Nathalie Emmanuel: 'Game Of Thrones' Fan Outrage Sparked 'Necessary Conversation Around Diversity'

Nathalie Emmanuel credits her role as the Mother of Dragons' loyal sidekick, Missandei, for forcing her out of her comfort zone, and for surfacing important discussions surrounding inclusion in Hollywood.

“When you kill the only woman of color, there’s going to be a huge reaction,” she said, according to Glamour UK.

In the final season of “Game of Thrones,” Emmanuel’s character is killed off dramatically, prompting an immediate backlash from many fans who wanted to see she and the other person of color on the show, Grey Worm, (Jacob Anderson) end up together. The English actress said she felt the response from fans was important to continue the ongoing conversations around diversity in the industry.

“It sparked such necessary conversation around diversity and inclusion,” she said. “I’m used to there being only one role for the ‘brown person’, but when you’ve got a show that has so many eyes on it, you realize she [Missandei] represented so many people.”

Emmanuel went on to add that she hopes reactions like these can continue moving the industry in the right direction in terms of creating more roles and spaces for people of color, and that "when shows of that scale are made again, that the cast looks like the world we live in."

The 31-year-old portrayed Missandei on “Game of Thrones” from Season 3 to Season 8. She said being cast in that role for so many years allowed her to grow as both a person and actress — forcing her to break out of her shell.

“I had the opportunity to shape a person who had been through unimaginable things and really tell her story,” she said.

Emmanuel went on to play the lead in Mindy Kaling's miniseries remake of “Four Weddings and a Funeral” which aired last summer on Hulu. Her latest film, "Fast and Furious 9" will be released in May.