Maisie Williams Says She Felt "Lost for So Long" After "Game of Thrones"

‘It Brought Me a Lot of Discomfort’

Maisie Williams, who became well-known at the age of twelve, thought back on her time as Arya Stark on "Game of Thrones." She claimed she struggled to feel "comfortable in my own skin" despite having portrayed the character for the whole of her teenage years, from 2011 to 2019.

“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,” Williams told The Sunday Times. “It’s hard to even put myself back there and talk about how tough it was just because I think it’s done.”

 

The 26-year-old performer continued, saying, "Playing characters has been so captivating," but it was challenging for her to develop a personal identity outside of acting because she was doing it during "a really formative stage in my life."

Adding that she feels more confident in her own skin, Williams said she is better able to handle rejection now.

“It was at its absolute worst when I also was the most out of touch with myself — not knowing your identity and that kind of thing — I think rejection at that point felt so personal, so painful,” she said. “I’d solely compare myself to other actresses, and the way people looked, and all of the most destructive ways that you can compare yourself,” she continued.

 

Williams, who is currently appearing in "The New Look," portrays Christian Dior's sister Catherine. The drama for Apple TV+ explores how, amidst the tragedies of World War II, Christian Dior, Coco Chanel, Pierre Balmain, and Cristóbal Balenciaga invented modern fashion.