was 23. Fresh out of drama school.
The pilot episode featured a scene where Daenerys is forced into a bath by her brother, Viserys, and then later, her wedding night with Khal Drogo. It was brutal. It was raw. It was also incredibly controversial. Honestly, looking back at the 2011 cultural climate, the show used these moments to establish a world where women were treated as currency, but it also cemented a specific expectation for the audience. If you were watching Thrones, you were going to see skin.
The Power Dynamics of Being the Mother of Dragons Naked
There is a huge difference between the nudity in Season 1 and the nudity in Season 6. If you’ve followed the show’s production history, you know that Clarke eventually started pushing back. She’s gone on record in various interviews—most notably on Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast—discussing how she felt pressured in the early days. She'd find herself on set, realize the script called for her to be exposed, and feel like she couldn't say no because she was the "new girl" who didn't want to disappoint anyone.
But then things shifted.
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By the time we got to the "Book of the Stranger" episode in Season 6, the context of the mother of dragons naked imagery had flipped entirely. This wasn't a victim being sold to a warlord. This was a conqueror stepping out of a literal inferno after burning a temple full of Khals who threatened to enslave her. She was unburnt. She was powerful. The nudity wasn't sexualized in the traditional sense; it was a manifestation of her divinity and her "blood of the dragon" lineage.
Was It Really Necessary?
Critics like Maureen Ryan and various writers at The Mary Sue have spent years deconstructing whether these scenes added value. Some argue that the excessive nudity in the early seasons was "gratuitous," a word that got thrown around a lot back then. HBO had a reputation. They were the "it's not TV, it's HBO" network, which often translated to "we can show what broadcast networks can't."
- The first school of thought: It established the grim reality of George R.R. Martin’s world.
- The second school of thought: It was a marketing tactic to lure in a male demographic that might otherwise find high fantasy "nerdy."
Actually, the show eventually coined the term "sexposition." This is where the writers would have characters explain complex political plots while naked or having sex in the background. It was a way to keep the audience’s attention during heavy info-dumps about the history of Westeros. It's kinda funny when you think about it. You're learning about the Mad King's lineage while someone is in a bathtub.
Emilia Clarke’s Personal Evolution and "No Nudity" Clauses
As the show grew, so did Emilia’s clout. You can actually track her career trajectory through the frequency of these scenes. After Season 3, they almost vanished for her character. There were rumors for years that she had a "no nudity" clause written into her contract. While she later clarified that it wasn't a strict "never again" rule, she became much more selective. She wanted the work to speak for itself. She didn't want to be known just as the girl who took her clothes off for dragons.
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She even turned down the lead role in Fifty Shades of Grey. Why? Because she was tired of the questions. She didn't want to be pigeonholed. Honestly, can you blame her?
The industry has changed so much since then. Today, we have Intimacy Coordinators. Back in 2010, those didn't really exist on the Thrones set. Actors were often left to figure it out with the director, which, as we’ve learned from countless post-show interviews, wasn't always the most comfortable environment. The legacy of the mother of dragons naked scenes actually helped pave the way for better protections for actors today. It forced a conversation about consent and the necessity of nakedness in storytelling that the industry desperately needed to have.
The Cultural Impact and the "Unburnt" Legacy
When the Temple of the Dosh Khaleen burned down, that was a CGI-heavy moment, but the physical presence of Clarke was the anchor. It’s one of the most iconic images in television history. It wasn't about titillation; it was about the fact that she was the only person in the world who could survive that fire.
The fans reacted differently to that scene than the early ones. It felt earned. It felt like a payoff for five years of character development.
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- Season 1: Nudity as vulnerability.
- Season 6: Nudity as invincibility.
It's a weird paradox. In the beginning, her being the mother of dragons naked was a sign that she owned nothing, not even her own body. By the end, it was a sign that she owned the very elements of nature. She had transitioned from a "khaleesi" who was a gift to a "queen" who was a god.
What the Critics Said
The New York Times and The Guardian frequently ran pieces questioning if Game of Thrones had a "woman problem." The show was infamous for its depiction of sexual violence, which often went hand-in-hand with the nudity. While Daenerys’s scenes were often the most talked about because she was the lead, other characters like Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey) also had pivotal, albeit agonizing, scenes involving exposure—like the "Walk of Atonement."
Interestingly, Lena Headey used a body double for her walk. Emilia, for the Season 6 fire scene, did not. She was proud of it. She told Entertainment Weekly at the time, "This is all me, all proud, all strong." That distinction matters. It shows the actor taking back the narrative.
Actionable Insights for Navigating Modern Media
The conversation around the mother of dragons naked isn't just about a TV show anymore. It’s about how we consume media and how we treat the people who make it. If you're looking back at the series or watching it for the first time, keep these points in mind to better understand the landscape:
- Context is Everything: Look at who is in control of the scene. Is the character's nudity a choice they are making, or is it being forced upon them by the plot? This usually dictates the "vibe" of the scene.
- Check the Credits: Notice how the rise of Intimacy Coordinators in 2026 and late 2024 has drastically changed how these scenes are filmed compared to the early 2010s.
- Support the Actor, Not Just the Character: Remember that behind every "Mother of Dragons" is a real person like Emilia Clarke who had to navigate a massive corporate machine while filming these moments.
- Question the "Sexposition": Next time you see a scene like this in a new show, ask yourself: "Would I still understand the plot if they were wearing clothes?" If the answer is yes, you're looking at a stylistic choice, not a narrative necessity.
The legacy of Daenerys Targaryen is complicated. She was a liberator who became a tyrant. She was a victim who became a queen. And her physical portrayal—especially the moments where she was most exposed—remains a cornerstone of how we discuss the ethics of modern television. It wasn't just about the shock factor; it was about the evolution of a woman's power in a world designed to strip it away.