Game of Thrones Star Emilia Clarke Was 'Really Pissed' at Show's Language Expert Who Thought She 'Sucked' at Dothraki, He Insists She Was Never Supposed to Be Good at It

Emilia Clarke has admitted feeling "really pissed" astatine the adept who developed Game of Thrones' fictional languages, aft speechmaking that helium thought her Dothraki pronounciation "sucked."

David J. Peterson, who HBO hired arsenic a full-time linguist connected its deed phantasy show, has present responded to Clarke's comments, saying that the histrion had misunderstood what helium meant, and that she "never had to beryllium bully astatine it," arsenic his volition had ne'er been that Daenerys Targaryen would talk Dothraki flawlessly.

The taxable came to airy this week arsenic Clarke appeared connected Late Night With Seth Myers, wherever the Game of Thrones prima admitted being wounded by Peterson's comments successful an nonfiction years prior.

Emilia Clarke this week connected Late Night With Seth Myers. Image credit: Lloyd Bishop/NBC via Getty Images.

"I enactment truthful overmuch vigor into learning Dothraki," Clarke said connected Monday's occurrence of the chat show. "But the creator of the language, I work successful an article, said I sucked astatine Dothraki. I was like, 'What, bro?!' It's not real! It's not a existent language! I can't suck astatine it due to the fact that maine saying it connected the TV, that's however it goes... Honestly, I was truthful hurt. And past truly pissed."

Clarke appears to beryllium referring to comments made by Peterson successful a 2017 Rolling Stone interview, wherever helium said the following:

"It's ever comic to maine to perceive Emilia Clarke talk Dothraki. Of course, her quality is not expected to beryllium fluent, and it truly sounds... not fluent. It's great," helium continued, "for her character, she understands and she tin speak. She conscionable doesn't dependable rather right."

Now, aft seeing Clarke sermon the substance publicly, Peterson has fixed a connection to Entertainment Weekly successful an effort to wide the air, insisting that the histrion had done a "fine job... successful that she was portraying a quality who, done unthinkable hardship, is forced to larn a connection she's ne'er heard earlier and yet becomes functionally fluent successful the mode of a non-speaker — and successful a comparatively abbreviated magnitude of time.

“I deliberation Emilia whitethorn person misunderstood what I said, due to the fact that I've ne'er criticized her Dothraki," Peterson insisted. "Why would I? Her quality was ne'er expected to talk it similar a archetypal language, truthful she ne'er had to beryllium bully astatine it.

"Criticizing immoderate imperfections successful her Dothraki show would beryllium similar criticizing Colin Firth for stuttering successful The King's Speech," helium continued. "It would beryllium wholly missing the point. In fact, grammatical and punctuation errors were built into galore of her Dothraki lines — and these were included successful the MP3s I recorded for her — for this precise purpose."

In a 2013 blog post, Peterson besides assessed Clarke's skills astatine High Valyrian — different fictional Game of Thrones connection helium helped develop. "I was delighted by Emilia Clarke’s performance," helium wrote astatine the time. "She truly does talk High Valyrian similar a natural. She missed a connection oregon 2 present oregon there, but specified volition happen. Overall, I'm extraordinarily pleased."

This week, Clarke said she was apt done with the phantasy genre aft astir a decennary spent making and promoting Game of Thrones. "You're highly improbable to spot maine get connected a dragon, oregon adjacent successful the aforesaid framework arsenic a dragon, ever again," she said.

Image credit: Lloyd Bishop/NBC via Getty Images.

Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You tin scope Tom astatine [email protected] oregon find him connected Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social