Kit Harington recently opened up to GQ Australia about filming the eighth and final season of Game of Thrones, an experience that pushed him and his costars to their limits both mentally and physically.
“The last season of Thrones, seemed to be designed to break us. Everyone was broken at the end,” Harington explained. “I don’t know if we were crying because we were sad it was ending or if we were crying because it was so f–king tiring.”
“We were sleep deprived. It was like it was designed to make you think, ‘Right, I’m f–king sick of this,'” he continued. “I remember everyone walking around towards the end going, ‘I’ve had enough now. I love this, it’s been the best thing in my life, I’ll miss it one day—but I’m done.'”
Harington has played Jon Snow for almost a decade and noted that he was eager to complete filming on the massively popular HBO series and spend time with his friends and family.
“I think people who don’t work in film or TV don’t realize quite how disorientating it is being away from home all the time,” he said. “The process of going to work, having a day with your colleagues, coming back to your family, cooking, having stuff in the fridge…it sounds odd to say, but it’s the thing I’m looking forward to most. After nine years I’ll be at home. In one place. Static.”
Harington recently wed his Thrones costar, actress Rose Leslie. The pair fell in love on the small screen and off.
“A lot of people meet their other halves at work. Our work just happened to be this iconic TV show,” he said. “It dawned on me, recently, and I have no idea if we will, but say me and Rose do have children. They’ll know. They’ll be able to see the genesis of their parents getting together. Which is quite a wonderful thought, really.”
“I thank the show for everything. But more than anything else, I thank it for introducing me to her,” Harington said.
Season eight won’t air until April, but HBO recently released some details about the prequel series. While it was revealed in October that Naomi Watts would lead the series, the network just announced that S.J. Clarkson will direct and produce the pilot. Other series regulars will include Denise Gough, Jamie Campbell Bower, Sheila Atim, Ivanno Jeremiah, Georgie Henley, Alex Sharp and Toby Regbo.
The prequel series has been described as recounting “the world’s descent from the golden Age of Heroes into its darkest hour. And only one thing is for sure: from the horrifying secrets of Westeros’ history to the true origin of the white walkers, the mysteries of the East to the Starks of legend… it’s not the story we think we know.”
