Kit Harington recalls ‘horrifically romantic’ time on ‘Thrones’ set
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Kit Harington: ‘It might be painful to watch’ ‘Thrones’ prequel
Actor Kit Harington has turned in his bulky black fur coat and brooding “Game of Thrones” character, Jon Snow, for a lighter role in the new season of “Modern Love,” based on The New York Times column about real-life love stories. (Aug. 1)
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Fair warning, rom-com fans: “Modern Love” Season 2 might give you PTSD.
Amazon Prime’s anthology comedy series, created by John Carney (“Sing Street”) and based on the New York Times column, features Anna Paquin, Minnie Driver and Garrett Hedlund in its second season (now streaming). The third episode follows two attractive strangers named Michael (Kit Harington) and Paula (Lucy Boynton), who strike up a conversation on a train in Ireland, which is preparing for a two-week lockdown at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Being hopeless romantics, they forego exchanging phone numbers and simply decide to meet again at the same train station two weeks later, once the shutdown is “over.”
As we all know by now, the pandemic was hardly a blip on the calendar, and Michael and Paula debate among their families whether it’s safe to break quarantine so they can go meet their potential future sweetheart.
Harington, who starred as Jon Snow for eight seasons of “Game of Thrones,” recalls feeling similarly naive in the lockdown’s early days.
“I remember saying to people, ‘Now look, it won’t be two weeks, but it might be a month and a half.’ Like I knew,” he says with a laugh. “It’s kind of amazing looking back to that time and seeing the ignorance we were all walking around in. It’s not like we weren’t armed with the facts: We were told that this could happen, and yet we still lived in denial of it.”
Harington, 34, and his wife, “Thrones” co-star Rose Leslie, spent much of quarantine at their country home in the United Kingdom, where he set up a mini-golf course in their garden and helped care for their infant son. The London native talks more about romance, fatherhood and the divisive reactions to the 2019 “Thrones” series finale:
Question: There’s a moment when Michael tells his brother (Jack Reynor) that Paula is studying to be a medievalist, to which he replies, “So, like ‘Game of Thrones’ and stuff?” Whose idea was it to include that joke?
Kit Harington: That was one of the main reasons I did this piece. That line, I was like, “I’ve gotta do this now.” (Writer-director) John Carney wrote that. He said to me, “Should we drop that? Is that awkward for you?” And I was like, “No, it’s kind of hilarious and meta and weird.” That’s what John does so well, those strange, absurd moments. And I think that should get a big laugh from people, because on one level, you’ve got (Michael) looking at Jack’s character going, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen that show.” At the same time, his expression could also mean, “Don’t even dare talk about that to me.”
Q: Did you and Rose have a “meet-cute” on the “Thrones” set?
Harington: Oh, I’m sure lots of people feel this about their romances. Our whole early romance felt like one long meet-cute. We were on an amazing TV show that was going global; we were in Iceland playing lovers. The whole thing felt horrifically romantic. So it’s nice doing something like this where it’s two people meeting for the first time and you can transport yourself to what butterflies felt like.
Q: What was the moment you realized she was “the one?”
Harington: I won’t go into it, but I just remember thinking, “God, I’m in trouble here. This could be trouble.” Wonderful trouble, that is.
Q: Congratulations on becoming a dad. What was it like navigating new parenthood in quarantine?
Harington: There were scary bits about it. Rose went into labor during lockdown, and you’re always worried you’re not going to be by their side as a birth partner. But luckily, I was and you get through (it). Hopefully, I’ll be able to tell my son about it when he’s old enough to understand and tell him he was a COVID baby, as they’re called.
Q: Two years later, how do you feel about the strong reactions people had to the “Thrones” finale?
Harington: There’s definitely a pain when people responded in certain ways to it, but I don’t know what I was expecting. It’s very difficult to finish anything that is that long. People will always have their opinions and feel let down or disagree with certain things. I’m still very proud of the whole thing. My process since finishing that show is learning to be proud of what we did. The fact that some people were upset with the ending just shows how much it impacted people, and that’s a wonderful thing. I’m still processing it all, but I’m proud of it.
Q: With all the “Thrones” spinoffs and prequels in the works, is there any world where Jon Snow could return?
Harington: (There have been) no discussions, God knows. I’m really looking forward to seeing “House of the Dragon.” I’m a really big fan of Miguel (Sapochnik, an executive producer and director), who’s doing that. I think there’s going to be a rawness about watching it for me, feeling so emotionally attached to that series. But I’m going to watch it because I want to support his work and I wish the people continuing that story the best of luck.