As filming for ‘Game of Thrones’ season six began this past July, Kit Harington was spotted a number of times in Belfast, Northern Ireland. These sightings suggest that his character, Jon Snow, could still be alive despite being stabbed by members of the Night’s Watch in the season five finale.
According to latest reports, the Bastard of Winterfell will not only return next season; he will be back with retribution in mind.
Sources have claimed that the 28-year-old actor was spotted filming a scene that involved a "massive battle" sequence in Saintfield, Northern Ireland.
As pointed out by community site Watchers on the Wall, the huge battle, which is expected to be shown in the ninth episode of the upcoming season, will involve numerous northern armies battling it out, such as House Umber, House Bolton, even the wildlings and other groups.
Meanwhile, Comicbook.com has speculated that Jon's apparent death may have released him from his commitment towards the Night's Watch, enabling the well-loved character to seek revenge on the Boltons for betraying House Stark.
As for the Umbers, they are known to be greatly loyal to the Starks, hence the possibility that Jon will fight the Boltons together with the Umbers on his side. If Ned Stark’s supposed bastard will join the Umbers, it is likely that viewers will see him meet up with his half-brother, Rickon Stark, played by Art Parkinson, in the upcoming season.
Rickon made his last appearance in the penultimate episode of ‘Game of Thrones’ season three, wherein viewers saw him getting separated from his older brother Bran (Isaac Hempstead Wright), who gave him instructions to seek help from House Umber with the protection of the wildling Osha (Natalia Tena) and his own direwolf Shaggydog.
‘Game of Thrones’ showrunner Dan Weiss, season five finale director David Nutter, HBO chief Michael Lombardo and even Harington himself did confirm that Jon has finally met his demise.
However, the number of sightings along with the latest news of the huge battle sequence has already convinced some fans to believe that the former Night’s Watch commander’s apparent death is not what it seems.
Moreover, George R.R. Martin, author of ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’ book series from which the critically acclaimed HBO series is based, was asked about Jon’s fate in the books.
He only dropped a teasing and hope-filled response, saying: “Oh, you think he’s dead, do you? Well. I’m not going to address whether he’s dead or not.”
‘Game of Thrones’ season six is expected to premiere in April 2016 on HBO.
