19 Things That Almost Completely Changed Game Of Thrones

16. Melisandre Was Almost Cersei

Carice van Houten plays Melisandre the sorceress with pitch perfect creepiness: she is horribly influential, spell-binding and sexually charged and though Stannis is clearly a powerful figure in his own right, he owes much of his fortunes to her. Somewhat unthinkably, she might never have played the witch though, as Van Houten was initially asked to audition for the role of Cersei and was unavailable. To think she might never have been cast as the villain is particularly jarring. Was It A Good Change? It seems almost perverse to even suggest that anyone other than Lena Headey could play Cersei with such a perfect blend of disdain and cunning, and Van Houten's more exotic, ethereal presence is a far better match for Melisandre, where her evil is far more subtle and grotesque.