14 DAY TRIAL // The problem with having just one hit show or movie is that it tends to make you typecast, which, in turn, is proved to be box office poison. Kit Harington may have won over millions of hearts with his role as Jon Snow on HBO’s “Game of Thrones,” but he’s yet to prove he can carry a movie in theaters.
Early next year, the long-delayed “Seventh Son,” also starring Jeff Bridges and Julianne Moore, will finally be released. Kit has a role in it too and he’s promoting it with a brief but very sweet interview with the British issue of GQ magazine.
Also included is a spread with the handsome actor – because really, who doesn’t like to look at that perfect face and perfect curls?
The “Game of Thrones” curse
Without sounding like he’s complaining, Kit admits that being a part of something as huge as “Game of Thrones” isn’t all roses. Sure, the money, the acclaim, the fame, and everything else are great, but there’s a huge downside to the job, one that no one will mention.
“Game of Thrones is my life, it's my day job, I love it. But honestly, if there is a curse of Thrones, it's a lifetime of having to talk about it,” Kit says.
Well, that, and not being allowed to cut his hair because his Jon Snow has to look the same from one season to another. Because of this, Kit can be seen rocking the same long curls in the critically panned “Pompeii” and the upcoming “Seventh Son.”
He’s spoken before about this restriction from the producers, and it doesn’t sound like he’s feeling any better about it now, after all this time. On the bright side, he will probably not have to worry about that for much longer: word online is that HBO and the producers want to speed up shooting for the series because the younger actors playing children are getting too old to be convincing.
Kit Harington, still struggling to go mainstream
Unlike co-stars Peter Dinklage, Emilia Clarke, or Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Kit is still struggling to capitalize on his “Game of Thrones” fame and go mainstream. He’s done a few movies post-GoT, but none was actually a bona fide hit, one that could give him the ability to carry a movie all on his own.
“Pompeii,” for one, his first project outside GoT, got a lot of media attention, particularly after it was revealed that he’d be playing a gladiator who, as luck would have it, would be shirtless for some time in front of a camera.
The film, also starring Carrie Ann-Moss, Kiefer Sutherland, and Emily Browning, was trashed by critics and barely registered with moviegoers. For Kit’s first major outing, it turned out to be spectacularly unimpressive, especially considering the pre-release hype.
Hopefully, “Seventh Son” will fare better, though there are whispers online that the reason it got pushed back so many times is that it’s a total waste of time and money.
