A few friends showed up uninvited during Kit Harington's first time hosting Saturday Night Live for a monologue sure to please Game Of Thrones fans.
The actor best known for playing Jon Snow - one of the best and worst characters on the hit HBO show - showed up at Studio 8H without the beard and long locks he's become known for (and, for that matter, without a sword made of Valyrian steel). "I've shaved my beard, so this is a ore prepubescent Jon Snow," the actor, who looked downright carefree in his beige suit and black shirt underneath, said.
Harington made clear that though he enjoyed portraying Jon Snow for eight seasons of the show that pulled him from the depths of appearing in films like Silent Hill: Revelation 3-D and Pompeii ("which, somehow, proved more of a disaster than the event it was based on," Harington said), he's ready for the next chapter of his career. Most of all, he doesn't really wish to talk about the show these days.
"I'm very grateful for all the fans, but I gotta say, after 10 years, I'm really excited to see what comes next," he said.
Unfortunately for the British actor, some confused Harry Potter fans, overeager Game Of Thrones fans and several of his co-stars - including his wife - happened to be in the crowd, armed not with fiery dragons but with burning questions.
Emilia Clarke, the actress who portrays Daenerys Targaryen, popped up, sporting a short brunette hairdo instead of the long, silver strands of Daenerys. This change from her famous character was a bit less surprising once she admitted that she didn't remember much about the show. That's why, in fact, she was badgering Harington during his big moment.
"Can you just give us a general sense of how it ends?" she asked. When Harington pointed out that she's in the show and, as a result, should know how it ends, she added, "I forgot. I mean it's been so damn long since the last season. Plus, a lot of my scenes are talking to a dragon, which is just a tennis ball on a green pole. So I have no idea what's actually happening."
"Well, I'm sorry but you'll just have to wait and see in a couple of weeks," Harington responded.
Clarke had one more question, though, saying, "Hey, do you remember in Season 6 when we had sex? Did you know they filmed that?"
Clarke wasn't the only one reacting to the end of the show, despite Harington's comedic gig. John Bradley, better known as Jon Snow's best friend Samwell Tarly, appeared to ask what happens to him on the show. "They only let me see two pages of the script," he explained.
More importantly, he was curious if the two will still be friends now that the show is ending. Harington assured him they would - but wouldn't commit to a date to get together.
"You've changed," huffed Bradley.
Pete Davidson, playing a ridiculous looking version of the Night King, came to agree with Bradley after saying, "I just need to know, do people hate me? Because it really feels like they hate me."
"Well, I mean, yeah," Harington responded. "You're the Night King. Everyone you touch turns into an ice zombie."
"Oh, OK. My bad. But hey, do you think after this, we'll still be friends?" Davidson-as-Evil-Incarnate wondered.
"We were never friends," Harington responded.
"Samwell Tarly was right! You have changed," Davidson's Night King said, before stomping off.
The most electrifying moment, though, was when Rose Leslie appeared. Most Game Of Thrones fans likely remember that Leslie portrayed a wildling named Ygritte, to whom Jon Snow loses his virginity. Ygritte's tragic story line resulted in her no longer being in the show, but (as many fans might not know) Leslie and Harington ended up falling in love in the real world and getting married.
Leslie said she needed to ask something, but Harington preemptively shut her down, saying he can't tell even her how Game Of Thrones ends.
"Oh no, I don't care about that. I'm not a nerd," she responded. "My question is, 'What are we going to do for money now? I mean, we didn't save anything, and you kept telling me, 'I'm the King of the North. We can order Uber Eats every night.'"
"Wait," she added. "One more question: How quickly can you grow back that beard?"
Kit is NOT revealing how @GameofThrones ends. #SNL pic.twitter.com/cVyUmFbsGT
— Saturday Night Live - SNL (@nbcsnl) April 7, 2019
The bit was amusing for fans of the HBO show, but those who stayed out of Westeros for the past decade might have been disappointed. This was, after all, the first of two Game Of Thronessketches in this week's episode.
(c) 2019, The Washington Post
