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Lena Headey talks about Cersei blowing up the Great Sept of Baelor

Anderson Cooper speaks with Lena Headey and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, who play Cersei and Jaime Lannister on "Game of Thrones." Below is a transcript.


Anderson Cooper: Do you know how many people you have killed in this show?

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau: You? (LAUGH)

Lena Headey: Well, not-- I think indirectly maybe a lot.

Anderson Cooper: Indirectly?

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau: How is that indirectly? Like, are you saying the general who makes the-- gives the orders--

Lena Headey: Just-- s-- yes. She didn't actually, you know, wield--

Anderson Cooper: You blew up that entire--

Lena Headey: Yeah, but come on. They deserved it. (LAUGH)

Anderson Cooper: Well no, I'm not saying they didn't serve it but you did b-- (LAUGH) I mean, that's a lotta people all in one fell swoop.

Lena Headey: Yeah.

Anderson Cooper: And you're in this, (LAUGH) like, battle outfit like you're ready to blow up a temple.

Lena Headey: It's the blowing up a temple outfit.

Anderson Cooper: It's the blowing up a temple-- (LAUGHTER)

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau: With a glass of wine, yeah.

Anderson Cooper: Yeah, with a glass of wine.

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau: Of course.

Lena Headey: Yeah, and there's a little bit of breeze (LAUGHTER) that comes in. She's like, (LAUGH) "It's done--"

Anderson Cooper: I mean, that was-- it's-- (LAUGH) --when you look at a scene like that what-- what do you think?

Lena Headey: The big thing for me was h-- having a sense of humor in Cersei that allows her to be more human. And I-- and I-- like, moments like that she's never been happier. And that's-- but that's funny to watch in a twisted way, because those are her joyful moments, when she feels like she's on top of everything, no one can really touch her physically, emotionally, any other way. I mean that's why she wears that-- that stuff as well, is it gives off, like, a "don't touch me." But those are her moments of pure delight. You know, I mean, if Joffrey was doing recital at school versus, "Can I go and watch that?" she'd l-- rather go and watch that. (LAUGH) But she does love him. It's just that that gives her more joy--

Nikolaj Coster-Waldau: But you also know that when that happens, you know that the next scene's gonna be-- then she's gonna pay for it, right? And the next scene right after that is you see her son commit suicide.

Lena Headey: Yes.

Anderson Cooper: So there's a price for it?

Lena Headey: Always a price.

The video above was edited by Will Croxton.

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