‘Game of Thrones’ season 6, episode 8 reaction: Maisie Williams on Arya’s big battle with the Waif
Going into Sunday night’s new episode of “Game of Thrones,” it felt pretty clear that either Arya or the Waif was going to die … but probably the latter. Therefore, you can argue that is a little bit of a predictable finish, given that we suspected she would eventually start to figure out how to depart Braavos and head back home. Yet, how she did it, luring the Waif into place with a trial of blood, was fairly impressive.
Since this is a show where anyone can in theory die, obviously the producers wanted to give viewers at least the impression that Arya could be in danger. This is why they made some of the moves that they made the past few weeks, and in explaining this further, Maisie Williams had the following to say to Entertainment Weekly:
“We wanted people to think this could be the end, or the start of the end. Like maybe her wound is going to fester – like The Hound. We did so many different takes of emerging out of the water the first time she’s stabbed and sliced. I had been to a music festival so I hadn’t slept the whole weekend. Then I was jumping in the Irish sea. It was a totally manic day. We did a million different takes. We wanted it to be real frantic and panicked. Arya hasn’t been emotional in a long time and we wanted to bring that emotion. When it’s a long-running series you have go give her light and shade. It’s the first time she thinks she’s not going to make it and it’s scary. She ends peoples’ lives like there’s no tomorrow, but when it’s finally happening to her she’s petrified. She’s petrified of dying. She’s got so much more to do. And just the sheer anger, too — The Waif? Really? Of all the people to kill her.”
Now, we just have to wait and see who could bring Arya back home, and whether or not there is anything from her time in Braavos that could prove to be useful moving forward. Maybe it enables her to become a skilled assassin for House Stark! We shall see.
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