Ever since HBO’s Game of Thrones season 5 finale aired, people have been analyzing Cersei’s walk of shame. In the finale, Cersei Lannister had to walk naked through the streets of King’s Landing as atonement for her sins.
However, fans were quick to notice the CGI involved in Cersei’s walk of shame. After that, people started comparing previously known naked images of Cersei and Lena Headey — the actress who plays Cersei –claiming they didn’t match up. Lena Heady then publicly admitted she used a body double for Cersei’s walk of shame but also revealed she was pregnant at the time.
The hunt was now on — who was the actress who portrayed Cersei’s body during her walk of shame?
We can now reveal it was 27-year-old actress and model Rebecca Van Cleave who was the body double of Cersei. IMDb has credited her as “Naked Cersei” on their Game of Thrones season 5, episode 10 (entitled “Mother’s Mercy”) cast page .
So far, Rebecca Van Cleave only has a short role list, having starred in TV series 50 Ways To Kill You Lover and The Royals before landing the role of Cersei’s body double. She also has a short film, The Prey , set for release later this year in the U.K. Although her IMDb bio also states she featured in C4’s Toast of London and BBC’s Three’s Cuckoo . Her modelling career has been more lucrative, having scored print and film ads for clients like MTV’s Catfish , AGA, TK Maxx, Playstation, AX Paris, Absolute Vodka, Ducros, Head & Shoulders, Schweppes, and Dunlop. Van Cleave was born in the U.K. but she moved with her family to the U.S. when she was five.
According to Entertainment Weekly , Rebecca Van Cleave performed all the full frontal nudity while Lena Headey remained clothed in a beige shift. The two actresses performances were amalgamated using CGI to create Cersei’s walk of shame. Van Cleave seemed in awe of having landed the role, having beaten over 1,000 other actresses vying to portray Cersei’s naked walk of shame.
“It was one of the scariest, most wonderful, most gratifying experiences I could have imagined. I never in a million years would have thought I would be in Dubrovnik surrounded by hundreds of extras and crew members throwing food at me, but it was amazing.”
It was the first nude scene Rebecca Van Cleave has had to portray for television — a trial by fire, some may say. Perhaps she isn’t a Lannister after all — but a Targaryen instead.
What do you think of Cersei’s walk of shame and the body double who helped Lena Headey? Let us know by commenting below.
[Image credits: HBO Inc. / IMDb / Ev Sekkides]
