Sophie Turner refuses to watch new Game of Thrones spin-off, cites 'crazy' anxiety

Sophie Turner may forever be remembered as Sansa Stark, but when it comes to returning to Westeros, even as a viewer, she’s politely sitting this one out.

The actor has revealed that she won’t be tuning into HBO’s upcoming Game of Thrones spin-off A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, and her reason is anxiety.

“If I am totally honest, anything Game of Thrones, I don’t think I can… I can’t even hear the theme tune, it gives me crazy anxiety,” Turner admitted at the red carpet, recently. “I don’t know why.”

This, notably, isn’t coming from a place of bitterness or regret. Quite the opposite. Turner is quick to stress that her time on the original series, where she grew up on screen over eight seasons, was deeply positive. “I had the best time on that show,” she said, underscoring that the emotional response isn’t tied to bad memories, but to how intense and all-consuming the experience was.

For Turner, Game of Thrones wasn’t just another job; it was a formative chapter of her life. She joined the show as a teenager and left it as one of the most recognisable faces on television. However, while the show was a phenomenal success, the last season received brutal criticism for its abrupt pacing, and inability to tie loose ends. In fact, there were viral petitions for a 'remake'.

Still, don’t mistake her absence as indifference. While she won’t be watching A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, which is set decades before the events of Game of Thrones and follows the adventures of Ser Duncan the Tall and his squire Egg, Turner is very much cheering from the sidelines.

“I’m really excited for all the actors on it and I think it will be incredible because it is that universe,” she said. "So, good luck to everyone involved. I won’t be watching it but I’ll be rooting for you.”