Interview: Game of Thrones rape scene inspired Sophie Turner’s activism

Not long ago, Sophie Turner went to Rwanda on behalf of Women for Women International, a charity that, among other things, helps women who have been sexual assault victims because of armed conflicts in their countries.

Now, she’s revealed to The Wrap that she got involved with this kind of work in part because of the powerful viewer reaction to a controversial scene from Game of Thrones Season 5: the scene from “Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken” where Ramsay Bolton rapes Sansa on their wedding night.

“We kind of expected a bit of blowback and a bit of controversy,” Turner said of the scene.

"Rightly so. And it was quite a big reaction. At first I was kind of thinking, ‘Why are people complaining about a TV show when it’s happening all over the world and people aren’t really speaking about it?’ And that kind of annoyed me but then I realized it is a dialogue that needs to be had…It’s good to speak about it and make it less of a taboo and take the stigma away from it. And then…women can feel comfortable to come out in the real world if it happens to them…and we can take action against it."

Over a year on, that scene is still a lightning rod for the show. But as Turner proves here, the feelings it inspired can be turned into positive action.

You can watch the unbroken interview at The Wrap.

Turner also hit on a few lighter topics. On the subject of Season 6, for example, she revealed that she hasn’t seen most of the episodes! “I can’t get Sky in my apartment, which is what it airs on in the UK,” she offered by way of explanation. “So I’ve had to use my boyfriend’s HBO Go account.”

Turner does say that she’s looking forward to binge-watching the show in the future (“I’m really excited to get down and watch it and see what’s been going on.”) and with Season 7 not airing until the summer of 2017, she’ll have the time.

Again, you can watch the unbroken interview at The Wrap.