When Gwendalyn Was 14, Doctors Could Slow Her Growth Down, but She Chose to Be Tall Despite the Mockery of Her Peers
Gwendoline Christie is best known for her roles of Brienne of Tarth in the series Game of Thrones and Captain Phasma in the Star Wars film series. The British actress often plays brave and courageous but at the same time sensitive women. Gwendoline is so convincing in these roles because she can relate to her characters whose life is in a way similar to hers.
Gwendoline dreamed of becoming a dancer when she was a child. She learned ballet and tap from the age of 7 and could become a professional gymnast were it not for the spinal injury she got at the age of 11. After that, she left her dancing dreams behind and focused on acting. But even at that time, her height started drawing too much attention.
At the age of 14, doctors told her she was likely to grow beyond 6 feet and offered her hormones to retard her growth, and an operation to hack a few inches off her legs. It’s good that Gwendoline decided against changing her body.
The future actress graduated from Drama Centre London in 2005. But even there she was told that she would probably never get any serious roles because she didn’t look the same as most actors. By that time, she had done a lot of theatres but when she told her agent that she’d love to work on screen, he said, “Well, good luck with that.”
In childhood, Christie was bullied for her looks. And her acting career was at risk because of her towering height — 6 feet 3 inches — making her one of the tallest Hollywood actors.
Before rising to fame, Gwendoline had to take odd mundane jobs, like dog-walking, just to make ends meet. She recalls, “I was told I was rubbish all day, every day; I wasn’t going to work, I was too tall.” But criticism only made Christie work harder. Later in an interview, she would say, “That prepares you for the amount of rejection you get on the job. It’s relentless.”
But nothing could stop Gwendoline from making her dream of becoming an actress come true. Once, Christie confessed that it was Tilda Swinton in the movie Orlando who inspired her not to give up, “I remember thinking, ‘Well, she is in a film, she is otherworldly, and is definitely outside of the room.’ And I realized that maybe there is a place for me too.”
Everything changed when she was cast as Brienne in the series Game of Thrones. The actress revealed that she used her own experiences of having been bullied for her height and androgynous looks to play the part. She started wearing unisex clothing to help her get into her character’s more masculine mindset and gained 14 pounds of muscle mass.
Little Gwendoline couldn’t have even imagined that one day her unusual height and unique appearance she was bullied by her peers for would make her famous. Nowadays, Christie is a sought-after actress who also models and has even become Vivienne Westwood’s muse. Gwendoline found her love in the fashion industry too. She’s been dating fashion designer Giles Deacon since 2013.
Gwendoline had to deal with many stereotypes about tall women “who are hunched, who are introverted, who often cannot be flamboyant in the way they dress.” But still, she says, “Up until a year ago, I would still entertain the notion that I was a freak, that I was really androgynous, that we should all make jokes about it.”
But Gwendoline chose a different path. She is loud and isn’t afraid to draw attention. She wears heels and speaks proudly about her height. She loves to repeat how happy she is for getting the part of Brienne of Tarth who “isn’t just the tall funny girl, she also makes people examine prejudice in all its forms.” Gwendoline continues to act in movies. In 2022, the Netflix series The Sandman was released starring her.
Gwendoline has proved that you should always believe in yourself and in your dreams even when everyone around you says you’ll fail. Work hard and never give up, and you’ll achieve success regardless of your looks.
How tall are you? Would you want to be taller or shorter? Tell us in the comments below.