STACK #124 Feb 2016

DVD&BD

FEATURE

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MAISIE WILLIAMS , who plays the wildest and youngest Stark child, Arya, in GAME OF THRONES , talks swordplay, being a badass, and growing up on the set of one of the world’s most popular TV shows. MAISIE WHAT KNOWS

Do you take fencing lessons for handling your Needle? If I have up-and-coming fight scenes, I work with the stunt guys who mainly teach me a routine. In the past, I’ve done fencing of my own accord, because I want to get used to looking natural with a sword. It seems like Arya did a lot more training than you see on screen, and obviously Maisie hasn’t! I’m always trying to get better, but who’s complaining about getting a free gym membership. The perks of being on Game ofThrones ! What is the most significant experience you’ve taken away from working on the set of Game of Thrones so far? I think I just matured. That’s the biggest thing I could have taken away from the whole thing. I’ve had a fast track to who I want to be. I know all of my friends are struggling with what to pick in college and I’ve been given a fast pass to kickstart my

What does your family think of the show and your character Arya? MAISIEWILLIAMS: I guess we’ve got a weird perspective of the show because we were there from day one and a majority of the world hadn’t heard about it. It’s hard to say if they would like Arya if I didn’t play her. They have a very biased perspective because I live and breathe her, and talk about her constantly. I think they think she’s pretty cool. The cool thing is that I get to pretend to be that badass! She has all these amazing lines to say and I can pretend to be that cool. It’s amazing and I’d never ask for anything else. Which do you think was the most epic Arya moment so far? Killing Polliver was pretty cool and I liked that. I think episode three of this [current season], when she’s talking to the farmer and The Hound [played by

Rory McGann] and she’s lying about The Hound being her father and all that. It’s a big deal because Arya can pretend and for her that was a pretty cool moment where she can actually lie to everyone and still come out on top. How well do you guys get along off- screen? It’s great to work with Rory, he’s a really nice person and it’s great to work with someone I get along so well with. We both see more to life than living up to other people’s expectations. I don’t have to be making a lot of money or living in a fancy house. If I’m happy then I’ll do whatever, so that’s similar to Arya. We both have family as our main goal in life. My family are the epicentre of all my decisions. What qualities do you think you and Arya have in common?

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