Kit Harington is getting ready to return to Game of Thrones with his new Jon Snow spinoff series, but before he does, he’s reflecting on how his character departed George R.R. Martin’s fantasy world. At the Game of Thrones Convention on Sunday, Harington, who played Jon Snow for all eight seasons of the immensely famous HBO show, reflected on his character’s final moments on the show (Dec. 11).
Harington stated his character “got off lightly” after Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) was slain by Jon in the last season of Game of Thrones, despite being sentenced to live on the Wall in the North after Daenerys’ death.
“If you asked him, I think he’d feel he got off lightly,” Harington told Entertainment Weekly. “At the end of the show, when we discover him in that cell, he’s getting ready to be beheaded, and he wants to be.” He’s finished. The fact that he travels to the Wall is both a blessing and a curse.”
“He’s gotta go back up to the place with all this history and live his life thinking about how he killed Dany, and living his life thinking about Ygritte (Rose Leslie) dying in his arms, and living his life thinking about how he hung Olly (Brenock O’Connor), and living his life thinking about all of this trauma,” he continued.
“So I think where we leave him at the conclusion of the program, there’s always this sensation of like… I believe we desired a small smile to indicate that everything is well. He’s not doing well.”
Martin confirmed the Jon Snow spinoff in June, shortly after The Hollywood Reporter first reported it. The author said that the show’s working title was Snow, but he didn’t offer anything else about the concept.
“There’s not much more I can tell you, at least not until HBO gives me the go-ahead,” Martin wrote, but added, “Yes, it was Kit Harrington who brought the concept to us.” I can’t tell you who the writers/showrunners are because it hasn’t been approved for release yet… But Kit also brought in his own crew, and they are fantastic.”
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