Speaking to The Guardian, the actor has said that she “wanted a better death” for her character.

“Obviously you dream of your death,” Headey said. “You could go in any way on that show. So I was kind of gutted. But I just think they couldn’t have pleased everyone. No matter what they did, I think there was going to be some big comedown from the climb.”

Headey received four Emmy and a Golden Globe nominations for her portrayal of the Queen of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros. But even that wasn’t enough to stop her character from facing an anti-climatic end, with the evil Queen simply being crushed by rubble rather than facing her comeuppance.

Games of Thrones’ Lena Headey wanted a very different ending for Cersei Lannister