Epic fantasy drama series Game of Thrones was the talk of the town when it was on air during its 10-year run on HBO. It has been six years since the show's finale aired and there's still that one scene that continues to rake up controversy.
Case in point, Sansa Stark's rape by her sadistic husband Ramsay Bolton in the sixth episode of the season five of the show which aired in 2015.
Sansa Stark, played by Sophie Turner, was sexually assaulted by Ramsay Bolton (played by Iwan Rheon), on their wedding night as her former childhood friend, Theon Greyjoy (Alfie Allen), was forced to watch.
The graphic and brutal scene prompted outrage from a section of viewers who found it offensive as the makers went overboard in depicting violence against women. What also enraged fans was that the storyline didn't mirror Sansa Stark's arc in George RR Martin's Game of Thrones books, which served as the source material for the series.
Ten years later, Sophie Turner stands by the scene. In a recent interview to Flaunt magazine, the actor said, "I did feel - and still do - that Game of Thrones shone a light on things that many people were like 'Oh god, you can't show that kind of thing' - and I understand it can be triggering - I totally understand that point of view.
"But I did feel we were actually doing a lot of justice to women and the fight women have had to fight for hundreds of thousands of years - the patriarchy, being treated as objects and being constantly sexually assaulted - I don't think there's one woman I know who hasn't had a form of that."
The 29-year-old actor, who was in her late teens when she filmed the shocking scene, said men still don't believe her when she says that nearly every woman she's met has experienced some form of harassment.
"And, that's because we don't (talk about) it enough - we shy away from it. I think if Game of Thrones came out today, we'd definitely put some trigger warnings on there. But I'm really proud to have been a part of Game of Thrones where they didn't shy away from showing atrocities that happened to women back then. I feel proud to have been part of the conversation," she added.
What was somewhat reassuring to watch Sansa Stark take revenge on Ramsay Bolton in the ninth episode of Game of Thrones season six.
This is not the first time that Sophie Turner has slammed critics over the controversial rape scene. In 2017, the actor asked if critics treat sexual assault and rape as taboo, how would people have the strength to report such crimes.
