Game of Thrones star Maisie Williams admits she struggled to fit in at school and in the 'grown up world'

Maisie Williams as Arya Stark in Game of Thrones. Photo / Supplied.

Maisie Williams spent "far too much time" feeling like she didn't fit in.

The 22-year-old actress shot to fame playing Arya Stark in Game of Thrones and though she initially tried to juggle her education with filming, she eventually quit school to focus on her career. And though she is very "comfortable" with her life, she didn't feel like she belonged either with her class mates or in the "grown up world".

"At first, I stayed in school and tried to juggle both lives like Hannah Montana," she explained.

"When I was about 15, I decided to leave school because I realised I wanted to focus fully on this opportunity. I spent a lot of time on film sets pretending to be really grown up.

"I'm very confident and comfortable in my life, but recently I've realised I spent far too much time in a world where I was determined to be someone else.

"I really did like school, but I also felt like I didn't fit in there because I felt like a grown up, but then in the grown up world I also felt like I didn't fit in because I didn't know anything about life yet. So now I'm like, 'What now? Am I a grown up or am I a child?'"

Williams in a scene from the final season of Game of Thrones. photo / Supplied.

Maisie initially immersed herself "heavily" into the world of the show but then realised she needed to take a "step away" and have her own life in order to stay sane.

Speaking to Kiernan Shipka for Tings magazine, she said: "I was really excited in the beginning and wanted to involve myself heavily in this new life. Then in between shooting and going to school, I started to go to all of these conventions.

"So in between shooting I'd do those conventions, and then I'd go back to shooting. Then I started getting recognised on the street and that's when I decided I needed to take a step away.

"Finding that balance is difficult, but ultimately I think it was important for me to have my own personal life away from being an actor and being Arya Stark. When I was able to take a step back, that's when I felt the most sane."