Game of Thrones turned Sansa Stark from victim to victor, and her hair kinda tells that same story. As we enter the final Season 8, actress Sophie Turner's blonde hair is protected under a red wig. But for most of the series, her hair has been tortured on par with her character -- starting with just dyeing her naturally blonde hair red, then not washing that dyed red hair so that it would look disheveled when it suited the character. Here's more on that from Turner:
Well, for the first few seasons I was allowed to wash my hair because I was an aristocratic young girl. Towards Season 5 they started asking me to not wash my hair and it was really disgusting. Now I wear I wig so I can wash my hair whenever I want, which is nice. But yes, for a couple of years I was living with pretty greasy hair.
Not only was her unwashed hair gross and greasy, Sophie Turner confirmed that it was also itchy:
Really itchy! Also, we would have the snow machines going so we would have little snow paper particles that would get stuck in the grease. It was disgusting.
That has to distract from the job at some point, dontchathink? Sophie Turner was answering InStyle's question on the rumor that the male actors on Game of Thrones weren't allowed to wash their hair so that it looked dirty and grimy. She was asked if that was the case for her character as well.
Turns out, having a wig in later seasons helped her out of that dirty hair jam. But the only reason she started wearing wigs is because of all the hair dyeing -- not just for Game of Thrones, but also for other roles between seasons. She started dyeing her naturally blonde hair red when she was first cast as Sansa at age 13. Years of that hair torture prompted a rebellion from her own hair, which is kind of fitting for an actress playing Sansa Stark.
Here's what Sophie Turner had told Insider back in November 2018:
A few years ago I was trying to go back from red to blonde, and it destroyed my hair to the point that I had to use a wig for Game of Thrones. They wouldn't let me dye it back red or my hair would've fallen out.
Sophie Turner later clarified that the red dye that she used on Game of Thrones didn't hurt her hair, since they use a great product on set. But she had dyed her hair blonde for another job, and that's what caused the problem.
Many fans definitely noticed the wig change in Season 7. When Sophie Turner had dyed her hair back to blonde and kept it that way, many fans worried that it meant Sansa would by dying that season. Clearly that was not the case. After filming ended for the final Season 8, Turner not only kept her ice blonde hair, she cut it pretty short.
Game of Thrones fans definitely read into hair changes. Remember when Kit Harington was basically stalked everywhere he went after the Season 5 cliffhanger finale for Jon Snow, and his every hair change was interpreted as a spoiler that Jon Snow would live or die? Good times!
Speaking of Kit Harington, though, Sophie Turner told InStyle he probably takes the best care of his hair in real life.
In terms of on-screen hair routines, Sophie Turner said Emilia Clarke normally had the most intensive routine to get Daenerys Targaryen's hair -- because she needed a bald cap, a wig, and intricate wig design. But then the naturally brunette Clarke dyed her own hair platinum blonde. Because of that, Turner said, Clarke didn't have the longest hair routine for the final season of Game of Thrones. Instead, Turner said she herself took longer in Season 8 to play Sansa, probably because the roles were reversed and she did have to wear a wig because she had fried her hair from all the dye jobs.
Maybe Emilia Clarke's hair will rebel for her next project, or maybe it wouldn't dare defy The Mother of Dragons. Either way, it's kind of fitting that Sansa Stark's hair went through a tough journey of its own as we enter the final season -- and this story kinda gives a fun new layer to the side-eye Sansa gives Dany in the first Season 8 teaser.
Game of Thrones Season 8 only has six episodes, but they should all be mini movies. It was recently revealed that the final season premieres on Sunday, April 14 at 9 p.m. ET on HBO. A full trailer is still to come, but the Winterfell teaser showing Sansa, Jon, and Arya has me hoping that Bran as Night King theory really happens. Hey, if we can spend years reading into cast hair changes, we can read into the promos! Here's what else is playing on TV during the busy midseason 2019 schedule.
