Cersei Lannister's Miscarriage Scene Was Cut from 'Game of Thrones'

Erica Gonzales
Photo credit: HBO
Photo credit: HBO

From Harper's BAZAAR

WARNING: This story contains spoilers for Game of Thrones Season 7 and 8.

Game of Thrones star Lena Headey (a.k.a. Cersei Lannister) recently revealed that her character, who was pregnant for the show's final two seasons, was supposed to "lose the baby" in Season 7.

"We shot a scene that never made it into Season 7, which was where I lose the baby," Headey said during a panel at German Comic Con in Munich over the weekend. "And it was really a kind of traumatic, great moment for Cersei and it never made it in."

Headey actually liked the scene for her character. "And I kind of loved doing that so I thought it would have served her differently," she added, according to a video posted by Twitter user @bb_cersei.

Cersei's miscarriage would've seriously affected the storyline considering how her baby was used to make decisions in the final seasons. As Queen of the Seven Kingdoms, she promised her twin brother and baby daddy, Jaime Lannister, that she'd tell the world the truth, that the child is the product of their incestuous relationship, to show loyalty to him. (She broke that promise.) She went on to use her pregnancy to manipulate her new ally and lover, Euron Greyjoy, into thinking he was really the father. (He wasn't.) And Tyrion foolishly thought that calling out her unborn child during negotiations would've influenced her to surrender King's Landing to Daenerys Targaryen. (That clearly didn't work.)

As The Mary Sue points out, "The baby went from being this weird moral anchor for the character to just being a plot device... It was just really wasted as a storyline and one of the many things that made the character incredibly underserved in the show’s final season."

Cersei didn't have much screen time in the eighth season. She was only in three episodes, and her scenes were mostly limited to the balcony of the Red Keep. Headey was even memed for it. It would have been interesting to see how this formidable villain, who fiercely loves her children, would have navigated the tragedy of losing another child, all with her throne under attack and her partner hundreds of miles away.

There's no doubt the four-time Emmy-nominated Headey would've been able to bring those emotions to life onscreen. How do you make a woman film a scene as harrowing as losing her unborn child and then just... not use it?

And if you want to bring fan service into the question, the miscarriage also would've aligned with a prophecy Cersei received as a child that stated she'd only have three kids. (Joffrey, Myrcella, and Tommen all died during the course of the show.)

At the beginning of Season 8, viewers were confused about whether she was pregnant at all. A scene in the premiere episode showed her drinking wine, causing fans to question whether she still had the baby. However, Jaime later confirmed to Tyrion that the pregnancy was real, and that Cersei has "always been good at using the truth to tell lies."

After finding out the news of Cersei's deleted scene, some fans were upset about the missed opportunity.

Considering how disappointed they were with the series finale, this Cersei revelation doesn't make things any easier for disgruntled Thrones viewers.

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