Why there's so much sexual violence in 'Game of Thrones,' according to a television executive
LONDON -- A top television executive has fended off suggestions that Game of Thrones uses violence against women as character development.
In a discussion panel at Edinburgh International Television Festival, managing director of content at Sky Gary Davey rejected the idea that the show's female characters are subjected to more violence than their male counterparts.
“There is also a lot of violence to men. For anybody who’s watched the show it can be a very violent show," Davey said when questioned specifically about the rape of Sansa Stark in Season 5 of the show.
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"I don’t think the violence against women is particularly highlighted. It is just part of the story. The rape happens, it’s part of the story, it was in the books,” Davey continued.
Season 5 episode 6 of Game of Thrones -- in which Sansa Stark is raped by Ramsay Bolton on their wedding night -- prompted an angry backlash from viewers who deemed the violence "gratuitous." Indeed, US Senator Claire McCaskill called for a boycott of the show, and culture blog The Mary Sue announced it would no longer write about Game of Thrones.
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The backlash to the rape scene also prompted Game of Thrones author George RR Martin to defend the show's sexual violence.
“Rape, unfortunately, is still a part of war today. It’s not a strong testament to the human race, but I don’t think we should pretend it doesn’t exist," Martin told Entertainment Weekly. “I want to portray struggle. Drama comes out of conflict. If you portray a utopia, then you probably wrote a pretty boring book," the author continued.
Gary Davey said that Sky had only received three complaints about the show's sex and violence content, but conceded that the last two seasons had been "pretty intense".
“I think it is bit silly, it is not like sex and violence on TV is a new idea. I feel like I’ve been defending it for most of my adult life. In fact I’m not sure it’s any worse or any better than it’s ever been. And I think part of the issue is context," Davey said.
Topics Game Of Thrones
Rachel Thompson is the Features Editor at Mashable. Rachel's second non-fiction book The Love Fix: Reclaiming Intimacy in a Disconnected World is out now, published by Penguin Random House in Jan. 2025. The Love Fix explores why dating feels so hard right now, why we experience difficult emotions in the realm of love, and how we can change our dating culture for the better.
A leading sex and dating writer in the UK, Rachel has written for GQ, The Guardian, The Sunday Times Style, The Telegraph, Cosmopolitan, Glamour, Stylist, ELLE, The i Paper, Refinery29, and many more.
Rachel's first book Rough: How Violence Has Found Its Way Into the Bedroom And What We Can Do About It, a non-fiction investigation into sexual violence was published by Penguin Random House in 2021.
