The Final Season Of ‘Game Of Thrones’ Is All About The Women, According To Sophie Turner

All men must die ... but luckily, there's still plenty of strong women to take their place in Westeros and the Seven Kingdoms. According to a new interview with several of the show's female stars, the women of Game of Thrones will be "key players" in the final season, with some cast members teasing that it might be a queen who ends up on the Iron Throne in the end.

Speaking with British Vogue, Sophie Turner — who plays Sansa Stark on the fantasy saga — addressed the way the final season of the show will take on critics who have attacked the show for its approach to sexual violence against women. "There are some people who make comments like, 'It’s a misogynistic show because all these women are getting raped,'" Turner explained to the magazine. However, she said, in the end, "Most of the people coming out on top are women." So, it sounds like Westeros might end up with a queen when all the dust clears in Season 8.

Her costar and best friend, Maisie Williams, who plays Arya Stark, agreed with her statement, adding, "I’d say the key players this season are all female, which is why it’s so amazing we’re doing this shoot today."

According to Cersei Lannister herself, Lena Headey, the show's creators, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, have planned to take down the patriarchal society of Westeros from the very beginning. "That’s why they could shoulder all of the criticism," Headey told Vogue. "They knew what was coming and what they had in store for these women."

Unfortunately, the female characters' fight for power in Season 8 meant that the actors had a particularly difficult time filming all of the dramatic twists and turns over the nearly year-long shoot. Recalling one major fight — which filmed for a whopping 55 nights outside before continuing in a nearby studio — Williams confessed that the final season was the most grueling of the series.

"All the training in the world couldn’t have prepared me for the amount of stamina you needed for these night shoots," Williams explained. "It gets to the point where it’s four o’clock in the morning and you’re looking around like, 'This is ridiculous. What are we doing?'"

Williams didn't share any more details about this epic, Game of Thrones battle, but fans already know that she won't be the only Stark lady fighting to defend Winterfell. In a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Turner revealed that Sansa will suit up in armor for the first time in the final season. "This is the first time I’ve had armor," she revealed of the outfit, which EW described as a "jet-black ensemble made of thick leather or similar material."

"We [liked] the idea of it being very protective and she buttons herself up," Turner explained. “I wanted her to have a bit of armor and be a bit more warrior like. She’s like the warrior of Winterfell."

With the Stark Sisters ready to take down an army of White Walkers and Cersei determined to hold on to the Iron Throne no matter what comes her way, it really does seem as if the final season of Game of Thrones will be all about the Women of Westeros.