Game of Thrones audiences might have cheered in unison during last week’s episode “The Long Night,” but it left series star Kit Harington slightly ticked off.
According to Entertainment Weekly, Harington admits the greatest disappointment came from his character spending most of the 55-day filmed battle in the air, riding a dragon instead of fighting off wights as a grounded soldier, defending Winterfell.
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“I was slightly pissed off I was on a dragon,” Harington said. “It stops me from fighting in a crowd. It’s going to look cool but I wanted, in some ways — just as Jon does — to get back down on the ground. The fact he can fly a dragon means he has to but his place is down there amongst the sword swingers. But that whole episode should be mesmerizing.”
And indeed it was. From an incredible death twist and monumental losses that broke hearts, the approximately 80-minute episode broke an HBO ratings record, according to the network by racking up more than 17 million overnight views and becoming the year’s most-watched episode of scripted television.
However, despite the 32-year-old actor’s frustrations with his character in the third episode of the final season, he adds his favorite is Episode 4, which picks directly after the events of “The Long Night.”
“One of my favorite episodes is four because the characters have seemingly got what they needed,” Harington said. “The world is safe now. They’re celebrating and saying goodbye to lost friends. But as an audience you’re going, ‘This is only episode four, something’s going to happen.’ And that’s the cool thing because I think the characters are aware of this as well. There’s something twisted and uncomfortable about it. It’s so Shakespearian.”
With just three episodes remaining, Harington is definitely looking forward to the freedom that will come with the HBO series being over. In an interview with Esquire, Harington said he is going to be “really relieved” once everyone has seen the ending.
“It’s going to feel like closure and I think that’s going to be incredibly satisfying, if a bit sad,” Harington said.
Of the legacy he hopes to leave behind with Game of Thrones, Harington said it all boils down to the value he has given audiences in the experience that meant the world to him.
“I’d like it to be remembered in the same way that great HBO series are, like The Sopranos or The Wire. Those shows came along and they changed TV. Game of Thrones came along and it was like nothing else.”
With one battle over and another beginning tonight until its series finale May 19, there will be much more to see in the coming weeks.
Game of Thrones airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO.
Photo credit: Helen Sloan/HBO
