House Of The Dragon’s Matt Smith Slams Trigger Warnings

He then specifically mentioned “trigger warnings,” which the Times described as a “tedious modern idea that adults cannot cope with being upset by art.”

If you’re unaware, trigger warnings have become increasingly common for TV shows, with a content advisory often featuring before the start of an episode to warn unassuming viewers of potentially upsetting content ahead, such as suicide or sexual assault.

While most have praised the evolution of trigger warnings in recent years, they have also come under some scrutiny from people who argue that they force spoilers upon the audience.

For example, the shock of a character’s sudden death in Season 1 of The Morning Show was undeniably softened by the suicide advisory that flashed up before the episode began.

The same can be said for a disturbing sexual assault scene in the Netflix series Baby Reindeer, which viewers knew was coming because of the pre-episode trigger warning. 

But rather than criticize them from a spoiler perspective, Matt fears that trigger warnings ultimately end up “policing” narratives.