Nathalie Emmanuel

 Nathalie Joanne Emmanuel (born 2 March 1989), is an English actress. Emmanuel started her career in acting appearing in theatre in the late 1990s as she was offered roles in various West End productions such as the musical The Lion King. Her acting career began in 2006 , playing Sasha Valentine, a soap opera. Following that she was cast on various British television shows, including the sequel Maze Runner. Her mother is Dominican. Her father is half-Saint Lucian and half English. She has an older sister. Emmanuel remembered that her mother first took notice of her passion and desire to become an actress during Emmanuel's attendance at the independent St Hilda's School, which ended in 2014 and then the Westcliff High School for Girls grammar school. In an interview with New York Daily News, she said "When I was 3years old, I always caused drama, and my mother thought I should channel my energy properly, and so she started me with singing, dancing and acting classes".At the age of 10 she portrayed the role of Young Nala in the West End production of the musical The King. The following year, she was cast as Missandei, Daenerys Targaryen's interpreter on HBO's fantasy drama series Game of Thrones. She revealed to Jimmy Kimmel that she learned about the character in her job as an assistant at a clothing store. Emmanuel was appointed an actor in 2015 following her win the role. Missandei was the only notable character that was a woman of colour in the show, and her death scene, which occurred whilst she was in chains was not well-liked by fans, being called an example of savagery and conjuring an image of slavery.Emmanuel later said to The Guardian: The reaction to the death of Missandei was large because she was the only person. Many people felt disenfranchised or marginalized, had felt a connection to her or believed they were represented by them, especially women of color. In the event of her death - and in the manner that she died - it was a traumatic experience for the people who mourned her because they thought, 'Oh that's not true! That's what they're going make the sole woman of color.