Maisie Williams finds it "nerve-wracking" her ‘Game of Thrones’ "safety net" is coming to an end.
The 20-year-old actress is shooting the eighth and final series of the HBO fantasy show – in which she portrays Arya Stark – and while she is "excited" about appearing in new projects when it’s all over, she is anxious about leaving the security of guaranteed work.
She said: "I’m currently filming for the final season, which is all a bit weird. It’s been my entire career.
"It’s exciting now that I can do more things like this [‘Early Man’] and really shape my career to things that I want to do, but it’s a little bit nerve-wracking because this has been my safety blanket and safety net."
Maisie found it "strange" working on the show from the age of 12 when her friends were all at school and not in employment, but now she is much older and her pals are in work she admits it is "easier" because she doesn’t see herself as "different" from them.
She said: "I was 12 when I got the part. I juggled both work and school at the same time for a while, but it was such an intense schedule.
"I went through school and GCSEs, but my character only got bigger and bigger so I was home-schooled for a little while and it was a strange little time. It feels ages ago now.
"There was a mixed reaction for sure. But I think when I was younger it was strange because I had a job and was working when I was very young, but it only got easier when I got older because now all of my friends have got jobs, or they are at uni and have responsibilities, so I don’t see my life as any different to that. We go off and we do our work."
The ‘Early Man’ star tries her best to live a "normal life" but finds it tough being on one of the most popular TV series around.
Speaking on ‘Lorraine’, she added: "I really do strive to live as normal life as possible. I can’t always. People always said your life is going to change and I kept thinking, ‘I don’t know that I really want it to.’
"I think when anyone goes and pitches a show they say, ‘This is going to be the biggest show ever,’ but then it actually happened."
In December, Maisie’s co-star Sophie Turner – who plays her on-screen sister Sansa Stark – admitted the show has been both a "blessing and a curse".
She said: "My standards have definitely been raised. It’s a blessing and a curse, ‘Game of Thrones’ being my first job and working with such incredible scripts and such incredible veteran actors, working with the best crew.
"It makes you a bit of a snob, I think. And because it was my first job, the actors on ‘Game of Thrones’ are the people I learned to act from."
Maisie Williams ‘nervous’ about Game of Thrones ending
