Game of Thrones Stallion Heart Scene: Emilia Clarke’s Real Reaction Made the Moment

When Emilia Clarke filmed one of Game of Thrones‘ most shocking early scenes, she did not need to imagine Daenerys’s disgust. The actress’s revolted reaction was completely real. Years after the show aired, Clarke revealed the behind-the-scenes secrets of the infamous stallion heart ceremony, confirming that the prop she had to eat dozens of times was so foul-tasting it required almost no acting at all.

Emilia Clarke was completely blindsided by Daenerys’s fate in the Game of Thrones finale.

She read the script seven times, repeatedly whispering “What, what, what, WHAT!?”

Afterward she burst into tears, grabbed only her keys and phone, and walked the streets of London alone… pic.twitter.com/3oQEwZ1DoH

— Best Movie Moments 🍿 (@BestMovieMom) November 29, 2025

The Scene That Defined Daenerys Targaryen

In Season 1, Episode 6, titled “A Golden Crown,” Daenerys Targaryen participates in a crucial Dothraki ritual. Pregnant with Khal Drogo’s child, she must eat the raw heart of a stallion to prove the strength of her unborn son. This ceremony is a pivotal moment for her character, transforming her from a frightened girl sold into marriage into a determined Khaleesi who begins to command respect from the Dothraki people. Successfully eating the heart without gagging signifies that her child will be strong, while failure would be seen as a terrible omen. Clarke has described the scene as a “make or break moment” for Daenerys within the story.

How the Disgusting Prop Was Made

The production team faced a significant challenge: creating a prop that looked, felt, and chewed like a real horse heart for the extreme close-up shots. They needed something with a realistic texture that would ooze fake blood when bitten. The solution was a large, custom-made gummy. According to multiple sources, the prop was crafted from solidified jam and gelatin—the same material used to make gummy bears—but then injected with a sugary syrup to simulate blood. To make it look even more authentic, the crew added dyed pieces of dried pasta throughout the gelatin to mimic veins and arteries. The final product was enormous, reportedly weighing about three pounds and being half the size of Clarke’s head at the time.

“It was very helpful to be given something so truly disgusting to eat, so there wasn’t much acting required,” Clarke said in an interview.

Despite being made from edible ingredients, the taste was far from pleasant. Clarke has consistently described its flavor as a bizarre and awful combination of “bleach and raw pasta.”.

The Physical Toll of Filming the Ritual

Creating the perfect shot required many takes from different angles, and Clarke had to bite, chew, and swallow the prop repeatedly for continuity. She estimates that over the days of filming, she consumed parts of roughly 28 separate prop hearts. This repetition, combined with the deliberately revolting taste, took a real physical toll. The filming was so difficult that the production team provided Clarke with a spit bucket on set. She admitted that she was vomiting into it “quite often” between takes. In DVD commentary, co-creator D.B. Weiss confirmed that the moment in the final scene where Daenerys nearly gags was Clarke’s genuine physical reaction to the prop.

The aftermath of filming was also messy and uncomfortable. The sticky, syrup-based fake blood acted like glue, covering Clarke and everything around her. She has humorously recalled that it even glued her to a toilet seat when she used the bathroom.

The Lasting Impact of a Practical Effect

This commitment to practical effects—using a real, tangible prop instead of computer-generated imagery—is a hallmark of Game of Thrones and a key reason the scene remains so memorable. The visceral realism allowed Clarke’s authentic discomfort to translate directly to the screen, making Daenerys’s struggle believable and powerful. The scene is frequently cited as one of the series’ most iconic and shocking early moments, perfectly illustrating the brutal world Daenerys must conquer and her own inner fortitude.

For Clarke, the ordeal was part of a much larger journey with the character. In later interviews, she reflected on Daenerys’s entire arc, from the scared young woman eating a horse heart to the powerful ruler she became. Clarke often spoke of wanting to show the character’s softer, more vulnerable side, even until the very end.

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