Sometimes it's hard to remember how obsessed the world was with Game of Thrones, even with successful spinoffs airing throughout the 2026 TV schedule on HBO. Then I hear about how Maisie Williams is reminded of the time she "spoiled" that Arya died during an interview, and it all comes rushing back to me faster than Daenerys' transformation into the Mad Queen.
Williams did a video for Hits Radio UK with Practical Magic 2 co-star Joey King, and while reacting to clips, they saw her now-famous clip on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. The actress pretended that she accidentally revealed Arya died early in the season ahead of its airing, leading to shock from Fallon and the audience. Apparently, King had not seen the series all the way through, as she was shocked by the clip, but Maisie Williams soon gave the context, along with the bonus that people mention it all the time:
It was an April Fools [joke] and, girl, it was a big deal at the time. People actually come up to me in the street and they're like, 'I've never seen Game of Thrones, but I saw when you did that spoiler.'
As of writing, the official video has 31 million views on YouTube. That's not including all the various social media platforms where it's been shared, re-shared, and copied onto fan accounts. People were desperate for any and all spoilers about Game of Thrones, so I'm not surprised to hear a lot of people saw it and still have it in their minds.
Of course, many people were skeptical about the moment even after she ran offstage, and before Jimmy Fallon and Maisie Williams revealed it was all a joke. Game of Thrones was actually bringing in actors to set who weren't involved in the scenes to throw off onlookers reporting on what was happening, so it didn't feel very believable that a lead would let a massive spoiler like that slip out so easily.
I'm also of the opinion that Williams put on a masterclass in selling that she royally screwed up, while Jimmy Fallon is the one who wasn't as convincing. For those who haven't seen it in a while, check out his reaction to the whole thing:
In fairness, I'm sure this was way more effective in pranking the studio audience. I could imagine how bummed I'd be to learn a major spoiler that way, in what would otherwise have been an amazing experience seeing The Tonight Show. Then again, knowing it was April Fools, perhaps I'd be on alert and sense there was something afoot ahead of the moment.
I should also add that it felt like Hollywood went through some pretty significant incidents in which actors dropped big spoilers. Just a couple of years prior, Mark Ruffalo spoiled the ending of Avengers: Infinity War, as did Tom Holland for a theater full of patrons ahead of seeing it for the first time. We're not seeing that happen as much these days, so I'd have to wonder if the bit would hit the same way in 2026 as it did back then.
Maisie Williams isn't involved in any of the Game of Thrones spinoffs at the moment, but readers can see her in Practical Magic 2 right now. I'd love to see Arya Stark return in the future, though the actress made some good points recently about what would have to change for it to happen.
