How Maisie Williams Was Really Affected By Intense Game Of Thrones Scenes

HBO's "Game of Thrones" was never for the faint of heart. From Oberyn Martell's graphic death at the hand of The Mountain in Season 4, to Season 3's brutal "Red Wedding" scene, the series had no shortage of OMG moments. (And this is saying nothing of Ramsay Bolton, whose sociopathic cruelty was truly the stuff of nightmares.) "GoT" also came under fire for its gratuitous portrayal of rape, sex, and nudity. For example, it wasn't uncommon for main characters to have conversations in a brothel full of naked women or for viewers to see sexual violence on the battlefield. Thus, "GoT" had its fair share of critics — like The Guardian's Danielle Henderson, who quit the series because she was "exhausted by the triumph of men at the expense of women as a narrative device."

Writer and producer George R. R. Martin defended the show by claiming that "rape and sexual violence have been a part of every war ever fought," per The New York Times. "To omit them from a narrative centered on war and power would have been fundamentally false and dishonest," the writer said, adding that history is "written in blood."

One of the many characters to dole out vengeance over eight seasons was Arya Stark, played by actor Maisie Williams, who transformed into a lethal assassin after her father, Ned Stark, was beheaded early on. Williams was just 12 years old at the start of "GoT" — so how was she affected by the show's depiction of violence?

Following the loss of her father, Arya Stark coped by developing a hit list of sorts. She spent some time adventuring with The Hound, training at the House of Black and White in Braavos, and eventually returned to Westeros to exact revenge for the Red Wedding by killing off the Freys. The youngest Stark daughter left a trail of blood in her wake, but actor Maisie Williams was unbothered by her character's violent streak. "I didn't find the scenes that I shot on 'Game of Thrones' and the nature of the violence and the descent into obsession over this list of names that [Arya] wants to kill — I didn't necessarily find that traumatic to do," Williams told Variety.

Williams' experience was very different from that of Sophie Turner, who played her on-screen sister, Sansa Stark. Turner was often at the center of scenes featuring controversial sexual violence, and she told The Cut that she fully expected to experience some trauma down the road as a result. Explaining that she coped with the heaviness by having lots of fun between takes, Turner added, "At that age, I don't think I could comprehend a lot of the scene matter." Turner and Williams' friendship has been well-documented, as they have both spoken about growing up together on the series. Despite their differing experiences with the drama's heavy thematic material, at least they had each other to lean on. After all, there's nothing like a(n) (on-screen) sister!

Because Maisie Williams was so young when "Game of Thrones" made her a household name, it was difficult for her to break free of Arya Stark. In an April interview with British GQ, Williams said that the series' end heralded a fresh start — one which she wished to embrace new characters. "I was rejecting a lot of the pieces of me and my image that I'd been so well known for," Williams said, referencing changes to her appearance. "I think that sometimes other people need a helping hand to see that you're a different person."

This was especially important for Williams because she had expressed some trauma and shame over the way she had to adapt to become Arya. "Around Season 2 or 3, my body started to mature and I started to become a woman. But Arya was still very much trying to be disguised as a boy," she told Vogue in October 2019. "I had really short hair and they'd constantly cover me in dirt and shade my nose so it looked really broad. They'd also put this strap across my chest to flatten any growth."

So, while Williams was not affected by the show's graphic violence, she did struggle with her character's depiction. Thankfully, she's been able to stretch her wings and embrace roles that distance her from her sword-wielding Westerosi counterpart. Per IMDb, this includes stints on "Pistol" and "Gen: Lock," as well as the upcoming "Sinner V. Saint."