Emilia Clarke was spotted filming the series last year in the United Kingdom, but now we have officially learned from Vanity Fair that the young actress is playing a major villain in the show!
Clarke’s character is a “Skrull radical” named G’iah (which is pronounced like “Guy-ah”).  A younger version of Clarke’s character actually appeared in the 2019 Captain Marvel film, as the daughter of the Skrull leader named Talos.
The show will reportedly involve a conflict reminiscent of the Cold War, as shapeshifters called Skrulls replace powerful individuals on Earth. According to Vanity Fair, “the story line mirrors countless true stories from actual history when displaced groups have first fractured, then lashed out after patience and diplomacy are exhausted.”
Emilia Clarke as G'iah in 'Secret Invasion'.

Emilia Clarke as G’iah in ‘Secret Invasion’. Credit: Vanity Fair / GARETH GATRELL.

One of the bigger sources of conflict will also be the conflict between G’iah and her father Talos; according to Clarke, “there’s a kind of punk feeling that you get from this girl.”

“There’s a lot of emotions that live within her,” the actress added, “and there’s a lot of confrontational aspects to her character that have come from circumstance. You understand why she has the feelings that she does.”

That “angst and pain and anger and resentment” sounds a bit like the same inner turmoil that Clarke’s most famous character, Daenerys Targaryen, has also felt!

As for The Crown and The Night Manager star Olivia Colman, the Academy Award winner is playing a morally-dubious MI6 agent who is (as Samuel L. Jackson put it) “somebody that you’ve never seen her play before.”

Olivia Colman in 'Secret Invasion'.

Olivia Colman in ‘Secret Invasion’. Credit: Vanity Fair / GARETH GATRELL.

“She’s cold-blooded and just relishes being that person,” the actor explained.

If you’re still hesitant about watching yet another new Marvel show on Disney+ that might not be high-quality, then consider this: Cobie Smulders, the actress who plays Nick Fury’s S.H.I.E.L.D. ally Maria Hill, has made it clear that the show really “is about people on the ground talking to each other, and interviewing people, and really doing hands-on work to get the information needed.”

If you enjoy espionage thrillers and spy movies, then Secret Invasion might be the perfect new Disney+ show for you! So far, the show is set to premiere on Disney+ on June 21, 2023!