Nicholas Hoult reveals he auditioned to play a MAJOR Game of Thrones character

Westeros could have been a very different place
Audition: Nicholas Hoult tried to join the Game of Thrones cast
TOLGA AKMEN/AFP/Getty Images
The Weekender

Sign up to our free weekly newsletter for exclusive competitions, offers and theatre ticket deals

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

The Game of Thrones cast have become household names during the show’s eight seasons, but the line-up could have looked very different if Nicholas Hoult had nailed his audition.

The British actor, who is currently starring in literary biopic Tolkien, revealed that he tried out for a major role in the HBO hit, but failed to impress casting directors.

“I think I auditioned for Jon Snow,” he told Page Six at the Montclair Film Festival.

“I remember it because I was filming Clash of the Titans at the time, so I had very long hair extensions.”

Hero: Kit Harington eventually become Game of Thrones' standout star as Jon Snow
HBO

The star, who made his film debut in About A Boy aged 11 and went on to appear in Skins and the X-Men franchise, suggested that his “ponytail” and “very patchy fake tan” might have put him at a disadvantage in the audition.

“I remember being like, ‘This is probably not what they’re hoping for,’ and it obviously wasn’t,” he said.

The role of Jon Snow was eventually taken by Kit Harington.

Biopic: Hoult stars alongside Lily Collins in Tolkien
Fox Searchlight

The actor said that although he had watched the first series of the show, he failed to keep up and is now saving the remaining episodes for when he is next “laid up in bed with the flu for [a] couple days”.

Hoult’s Skins co-stars Joe Dempsie and Hannah Murray were more successful with their Thrones auditions, landing the roles of Gendry and Gilly respectively.

The 29-year-old recently addressed the Tolkien estate’s disavowal of his latest film, in which he plays the Lord of the Rings author.

“You do the best performance you can and be respectful and honourable,” he told ITV at the UK premiere last month. “I think his great-grandson is coming tonight so I hope they like it when they see it.”

His comments came after the writer’s family distanced themselves from the project, issuing a statement which read: “The family and the Estate wish to make it clear that they did not approve of, authorise or participate in the making of this film.

“They do not endorse it or its content in any way.”

Hoult will soon star alongside Game of Thrones’ Sophie Turner (who plays Sansa Stark) in X-Men sequel Dark Phoenix.

Game of Thrones: TV Series - In pictures

1/46

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in