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Game of Thrones favourite "very defensive" about divisive final season: "I feel very protective of it still"

“ I feel very defensive of it as a show and as a season.”

Kit Harington as Jon Snow in Game of Thrones. He is wearing armour and a furred shawl while holding a stick. His hair is slicked back and he has a red mark on the side of his face.

Helen Sloan/HBO

Published: Wednesday, 20 May 2026 at 4:21 pm

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Game of Thrones star Kit Harington has defended the final season of the show.

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The fantasy drama series, which was based on the George RR Martin book series, concluded in 2019 with season 8, and prompted some backlash, with many fans claiming that numerous character arcs and storylines were left unresolved.

But during an appearance at Motor City Comic Con in Michigan over the weekend, Harington – who played Jon Snow for all eight seasons – said he feels “very protective” of the final season.

“The reason is, cause I mean, I guess you all saw it from the outside, whereas I saw it from the inside. So I knew, I know how much care and how much love and how much work and how much life went into making it, and the conversations that would have happened and the arguments around the table about what way to go, and what thing to do," he explained.

He added: “It’s not a small process. It’s an incredibly complex and lengthy and intricate process. And I feel that the best people to be able to do that were the people who gave us the first seven seasons, that brought it to TV, that brought George’s thing and brought it to TV."

He continued: “And so my feeling about it is, there may have been mistakes, as we can all decide whether we liked it or not, and what we liked about it, what we didn’t. But there’s no doubt in my head that what they did was the right thing because they’re the people who brought it to us. And I kind of stand by that.

"Like, I feel very defensive of it as a show and as a season. And I think I always will, actually.”

Close-up shot of Kit Harington as Jon Snow in Game of Thrones wearing armour and looking ahead.

Kit Harington as Jon Snow in Game of Thrones. Helen Sloan / HBO

While the mothership series ended in 2018, the Game of Thrones universe has continued to expand, most notably with the prequel show House of the Dragon, which premiered in 2022 and is set to drop a third season this summer.

A second prequel show A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms also premiered earlier this year, with the series serving as an adaptation of Martin’s Tales Of Dunk And Egg.

And there are other Game of Thrones spin-offs in the works, too.

"Apart from The Knight of the Seven Kingdoms and House of the Dragon, there are other Game of Thrones spin-off projects in development. Most are prequels," Martin told Spanish-language site Los siete reinos (AKA The Seven Kingdoms) in November.

He continued: "There are several in development, five or six series, and I'm not developing them alone, I'm working with other people. Yes, there are some sequels."

Read more:

House of the Dragon season 3 will arrive on HBO Max in June. Seasons 1 and 2 are available to stream on Sky and NOW, along with Game of Thrones and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms – find out more about how to sign up for Sky TV.

Add House of the Dragon, Game of Thrones and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms to your watchlist on the Radio Times: What to Watch app – download now for daily TV recommendations, features and more.

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If you’re looking for something else to watch in the meantime, check out our TV Guide and Streaming Guide, or visit our dedicated Fantasy hub. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.

Authors

RadioTimes.com senior trends writer Molly Moss. She is sitting outside wearing a black top, holding a white teacup with a smily face on it to her mouth

Molly MossTrends Writer

Molly Moss is a Trends Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest trends across TV, film and more. She has an MA in Newspaper Journalism and has previously written for publications including The Guardian, The Times and The Sun Online.

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