Sophie Turner’s GOT Bootcamp: From Sex Ed to Industry Savvy
Okay, so here’s a wild take: Sophie Turner basically got her real-world birds-and-bees lessons from an HBO fantasy epic. The actress who slipped into Sansa Stark’s leather boots at 14 didn’t just learn how to scheme in Winterfell—she picked up her entire crash course in sex education and on-set etiquette on Game of Thrones.
During the July 8 episode of Nick Grimshaw and Angela Hartnett’s Dish podcast, Turner laughed that “I definitely got my sex education from that show. More than enough.” Between steamy nudity calls and jaw-dropping plot twists—hello, Littlefinger’s manipulations and Ramsay’s horrors—she says the cast delivered an unintended but thorough birds-and-the-bees module. The 29-year-old went on to call GoT “the best acting class I’ve ever had,” since she skipped formal drama school and instead learned the craft from Emmy winners and scene-stealing veterans like Peter Dinklage and Michelle Fairley.
Turner, now balancing life as a mom to daughter Willa, 4, and Delphine, 2, with ex-husband Joe Jonas, stresses that the show’s lessons extended far beyond camera blocking. “Everything I learned from Game of Thrones—and a bit from my parents—informed my entire life in terms of business decisions, etiquette on set, how to act,” she told Variety last September. From negotiating contracts to handling PR curveballs, the High-Spirited actress treats her GOT tenure as a masterclass in industry savvy.
Despite her character’s epic journey ending in 2019, Turner admits she still mentally checks in on Sansa’s next moves. “I do wonder often what would she be doing now—where would she be five years later, what would she be doing?” she mused on Dish. And though prequel House of the Dragon keeps Westeros alive, she’s only open to a true comeback if the original cast and crew reunite—no half-measures. “Otherwise, I wouldn’t go back, and that would just be season nine,” she told Variety, underlining her commitment to authenticity over a cash-grab reunion.
Beyond the personal growth and on-screen education, Turner’s story also reminds us how the spark for Game of Thrones began. Back in the mid-2000s, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss made the pitch to George R.R. Martin, and as they say in Fire Cannot Kill a Dragon (James Hibberd, 2020), their legwork convinced HBO to bet big. Fast forward to today, and Turner’s remarks on sex ed are a cheeky footnote in a franchise that taught everyone from cast to fans some unforgettable life lessons.
Anyway, that’s the tea. Take it, leave it, or file it away for your next trivia night—just don’t say you weren’t schooled.
Sources: Celebrity Storm and E! Online, Dish Podcast (Nick Grimshaw & Angela Hartnett), Variety, Fire Cannot Kill a Dragon (James Hibberd)
Attribution: Creative Commons Licensed
