Kit Harington has been spending his downtime from “Game of Thrones” shooting his first lead role in a feature film — the 3-D action adventure movie “Pompeii.”
In the project, the British actor stars as Milo, a slave-turned-gladiator, who ends up racing against time to save his one true love, Flavia (Australian actress Emily Browning), from Mt. Vesuvius and her betrothal to a corrupt Roman general.
“It’s great,” Kit told AccessHollywood.com recently about how filming has been going up in Toronto. “It’s my first lead role in a movie as well, which is a very new thing for [me] and it’s going really well.”
PHOTOS: From Worcester To Wildlings — Hot Shots Of ‘Game Of Thrones’ Star Kit Harington
In order to play a gladiator, Kit’s had to do a fair bit of sword swinging, something he has experience in.
“There’s a lot of fight scenes, so that’s something that I’m sort of used to from ‘Thrones,’” he said. “I’m having to get very good at throwing swords about again. But, it’s really exciting. It’s going very well.”
WATCH IT NOW: Kit Harington ‘Blown Away’ By ‘Game Of Thrones’ Season 3
In “Game of Thrones,” Kit plays Jon Snow, a man of the Night’s Watch, whose adventures take place in a wintry wonderland. For “Pompeii,” the actor is ditching the pasty look for a Roman-esque tan.
“I’m kind of just sunbathing as much as I can and trying to look as Roman as possible,” he told Access.
And he’s had a little help with getting a golden glow, thanks to the makeup department on the “Pompeii” set.
“They come and grease you up. It’s not a bad life when you’ve got three lovely makeup women greasing you up,” he laughed. “[You’re] sitting there thinking things could be worse.”
PHOTOS: Game Boys — The Young Hunks Of ‘Game Of Thrones’
The actor has also had to take on a special diet and workout routine to look like a gladiator.
“It’s all about diet, which is strange and I’ve never done anything like this to this extent — like body transformations,” Kit said. “So it’s a new thing for me. It takes a bit of discipline.”
And while he’s used to wearing a heavy cloak to play Jon Snow, as Milo in “Pompeii,” Kit has had to shed those heavy layers and suit up similarly to the men of Starz series “Spartacus.”
“I’m [in] far less clothing than I wear on ‘Thrones,’” he said. “That’s the look we’re going for — sort of a tunic. I’m more aware of my body now than I have been for anything else.
“[We have a] similar look to ‘Spartacus,’ but maybe not quite as nude as they get,” he laughed. “I saw a couple of their episodes and they get pretty nude.”
“Pompeii” is due out in early 2014.
Copyright © 2024 by NBC Universal, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
This material may not be republished, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.