Every star who auditioned for the role of Game of Thrones' Jon Snow

HBO’s hit fantasy series, Game of Thrones, premiered in 2011, and it didn’t take much time to become a cultural phenomenon. Setting new standards for television shows to get their audience captivated with the unique narrative, Game of Thrones broke and redefined many new rules of TV. Therefore, it might not be a surprise to hear that numerous actors wanted to be a part of the genre-breaking TV show.

For instance, several actors were interested in portraying the popular character of Jon Snow, which was ultimately played by Kit Harington. For us, it might be difficult to think of any other actor portraying this beloved character, as we have seen how brilliantly Harington has performed the role.

His stoic yet compassionate demeanor and his protectiveness toward his family and friends made him one of the popular characters from the series. Furthermore, Harington was one of the only actors who was actually called to audition for the role by the show’s producers.

Here’s a list of actors who auditioned to play the role of Jon Snow in Game of Thrones, and some of the names would definitely surprise you.

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Every star who auditioned for the role of Game of Thrones' Jon Snow

1) Nicholas Hoult

Nicholas Hoult is a known name in Hollywood. His role in X-Men might have given him the early fame, but with his exceptional acting in The Great, Mad Max: Fury Road, and most recently Nosferatu, he has helped carve his own path and name in the ever-growing industry.

Even though he might play many popular characters, Hoult missed some chances in other roles. From Batman to Top Gun: Maverick, he has missed out on several roles. Surprisingly, Jon Snow also happens to be one of those roles. In a 2019 interview with Page Six, Hoult talked about auditioning for the Game of Thrones role and said:

"I think I auditioned for Jon Snow. I remember it because I was filming ‘Clash of the Titans’ at the time, so I had long hair extensions.”

He continued:

“They gave me a ponytail and also a very patchy fake tan. So I remember being like, ‘This is probably not what they’re hoping for,’ and it obviously wasn’t.”

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2) Alfie Allen

Another surprising actor who auditioned for the role of the Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch is none other than Alfie Allen, who portrayed the character of Theon Greyjoy in Game of Thrones. It might be really difficult to imagine him as Jon Snow, as we have seen him play Theon and show the character’s arc so accurately, making Theon’s character have one of the best character arcs in the fantasy series.

In the HBO series’s Blu-ray episode commentary of season 5, co-producer David Benioff shared that Allen actually came for the role of Jon Snow, but they wanted him to be some other character. In the commentary of one of the episodes, Benioff said:

"The odd thing is, Alfie [Allen] originally came in to read for Jon Snow. And we thought well he's great ... he's not quite Jon Snow."

He continued:

"And then we thought wait a second, Theon! And he read for Theon and he was just incredible.”

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3) Joe Dempsie

Joe Dempsie played Gendry, one of the illegitimate sons of Robert Baratheon in Game of Thrones, and also one of the beloved characters. He might be one of the only characters who displayed characteristics that might have made it easy for us to see him as Jon Snow, as he is also one of the actors who auditioned for the role before getting to play Gendry.

During his appearance at the BFI & Radio Times Television Festival in 2019, he revealed:

“I auditioned for like three or four different parts before getting the part of Gendry. Jon Snow, initially, because when they were casting for the pilot I think pretty much every actor of a certain age, that was white, probably went in for it.”

He also auditioned for Jon Snow’s friends, Grenn and Pypar, but couldn’t get any of them until Gendry.

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4) Sam Claflin

From Hunger Games to Peaky Blinders, Sam Claflin has been showing his acting range with his incredible performances. He also got to star opposite Emilia Clarke, who played Daenerys Targaryen in Game of Thrones, in Me Before You. But before that, he could have gotten the role of Jon Snow, which he auditioned for and starred opposite Clarke years ago, but unfortunately didn’t get the part.

In a 2014 interview with Cinemablend, Claflin shared:

"I think I speak on behalf of every British actor when I say, we all auditioned for it."

Other than Harington's character, Claflin has also auditioned for the character of Viserys. He said:

"So, I auditioned for two different parts at once. But I think Snow White and the Huntsman--or was it Pirates of the Caribbean?--one of the two happened."

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5) Iwan Rheon

Iwan Rheon’s name in this list might be one of the most shocking ones, as it is difficult to imagine him in a compassionate role of Jon Snow after seeing how intrinsically he played the ruthless character, Ramsey Bolton, in Game of Thrones. He was one of the most ruthless villains of the fantasy series who had hurt many of the Stark children and driven Theon into madness.

As surprising as it sounds, Rheon also had auditioned to play Jon Snow. In 2016, while talking to Emma Brown for Interview Magazine, the Welsh actor stated:

"When the pilot first came it was a general audition. I think it was for Viserys, Daenerys’s brother. And then they were like, 'Can you come back in and read for this other character, Jon Snow?' At the time I didn’t know much about it. So I auditioned for Jon Snow, but so did a lot of other people probably."

He also talked about how differently he would have played the character and how Harington was the perfect choice for the role, which we all could agree with. He said:

"I think it was between me and Kit [Harington], which is quite crazy. It could’ve been so different. I’d be dead now. [laughs] I think they made the right choice; it would’ve been a very different Jon Snow if I’d played him."

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