Emilia declared sexiest woman alive

Follows footsteps of Penelope Cruz and Scarlett Johansson to laurel

Men’s magazine Esquire has declared English actor Emilia Clarke as the sexiest woman alive.

The 28-year-old, who plays the aspiring queen Daenerys Targaryen on hit HBO show Game of Thrones, appears on the magazine’s November issue cover and at several others places in different avatars, complementing her ability to play both “friendly and fierce” on-screen.

Lisa Hintelmann, editorial projects director for the magazine, called Clarke a well-rounded favourite, reported the Indian Express. “Emilia Clarke is unforgettable in Game of Thrones and was hands down the number one choice of Esquire’s staff, friends and family,” she stated in an email.

Read: Dragons and deaths may lead 'Game of Thrones' to Emmy victory

Clarke follows the footsteps of famous actors Penelope Cruz and Scarlett Johansson, who have received the laurel from the magazine in the past. Over the show’s five seasons, Clarke’s character survives an arranged marriage to a primitive warrior, betrayal by one of her lieutenants and resistance to her growing power.

The actor revealed she had to look up the Game of Thrones series online before auditioning for the role. “I had two scenes that told me nothing and not very much time to read all those [George RR Martin] books,” she said. “So, I did what every good actor does and Wikipedia’d the living hell out of it.”

The stint has won her two Emmy nominations for ‘Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series’ in 2013 and 2015.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 16^th, 2015.

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