Game of Thrones Actor Reveals Another Reason The Ending Was Was Rushed

Highlights

Harington explains the rushed Game of Thrones finale was partly due to an exhausted cast.
Fans express disappointment in the Game of Thrones finale, deemed one of the worst TV series endings.
Some cast members defend the final season, while others acknowledge mistakes were made in story choices.

Game of Thrones concluded its run with a final season largely panned for rushing storylines and character arcs, resulting in an unsatisfying ending. Now, Jon Snow actor Kit Harington has offered an explanation for the hastily produced final season that fans may find understandable.

Game of Thrones was once applauded for its compelling writing, superb performances, and epic spectacle. However, Game of Thrones seasons 7 and 8 were shortened from the standard 10 episodes to 7 and 6, respectively. The results were decisions that felt out of character for certain fan favorites, like Emilia Clarke’s Daenerys Targaryen, without the proper time to develop story arcs. Most fans believe the final Game of Thrones seasons were rushed because showrunners David Benioff and DB Weiss wanted to focus on their now-canceled Star Wars project. While this may be correct, Harington says the cast also factored into the decision to end the series quickly.

House Of The Dragon Season 2 Finale Upsets Fans With ‘Nothing’ Storyline

Fans expressed their disappointment over the underwhelming finale for House of the Dragon season 2, labeling it as poorly executed.

During an interview with GQ, Harington reflected on the response to the Game of Thrones finale, seemingly admitting he was perplexed by fan reactions. “I went in and everyone loved Thrones; I came out and everyone hated it,” Harington said. “I thought, What the fuck is going on?!” While Harington acknowledged that fans may be right to criticize the final Game of Thrones season for being rushed, he said there may been no other choice than to end the series as fast as they did because the cast was exhausted by that point:

“I think if there was any fault with the end of
Thrones
, is that we were all so fucking tired, we couldn’t have gone on longer. And so I understand some people thought it was rushed and I might agree with them. But I’m not sure there was any alternative. I look at pictures of me in that final season and I look exhausted. I look spent. I didn’t have another season in me.”

The final Game of Thrones episode is singled out for being among the worst TV series finales. Some creative decisions baffled or disappointed some fans, including Jon Snow killing Daenerys Targaryen and Bran Stark becoming the King of Westeros dispute being absent for the fifth season. Harington acknowledged the fan reactions to the Game of Thrones series finale as valid, admitting mistakes may have been made:

Everyone is entitled to their opinion. I think there were mistakes made, story-wise, towards the end maybe. I think there were some interesting choices that didn’t quite work.

Harington is not the only Game of Thrones alum to acknowledge that the series may have failed to meet expectations. Arya Stark actress Maisie Williams revised her Game of Thrones ending assessment. Roughly four years ago, Williams expressed that she was happy with Arya Stark’s ending and described the Game of Thrones finale as “a beautiful end to a decade” of her life. Two years later, Williams said she rewatched the series and admitted that it “definitely fell off at the end” despite a strong start. Lord Varys actor Conleth Hill and Twyin Lannister actor Charles Dance also expressed disappointment with how Game of Thrones ended.

Of course, not all cast members hated the Game of Thrones finale. Grey Worm actor Jacob Anderson defended the Game of Thrones finale, saying, “I didn’t have strong feelings about the finale. I think everybody assumes that we all hated it. That’s not the case at all.” Of course, nothing these actors say will likely change fans’ opinions and there’s no going back, despite some calling on HBO to remake the Game of Thrones ending. So, all fans can do is hope lessons were learned when it comes time to conclude the Game of Thrones prequel, House of the Dragon.

Game of Thrones is available on Max.

Game of Thrones

Based on the Song of Ice and Fire book by George R.R. Martin, Game of Thrones tells the sprawling story of warring families in Westeros. This includes the Starks, the Lannisters, the Baratheons, and the Targaryens. Along with human conflicts, the re-emergence of dragons and an undead enemy from beyond the Wall also threatens Westeros.