Sophie Turner Reacts to Claims That She's a Bad Mom Who Parties Too Much
'A picture might tell a thousand words, but it's not my story,' Turner said.
Sophie Turner is setting the record straight. In a new interview with Vogue UK, the Game of Thrones actress got candid about the intense scrutiny she faces as a celebrity mom. The 28-year-old, who divorced from husband Joe Jonas last year, addressed the claims that she's an inattentive mother who would rather hit the clubs than care for her kids.
It was reported last September that Jonas had decided to file for separation after four years together. The couple released a joint statement on Instagram in which they announced that they had "mutually decided" to end their marriage "amicably." Following that, the narrative surrounding their breakup began to become increasingly unpleasant.
Tabloids and gossip websites circulated rumors about Turner neglecting her maternal duties. Images of Turner at a wrap party in Birmingham, England, for Joan, ITV's six-part drama based on the true story of Britain jewel thief, Joan Hannington, bolstered the speculation that she was a lousy mother. During this time, her pop star husband was portrayed as the adoring father, photographed by the paparazzi as he diligently cared for his two daughters.
"I mean, those were the worst few days of my life," Turner told Vogue UK. "I remember I was on set, I was contracted to be on set for another two weeks, so I couldn't leave. My kids were in the States and I couldn't get to them because I had to finish Joan. And all these articles started coming out…"
She added, "It hurt because I really do completely torture myself over every move I make as a mother – mum guilt is so real! I just kept having to say to myself, 'None of this is true. You are a good mum and you've never been a partier.'"
Turner couldn't discuss certain aspects of her marriage breakdown during the interview due to legal reasons, such as whether she was surprised by the divorce announcement or whether she was "aware" he would file as Jonas's side suggested. Her claim to the outlet is that she learned of it through the media, just like everyone else, when she said the hit pieces began.
"I mean, it's unfathomable the amount of people that will just make s— up and put it up based on a picture, she said. "A picture might tell a thousand words, but it's not my story. It felt like I was watching a movie of my life that I hadn't written, hadn't produced, or starred in. It was shocking. I'm still in shock."
As the lead in Joan, Turner credits the show's crew and cast for helping her endure the commotion. "They were my emotional support people, my family," she says. I really don't know what I would have done without them." Executive producer Ruth Kenley-Letts witnessed the aftermath and described Turner as an "elegant powerhouse of a human being."
"It was absolutely shocking what happened to her. The paparazzi were relentless. I remember we were shooting in Spain, on the side of a mountain in the middle of nowhere, and they managed to get a photo of Sophie," she told the outlet. "I just couldn't believe the lies that I read, that she was somehow out partying. And I knew they were lies, because I was with her. I'd been with her for five months straight."
The split between Jonas and Turner took a contentious turn when, just weeks after Jonas initiated divorce proceedings in September 2023, Turner filed a lawsuit seeking to have their two U.S.-born daughters permitted to relocate to England. This move came after the formerly married couple had officially registered England as their permanent residence that past April. The legal battle over the children's living situation was temporarily resolved in October when Jonas and Turner reached an interim custody arrangement.