"Game of Thrones" Season 6 premiered with a big reveal. The beautiful Melisandre, played by Dutch actress Carice van Houten, revealed her true form, a very old woman weary and vulnerable, after removing the enigmatic necklace.
It was a big surprise when the Red Woman, who has been a major character since "Game of Thrones" Season 2, turned out to be a fail old woman. According to The Guardian, her beauty was merely a trick made possible by the mysterious necklace that she was wearing.
Besides being popular for the violence and the complex storylines the show has since it debuted on HBO in 2011 HBO, "Game of Thrones" is also widely talked about for the amount of nudity it portrays. So far, on the first week of Season 6, the only onscreen nudity was Melisandre's when she stripped off everything including the necklace to reveal her loveless and withered form.
With "Game of Thrones" now down to two episodes, according to New India Express, Carice van Houten finally opened up about her onscreen character's surprising moment. "You've never seen Melisandre in a state of vulnerability, she said.
The 39-year-old actress added, "So as an actor, it was a great opportunity to show a different side to her after building up all this aura of self-belief."
The "Game of Thrones" star also added that Melisandre felt like a different character knowing that The Lord of Light has deserted her, Stannis Baratheon is dead and Jon Snow is believed to be deceased as well.
On the lighter side of things, the actress revealed that it took six hours of make up to make her look like an old woman. She quipped, "I think I played a 250-year-old." The scene in which first the youthful Melisandre was looking at the mirror, then she took of the necklace and then an old hand was shown putting the necklace down before the camera shifted back to her face that was already old and grey.
As Carice van Houten has revealed, people could not believe that it was the same actress. The make-up artist sure did a really good job. As to what is in store for The Red Woman, nothing is certain yet except for one thing. Fans will see her in the last two episodes of "Game of Thrones" Season 6 and both of which will be thrilling for fans to stay tuned in.