House of The Dragon showrunners showed Aemma Arryn’s death scene to ‘as many women as possible’ to check if it was too violent

Game of Thrones was known for displaying some of the most gruesome death scenes in television history – from Oberyn Martell’s head getting crushed to Joffrey suffocating to poison, and many more. And it seems the prequel House of The Dragon is upholding the tradition, featuring an extremely brutal and bloody birthing sequence in the first episode itself. Showrunners Ryan Condal and Miguel Sapochnik knew the effect it would have on the audience, so they took steps to ensure it had the right kind of implication.

Speaking to Insider, Sapochnik revealed, “We did make a point of showing it to as many women as possible and asked the very question: ‘Was this too violent for you?’ And unanimously, the response was ‘no.’ Often the response was ‘If anything, it needs to be more.'”

Sapochnik explains the feedback from women was important to highlight the lack of choices women had during medieval times. “We shouldn’t be shying away from this thing that’s happened because it’s raising a point that seems to hit a real trigger for women, which is this idea of choice,” he said. “She doesn’t get to choose. She’s effectively murdered by her husband. And that is a good indication of the state of play in this world that we’re inhabiting.”

Sapochnik added, “As we stated earlier in the episode, the birthing bed is almost a battlefield. You have 50% chance of survival. And so it seemed like this was an appropriate time to draw that parallel visually between the male and the female struggle. One’s fighting on the battlefield, the other’s fighting for survival — sometimes from the person closest to her.”

What did you think of the brutal birthing sequence? Tell us in the comments below!

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