Maisie Williams on her first sex scene, roles for women, and inter-cast romance

Maisie Williams is quite possibly the most communicative of the main Game of Thrones cast members. She always seems to be talking, tweeting, or weighing in on something. When combined with her prodigious talent, it makes her career one of the ones I’m most eager to watch going forward.

Williams has been popping up in the news lately with a series of interviews that cover everything from The Falling, her indie drama about a group of girls at an English boarding school; to the the lack of good roles for women in Hollywood to the bad rap teenagers get in the press. Also, she threw in her two cents concerning the news that Dean-Charles Chapman and Nell Tiger Free (Tommen and Myrcella Baratheon, respective) are dating. See? Communicative.

First up, Williams spoke to Vulture about the The Falling, which is now available on VOD and playing in select theaters. This was an important project for Williams, both because it allowed her to establish herself as an actress in the film world, and because it let her stretch her acting muscles by playing a role that didn’t much resemble Arya Stark (she said that she always worries that directors won’t see past Arya Stark when she’s up for a part). The Falling also required her to do something she hasn’t had to do yet on Game of Thrones: play a sex scene. Williams talked a bit about the experience.

"It was extremely awkward! But [co-star] Joe [Cole] was very sensitive to the fact that I had never done a scene like this before, and it was great to work with someone who was so considerate of that. We went out for a couple of lunches and stuff just to get to know each other, and we had days of rehearsal where we’d get to know our characters and spend a couple of hours with each other. So I knew him quite well, and we got along quite well. It all paid off in the end."

With Game of Thrones heading into uncharted territory in Season 6, it’s not of the question that this kind of scene could crop up for Arya, as strange as that may be to think about. There was never really any doubt that Williams would approach that kind of scene with professionalism and tact, but the experience can’t hurt.

Meanwhile, over at the Evening Standard, Williams talked passionately about the lack good roles for women in film, something she’s seeing a lot more of as her star rises and she gets more offers, but clearly not something she’s comfortable with.

"There are a lot of roles that come in that are “the girlfriend” or “the hot piece” in a movie or TV series. That’s something I’ve seen first-hand and read all the time. It will say “Derek: intelligent, good with kids, funny, really good at this” and then it will say “Sandra: hot in a sort of cute way” — and that’s all you get. That’s the way your character is described, so going into an audition you are channeling “hot”, which isn’t like a person, that’s not who a person is. That’s what I see and that’s what needs to change. I’ve been lucky enough to play a very great female character from a young age, who is a fantastic role model for girls."

It’s awesome to hear this kind of thing from a young actress who’s rising in the industry. Williams even has the kernel of a plan to change things, although she admits it may take a while. “I just hope that if we stop playing those characters, they’ll stop being written.” It’s a start.

Finally, because two interviews aren’t enough, Williams sounded off on Twitter in response to the news that her Game of Thrones costars Dean-Charles Chapman and Nell Tiger Free may be seeing each other. Chapman and Free play siblings on the show, so Williams was concerned about their choice.

For those of you who don’t know what “bants” means, like me 20 minutes ago, it’s a British slang term for inappropriate behavior. Any British readers are welcome to refine that definition for me.

Anyway, there’s more worth reading in both interviews, particularly the one in the Evening Standard, so let them tide you over until the next time Williams weighs in on something in a few hours or so.

Next: The Small Council: Who was the best actress of Season 5?