Game of Thrones Season 5 Air Date, Cast News: Maisie Williams Did Own Stunts for New Season (VIDEO)
"Game of Thrones" ingénue Maisie Williams admitted to doing her own stunts on HBO's critically acclaimed miniseries.
17-year-old Williams, who plays House Stark's tomboy, Arya for the last four seasons of the show, says she has performed all her stunts in the series, including sword fights with her character's beloved sword, Needle.
Williams, whose portrayal of the fierce and indomitable younger daughter of the doomed House Stark has earned her a large and loyal fan base, told Jimmy Kimmel Tuesday she'd decided to do all her own stunt work for the challenge.
The actress is due to appear in the HBO epic fantasy for season five on April 12. She revealed that her character in the books is a leftie, so despite being right-handed herself, Williams made the switch for the series.
"The fans are so die-hard that they were like, 'I wonder if Maisie's going to do it? She's only 12 so she probably won't.'' She told her host on "Jimmy Kimmel Live." "And that was like, 'Challenge accepted!'"
In fact, Williams has become so adept at sword wielding, she's gained the reputation for being the Iñigo Montoya of television -- he's the revenge-fixated swordsman played by Mandy Patinkin in the 1987 popular fantasy romance cult film, "Princess Bride."
Like Montoya, Arya is hell-bent on seeking revenge against the killers of her father, mother and brother, and has sailed across the Narrow Sea to Braavos to perfect the art of the Braavosi Water Dance, initially introduced to her by her sword master, Syrio Forel, in the show's first season.
Williams, who has received critical acclaim for her role in the last 33 episodes of the series, received a Portal Award for Best Supporting Actress in Television in 2012, and she is the youngest actress to have done so. She also won the Teen Award for Best British Actor awarded by BBC Radio 1 the following year.
