Kit Harington

Actor

Birth Name: Christopher Catesby Harington

Birth Date: December 26, 1986

Age: 38 years old

Birth Place: Acton, London, England, UK

Known to fans the world over for his iconic role as reluctant hero Jon Snow on the smash hit fantasy series "Game of Thrones" (HBO, 2011-19), Kit Harington was born in London in 1986. He took an interest in acting as a teenager after watching a production of the Samuel Beckett play "Waiting for Godot." The experience inspired him to begin acting regularly in school plays, later studying drama at Worcester Sixth Form College and eventually enrolling in drama school at Central School of Speech and Drama. Harington was still months away from graduating when in 2007, he was cast as Albert in the National Theatre's production of the acclaimed play "War Horse."

The production earned considerable praise and raised the young actor's visibility considerably. He went on to co-star in "Posh" at London's Royal Court Theatre. Shortly thereafter, Harington auditioned for and won the role of Jon Snow. After a lengthy period of shooting and reshooting the pilot, "Game of Thrones" eventually debuted in 2011 and began its steady upward climb as a pop culture phenomenon. Harington would become more and more of a media icon for his association with the character, particularly when he and on-screen love interest Rose Leslie began an off-screen romance, eventually marrying in 2018.

However, even as the show's intense shooting schedule demanded much of his time and its continuity required that he keep his trademark curly hair at a particular length, Harington continued to appear in other projects during his limited time off, starring in the ancient disaster movie "Pompeii" (2014), providing the voice of Eret in the animated sequel "How to Train Your Dragon 2" (2014), and starring alongside Alicia Vikander in the period romance "Testament of Youth" (2014). He also appeared in the Western thriller "Brimstone" (2016) with Dakota Fanning and starred as his own ancestor, historical revolutionary Robert Catesby, in the historical mini-series recounting Britain's infamous Gunpowder Plot, "Gunpowder" (BBC, 2017-2017). Harington also reprised the voice acting role of Eret for "How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World" (2019).

After "Game of Thrones" came to its monumental conclusion in 2019, Harington signed onto another epic franchise when he was cast in the role of Dane Whitman in the Marvel movie "The Eternals" (2020). He also returned to the stage, appearing in Sam Shepard's "True West" on London's West End.