'Game of Thrones' star Kit Harington opens up on facing 'mental health issues' because of HBO show

Two years after ‘Game of Thrones’ ended, Kit Harington has now opened up on the ‘mental difficulties’ issues that were brought on by the show. The actor revealed that he had to take one year off after the Emmy-winning drama came to an end. 

Harington recently appeared on SiriusXM’s ‘The Jess Cagle Show’ where he said that it was due to the ‘nature’ of the intense and emotional series that ‘directly’ let to his mental health problems.

“I went through some mental health difficulties after Thrones, and during the end of Thrones, to be honest,” Harington told Cagle. “I think it was directly due to the nature of the show and what I had been doing for years.”

The 24-year-old said he decided to take a break after ‘Game of Thrones’ to concentrate on himself and he is happy about his decision. 

“I think I took sort of a break after Thrones where I said, ‘I don’t want to work for a year. I want to really kind of concentrate on myself,’ and I think I’m really happy I did that,” Kit told Cagle. 

Kit Harington played the character of John Snow in ‘Game of Thrones’ which ran upto eight seasons before coming to an end. The actor acknowledged that the show “had a real cultural impact,” which also happens to be one of the reason he fondly looks back on it. Infact, through the course of it he met actress Rose Leslie who he ended up marrying in 2018. 

“My child is a direct result of Game of Thrones. I still have very, very good friends from that show,” said Harington. “It did nothing but wonders for me.”

Just when the highly acclaimed series came to an end in May 2019, it was heavily reported around the same time that Kit had checked himself into a mental health and wellness facility to seek help regarding these issues. 

“Just when I was wanting to come back to work the pandemic hit,” Kit said of moving onward. Recently, the actor filmed an episode of ‘Modern Love’, just for the sake of fun, he said. 

“You don’t have to live in that intense place all the time,” Kit said. “Why don’t you do something that takes the weight off? Why don’t you do something fun?”

Kit Harington will next bee seen in Marvel’s ‘Eternals’ that is slated to hit the screens on November 5.