Emilia Clarke recently shared a funny and honest story about her experience learning the Dothraki language for Game of Thrones. The actress spoke about it on a talk show, leading to a public response from the man who created the fictional language. Clarke played Daenerys Targaryen, a character who had to learn Dothraki after marrying into the horse-riding warrior culture.
During an appearance on Late Night With Seth Meyers on Monday, January 12, 2026, Clarke remembered feeling upset after reading an old interview. In it, the show’s language creator, David J. Peterson, commented on her Dothraki skills. She told the host she was “so hurt” and then “really pissed” by what she read.
“I put so much energy into learning Dothraki,” Clarke said on the show. “But the creator of the language, I read in an article, said I sucked at Dothraki. I was like, ‘What, bro?!’ It’s not real! It’s not a real language!”
Host Seth Meyers agreed with her point. He joked that once she says it on television, that becomes the correct way to speak it.
David J. Peterson Explains His Comments About Dothraki
After seeing Clarke’s talk show segment, David J. Peterson gave a statement to clarify his remarks. He said he believes Clarke misunderstood his original comments from years ago. Peterson insisted he has never criticized her performance.
“I think Emilia may have misunderstood what I said, because I’ve never criticized her Dothraki,” Peterson stated. “Why would I? Her character was never supposed to speak it like a first language, so she never had to be good at it.”
Peterson explained that Daenerys’s journey in learning Dothraki was an important part of her story. She was not a native speaker. He compared any imperfections in her speech to an actor playing a character who stutters. The goal is to portray the character accurately, not to speak perfectly.
“Criticizing any imperfections in her Dothraki performance would be like criticizing Colin Firth for stuttering in The King’s Speech,” he said. “It would be entirely missing the point.”
Peterson also revealed that to help Clarke’s performance, he intentionally built grammatical errors into the Dothraki lines he provided for her to learn. This was to make her sound like someone still learning the language.
The Original Comments That Sparked the Reaction
The interview that upset Clarke appears to be one with Rolling Stone magazine from 2017. In that interview, Peterson discussed hearing the actors speak the languages he created.
“It’s always funny to me to hear Emilia Clarke speak Dothraki,” Peterson said in 2017. “Of course, her character is not supposed to be fluent, and it really sounds… not fluent. It’s great,” he continued, “for her character, she understands and she can speak. She just doesn’t sound quite right.”
Without the full context, Clarke took this as criticism of her efforts. Peterson has also praised Clarke’s language work in other interviews. In a 2013 blog post, he commended her High Valyrian, another language from the show. He wrote that he was “delighted by Emilia Clarke’s performance” and that “she really does speak High Valyrian like a natural.”
More recently, in a 2019 Vanity Fair interview, Peterson said, “Emilia, thank you for everything you did. Your non-native, yet fluent Dothraki always sounded very nice, so well done.”
The Challenge of Creating and Learning Fictional Languages
David J. Peterson was hired by HBO to develop fully formed languages for Game of Thrones. He based his work on the few words and phrases author George R.R. Martin included in the original books.
“For Dothraki, there were 56 words in the books; about half of them were names and like three sentences,” Peterson explained. “With Valyrian there was really just four words and two sentences.”
He built these small pieces into complete languages with their own grammar rules, sounds, and structures. For actors, learning to deliver lines in these made-up tongues was a unique challenge. Peterson noted that actors like Jason Momoa, who played the Dothraki leader Khal Drogo, had a different task. Their characters were native speakers, so they needed to sound fluent.
“I think Emilia may have misunderstood what I said, because I’ve never criticized her Dothraki. Why would I? Her character was never supposed to speak it like a first language, so she never had to be good at it.” – David J. Peterson
Clarke’s character, Daenerys, starts as an outsider. She learns Dothraki out of necessity after her marriage to Drogo. Her struggle with the language is part of her larger story of adaptation and survival.
Fans Around the World Actually Learn Dothraki and Valyrian
While Clarke joked about Dothraki not being a “real language,” a dedicated community of fans treats it very seriously. Thanks to Peterson’s work and resources like the Living Language Dothraki textbook, people around the world study it.
Fans connect on platforms like Discord to practice speaking and writing in Dothraki. They come from countries like France, Saudi Arabia, Spain, and the United States. This global group uses the language to build community and deepen their connection to the world of Game of Thrones.
“Learning Dothraki has kept a youthfulness about myself. All of this is really just play,” said Reuben ‘Tihi’ Hayslett, a fan who has been learning the language since 2013. “I don’t want my inner child to die.”
High Valyrian is even more popular among learners. It is available as a course on the language-learning app Duolingo, also created by Peterson. The company reports that over 1.2 million people have started the High Valyrian course.
Peterson believes people learn these languages for the same reason they engage deeply with any fandom. “It’s the same reason people go to theme parks,” he said. “You can pretend you’re on the show… If you learn the language, you have 100% of what was in the show. That can never happen with any other aspect.”
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Clarke’s History with Pranks and Fun on the Game of Thrones Set
This is not the first time Emilia Clarke’s playful relationship with the Dothraki on set has come up. In the past, behind-the-scenes stories have shown her fun personality.
In 2016, a video showed Clarke playing a prank on actor Joseph Naufahu, who played Dothraki leader Khal Moro. During a break in filming, Naufahu fell asleep in his chair. Clarke took the opportunity to smear his dessert on his fingers and costume. She then tried to feed him with a spoon before he woke up.
Naufahu said it was not her first prank on him. He had woken up another time with Dothraki words like “Qoy Qoyi” (meaning “blood of my blood”) written on his arms and forehead.
These stories show a lighter side of filming the intense and often dramatic series. They contrast with the more serious discussion about language and performance.
Looking Back at Game of Thrones and Moving Forward
During her same talk show appearance, Clarke also talked about her future projects. She suggested she is likely done with major fantasy roles after her decade-long experience with Game of Thrones.
“You’re highly unlikely to see me get on a dragon, or even in the same frame as a dragon, ever again,” she told Seth Meyers.
The exchange between Emilia Clarke and David J. Peterson highlights the lasting impact of Game of Thrones. It also shows how even small comments from years ago can resurface and be seen in a new light. Both have expressed mutual respect, with Peterson consistently praising Clarke’s overall performance and dedication to her role.
The story reminds fans of the incredible detail that went into creating the world of Westeros and Essos. From entire languages to character motivations, that attention to detail is a big reason the show remains so popular years after its finale.
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