'Game Of Thrones' Predictions For Cersei Lannister

Game of Thrones Season 7 — not only is it already a year away, it's also being delayed in order to ensure that it's perfect. The show left off with so many cliffhangers, particularly how Cersei went from anti-hero to full on supervillain, that even a few weeks later, there's still so much to think about. In the meantime, here's some predictions about what could happen to Cersei in Season 7. Usually, at the end of a season, staring down a long hiatus with dread, fans can look to the books in order to predict what will happen in the next season. But, this year, there's little left that the show didn't either already do or seemingly bypass (for example, there are plenty of characters who will seemingly never appear on the show despite having detailed places in the story of the books.)

For now, the character whose fate is most fascinating to me is Cersei, the newly self-crowned Queen. She finally has the power she's always been after, and now it remains to be seen what she will do with it. Even without a bunch of book storylines to rest on, I think there's tons of hints embedded in the show and books about what could happen to Evil Queen Cersei as the show continues.

1. She Could Die

Remember that flashback scene that opened Season 5? As a child, Cersei received a prophetic message from a witch that foretold her children's deaths. However, in the books, there's another part to that prophecy, that "when your tears have drowned you, the valonqar shall wrap his hands about your pale white throat and choke the life from you." In Valyrian, "valonqar" means "little brother," which Cersei has always assumed is Tyrion. However, it could also be her (slightly younger) twin, Jaime, who seems disturbed at Cersei's despotic turn, or another, totally unrelated younger brother — like the Hound.

2. Dany Might Take Over King's Landing

Speaking of that prophecy, at one point, Maggy says "Queen you shall be... until there comes another, younger and more beautiful, to cast you down and take all that you hold dear." For most of the series, Cersei (and by extension, the audience) believed that usurper would be Margaery or Sansa, but right now, the much-younger Daenerys is on her way to King's Landing, and since the only thing Cersei really has to "hold dear" at this point is her power, this could mean that Dany will be the one to take it.

3. She'll Probably Lose Jaime's Love

Even if Jaime doesn't murder her, I think there's already some similarities between Mad King Aerys and Cersei Lannister. Both are wildly distrustful of their advisors, with the exception of a scheming Maester. And Jaime, as Aerys' guard, saw how the old man's isolation and hatred turned him into a dangerous and murderous leader. When Jaime left, he pledged his undying love to Cersei, but I think the look he gave her when he returned proved his love may not last forever.

4. She Could Face A Revolt

The people of King's Landing are dependent on the resources of the rest of the kingdoms, and with Cersei's actions, she's just completely isolated them, after blowing up their major place of worship and the former queen. There are two bad possibilities here: Either Cersei figures out a way to keep the peace within the city and they slowly starve due to a lack of Tyrell grain, or the people revolt and she's trapped in the Red Keep.

5. She Will Need To Make Some Kind Of Ally

All of my previous guesses about what will happen to Cersei hinge on the idea that she'll be completely alone in the upcoming season, left with almost no allies whatsoever, particularly politically significant ones. That means she'll need someone to make an alliance with, and that person will have to be pretty desperate in order to affix their sympathy with a queen who really has no business being on the throne. Cersei has famously bad judgement when it comes to who she trusts — just look at what happened when she armed The Faith in Season 5. Your guess is as good as mine about who she'll pick, since most characters want to take her throne, not support it.

6. Qyburn May Betray Her

After exploding the small council, Cersei has only disgraced Maester Qyburn as her closest advisor. But he may actually be the creepiest living character on the show. He managed to turn the Mountain from the uncontrollably violent Ser Gregor Clegane to the more controllably violent Ser Robert Strong through some form of Frankenstein science. Once you give a schemer like Qyburn control over the powers of life and death, he could create more monstrosities. I am very worried about what will happen to Septa Unella (you may remember her as the "Shame!" nun).

7. The Iron Bank May Finally Collect

The common saying, "A Lannister always pays his debts" hasn't been invoked on the show for a while now, but that doesn't make the kingdom's significant cash flow problems go away. In Season 3, it was implied that the kingdom borrowed the money it owed from Tywin Lannister, temporarily assuaging the debt, and while Tywin was Hand of the King, he had alliances with the Tyrells ensuring that the kingdom had resources. But Tywin's been dead for two seasons now — and it's possible that more financial misconduct might actually get the Iron Bank of Braavos involved.

8. She Could Find A New Religion

After the whole High Sparrow disaster, I'd think that Cersei would naturally be wary of religion, but I've never seen a character make the same mistakes more times than she has. When Dany arrives in Westeros, she may be bringing her Red Priests/Priestesses with her, adding to the Lord of Light movement led by the Brotherhood Without Banners. It would be totally insane, but maybe Cersei Lannister could become a R'hllor acolyte.

9. Gendry Could Show Up

The average boat ride in Westeros can be anything from one jump cut to several seasons long, but even with the series' varying fast travel speeds, it's been a long, long time since Davos sent Gendry away in a rowboat, saving him from Melisandre. As King Robert's bastard son, Gendry's claim to the throne may actually be stronger than Cersei's, and he might be able to gain some populist support the way the Faith did, by appealing to the common people, rather than the (mostly exploded) upper class. A lot of things could happen to Cersei in Game of Thrones' next two seasons, but this would be particularly exciting.

Image: Helen Sloan/Courtesy of HBO (4); Giphy (5)