Kit Harington Stands by Game of Thrones Finale and Slams Fan Backlash

So, Kit Harington just weighed in (again) on the endlessly controversial Game of Thrones finale—and if you were one of the almost two million people who signed that petition to remake season 8, he is, to put it mildly, not impressed.

Remember That Infamous Petition?

Let's rewind for a second. When Game of Thrones wrapped up in 2019, the outcry was loud enough to hear across Westeros—and probably even your group chat. A giant chunk of the fanbase put together a Change.org petition urging HBO to redo the whole final season 'with competent writers.' By the end, nearly 2 million signatures had piled up.

In case you forgot, season 8 is generally accepted as the runt of the GoT litter. Critics and viewers handed out negative reviews, it tanked the show's usually stellar Rotten Tomatoes scores, and, yeah, it's the only season lacking that shiny Certified Fresh badge.

Kit's Not Minced Words

Now Harington, who you obviously know as Jon Snow (and let's be honest, he barely knew anything but felt it deeply), told The New York Times he was honestly shocked by the backlash—especially the petition. He put it pretty plainly:

'That genuinely angered me. Like, how dare you? Sorry, that's just how I feel. I think it was a level of idiocy that can only come about through social media.'

Not subtle. Harington says the cast and crew went all in for that final season, and he found it tough to see the internet mobilize that way. (FWIW, he said he worked hard—whether you liked Jon's ending or not.)

The Bigger Picture—And The Next Chapters

Quick lightning round: Game of Thrones was steered by showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, inspired by George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire books. Besides Harington, the monster cast included Emilia Clarke, Lena Headey, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Peter Dinklage, Sophie Turner, Maisie Williams, Gwendoline Christie, Iain Glen, Isaac Hempstead Wright, and, honestly, too many others to list here.

Since the (divisive) finish, HBO has doubled down on Westeros:

• House of the Dragon: The first prequel has already been renewed for two more seasons.
• A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: Second GoT prequel is coming, set to premiere January 18, 2026.

Whether you hated, loved, or were just baffled by the ending, everyone seems to agree on one thing: No pop culture event has sent people into such a meltdown in years. Kit's sticking up for the cast and crew, but—judging from fan responses—this debate is probably never going to die.