--- title: Game of Thrones: Lena Headey on Cersei's 'Toxic' Future description: The Emmy-nominated actress shares her thoughts on where Queen Cersei can go from here, now that she's sitting tall on the Iron Throne. canonical: https://time.com/4454792/game-of-thrones-cersei-lena-headey-2/ author: Raisa Bruner article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-08-16T18:19:14.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:35:33.848Z og:title: Lena Headey Dishes on Cersei's Feminism and 'Toxic' Future og:description: The Emmy-nominated actress shares her thoughts on where Cersei goes from here. og:url: https://time.com/4454792/game-of-thrones-cersei-lena-headey-2/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt471f69e60a3cc55e/6988a296524fc06731df92ba/lena-headey.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4928 og:image:height: 2772 og:image:alt: Los Angeles Premiere For The Sixth Season Of HBO's "Game Of Thrones" og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Lena Headey Dishes on Cersei's Feminism and 'Toxic' Future twitter:description: The Emmy-nominated actress shares her thoughts on where Cersei goes from here. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt471f69e60a3cc55e/6988a296524fc06731df92ba/lena-headey.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Lena Headey Reveals Everything She Thinks About Cersei's Future on _Game of Thrones_ > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement.  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Aug 16, 2016 6:19 PM UTC  HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 10: Actress Lena Headey attends the premiere for the sixth season of HBO's "Game Of Thrones" at TCL Chinese Theatre on April 10, 2016 in Hollywood City. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic for HBO) HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 10: Actress Lena Headey attends the premiere for the sixth season of HBO's "Game Of Thrones" at TCL Chinese Theatre on April 10, 2016 in Hollywood City. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic for HBO) Jeff Kravitz—Getty Images  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Aug 16, 2016 6:19 PM UTC **Warning:** This post contains spoilers for the sixth season of _Game of Thrones_. [Lena Headey](http://time.com/4383561/game-of-thrones-cersei-lena-headey/?iid=sr-link2) snagged an Emmy nomination for her turn as [Queen Cersei Lannister](http://time.com/4297937/game-of-thrones-lena-headey-not-getting-naked/?iid=sr-link1) on this season’s dramatic _Game of Thrones_ — but her future on the show is far from certain, given the [turbulence of the season’s events. ](http://time.com/4301281/game-of-thrones-season-6-cersei/?iid=sr-link4) “I don’t feel comfort, I’m pondering where she can go from here,” [Headey told _The Wrap_](http://www.thewrap.com/emmy-contender-lena-headey-on-cerseis-f-you-moment-on-game-of-thrones/) in a new interview. “I don’t think it will end well. Who knows?” Headey also described Cersei’s character as “so tired” from her constant losses. Although she knew a prophecy had predicted that all three of her precious children would die before their time, it’s only now in the show’s arc that she’s coming to terms with that tragic reality. “The thing that gave her humanity was her kids. They’re gone now. Her father is gone. \[Her brother\] Tyrion is gone. There’s no one to tell her she can’t, she’s stupid, she’s just a woman. I think when Jaime looks anything other than happy, she has a ‘f— you’ moment,” Headey elaborated. “This will be such an interesting season for them. Where do they go? It’s so toxic now.” This season also marked a major shift towards the [empowerment of the often-disenfranchised women](http://time.com/4297937/game-of-thrones-lena-headey-not-getting-naked/?iid=sr-link1) of _Thrones_. Danaerys, Sansa to Cersei, they have shifted to the forefront of the show’s narrative. Headey, for her part, sees Cersei as part of that vanguard of feminism. “Early stages,” she said. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4454792/game-of-thrones-cersei-lena-headey-2/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4454792/game-of-thrones-cersei-lena-headey-2/"},"headline":"Lena Headey Reveals Everything She Thinks About Cersei's Future on Game of Thrones","datePublished":"2016-08-16T18:19:14.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:35:33.848Z","description":"\"I don't think it will end well.\"","url":"https://time.com/4454792/game-of-thrones-cersei-lena-headey-2/","keywords":["Newsfeed","Entertainment","Television","celebrities"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt471f69e60a3cc55e/6988a296524fc06731df92ba/lena-headey.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Raisa Bruner","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt471f69e60a3cc55e/6988a296524fc06731df92ba/lena-headey.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Los Angeles Premiere For The Sixth Season Of HBO's \"Game Of Thrones\"","caption":"Los Angeles Premiere For The Sixth Season Of HBO's \"Game Of Thrones\"","creditText":"Jeff Kravitz—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4454792/game-of-thrones-cersei-lena-headey-2/","name":"Lena Headey Reveals Everything She Thinks About Cersei's Future on Game of Thrones"}}]}] ```