‘Game of Thrones’ Director Discusses the Current Tension Between Arya and Sansa

One of the major plot lines to emerge from the current season Game of Thrones is the growing tensions between the Stark sisters, Arya and Sansa. Now, the director of the most recent episode, “Beyond the Wall,” is opening up about the turmoil.

Speaking to Variety, Alan Taylor spoke about the characters and the actresses that played them, Maisie Williams and Sophie Turner, and how they’ve all evolved over the years.

Taylor said, “That was a revelation to me because I was there in Season 1 and 2 when they were kids. They were great at doing what they were doing, but they’ve evolved so much as actresses as well as characters.”

He then explained, “We’re pushing into deeper and darker things, and they’ve really grown to be able to do that. In some of the scenes between them, where it’s really a power play between two matched opponents, you feel the ground shift one way and then shift the other way.”

Finally, Taylor added, “The tension between them, they handle it so beautifully. And it’s still Maisie and Sophie, so when you say ‘Cut,’ they start laughing and dancing and listening to music on their phones.”

Additionally, Taylor shared his views on fans who were scrutinizing what they saw as timeline inconsistencies during “Beyond the Wall.”

“We were aware that timing was getting a little hazy,” Taylor said. “We’ve got Gendry running back, ravens flying a certain distance, dragons having to fly back a certain distance…In terms of the emotional experience, [Jon and company] sort of spent one dark night on the island in terms of storytelling moments.”

He continued, “We tried to hedge it a little bit with the eternal twilight up there north of The Wall. I think there was some effort to fudge the timeline a little bit by not declaring exactly how long we were there. I think that worked for some people, for other people it didn’t.”

Lastly, Taylor told the Variety, “They seemed to be very concerned about how fast a raven can fly but there’s a thing called plausible impossibilities, which is what you try to achieve, rather than impossible plausibilities. So I think we were straining plausibility a little bit, but I hope the story’s momentum carries over some of that stuff.”