Game of Thrones Star Hannah Waddingham Shares Traumatic Experience Filming Disturbing Scene

Former Game of Thrones actress Hannah Waddingham recently opened up about the distressing experience she had while filming a stunt for the popular fantasy series.

She described it as one of the worst days of her life.

In the fifth season of the show, Hannah portrayed the character Septa Unella and was involved in a scene where her character was subjected to torture.

Speaking on Collider Ladies Night, she revealed that during the filming process, she was subjected to waterboarding for a grueling 10 hours.

This left her physically and emotionally drained in the aftermath.

Initially, Hannah's character was supposed to be raped, but this was changed at the last minute to a torture scene.

She explained that the decision to change the scene was influenced by the numerous complaints the show had received regarding the rape of Sophie Turner's character, Sansa Stark.

Upon arriving on set in Belfast, Hannah was surprised when she was given a wetsuit.

It was then revealed that the scene would involve actual waterboarding.

She was strapped to a wooden table with large straps for the entirety of the 10-hour filming session.

Hannah described it as the worst day of her life, second only to childbirth.

Hannah also mentioned that her co-star Lena Headey, who played Cersei Lannister, was uncomfortable pouring liquid on her face for such an extended period.

Despite their discomfort, they both questioned whether they should continue with the scene or back out, feeling that it wasn't what they had signed up for.

After the long day of filming, Hannah recalled a conversation with director Miguel Sapochnik.

When he asked if she was okay, she replied with a simple “not really.”

Sapochnik then informed her that the crew had been saying that she was being waterboarded.

Hannah's response was a sarcastic acknowledgment of the obvious.

That night, when she returned to her hotel, Hannah discovered that her voice was hoarse from screaming and that she had bruises.

She also developed a fear of water due to the experience of being waterboarded for such an extended period.

Despite enduring 10 hours of torture, only one minute and 37 seconds of the footage made it into the final cut of the show.

HuffPost UK reached out to HBO for comment but has yet to receive a response regarding the matter.

Since her time on Game of Thrones, Hannah Waddingham has appeared in the Netflix series s** Education and stars alongside Jason Sudeikis in the US comedy Ted Lasso.