British actress Maisie Williams has revealed that, while playing Arya Stark in the Netflix fantasy drama Game of Thrones brought her worldwide fame and riches, it brought its personal darker side for her as a young person.
Williams, who was first cast as Arya in the epic series aged 12, told The Times of London she found the pressure overwhelming:
“I was so lost for so long and I knew that I was, and when I couldn’t pin down what I felt my identity was within that, it brought me a lot of discomfort. Now I feel a lot more comfortable in my own skin. It’s hard to even put myself back there and talk about how tough it was just because I think it’s done.”
Williams got the role of Arya, beating 300 other girls to the part, and says she learned her trade on set by watching older, more experienced colleagues:
“Charles Dance was a standout for Game of Thrones. I admired watching him rehearse, and the things that he and the director talked about.”
Williams is now playing Catherine Dior, the sister of the fashion designer and a member of the French resistance, in The New Look now streaming on AppleTV+. Additionally, she runs her own production company, and is intent on bringing original content to the screen, rather than adapting intellectual property from video games and products.
She also says she tries to offer advice to other child actors experiencing the giddy pressures that come with starring in hit shows: “I really dig within myself to try and bring out something that I feel would be really useful. I’ve no idea if I ever have, but I know that at least they could text me or call me.”