Award-winning actress Maisie Williams who plays the role of Arya Stark, the young assassin in HBO’s hit series Game of Thrones (GOT), was revealed to have been trained in the Filipino Martial Arts of Arnis for her fight scenes in the Battle of Winterfell.
Williams prepared for her role on GOT Season 8 by training in several techniques and methods including the Filipino combat sport to perfect her skills as a young assassin.
The 22-year-old English actress trained in an adopted version of the Arnis also known as Kali or Eskrima, a Filipino martial arts technique that relies on the use of knives, swords., and improvised weapons.
The discipline is known worldwide as a Filipino style and is used in line of actions in the famous fighting game, TEKKEN 7 where it is also featured as a fighting style of the Filipino-based character, Josie Rizal.
GOT stunt coordinator Rowley Irlam was reported as the one who taught Williams the Filipino martial arts.
In an interview with Inverse, Irlam said, “My team comes from a very wide background of martial artists and weapons experts, so we draw from all styles we possibly can. Filipino stick work is definitely one of them for this piece, as are double sword work.”
Maisie Williams can be seen using the Filipino martial arts style in the big scene of the long-awaited fight on GOT, when her spear broke into two – giving her the chance to show the Arnis fighting style.
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