Since his breakout role as Jon Snow in HBO's Game of Thrones, devoted fans of the iconic fantasy series have followed Kit Harington from project to project. Whether it was his big-screen role in Marvel's Eternals or new small-screen roles in shows like Extrapolations and Industry, Harington has kept plenty busy since his time as Jon Snow came to an end.
Most recently, Harington was seen in a supporting role in Lena Dunham's Netflix comedy series Too Much, in which he played the main character's father in flashbacks. Well, for his next television role, Harington will really be flashing back in time, but much further back than '90s. He's headed to the 1700s for an adaptation of a classic novel by Charles Dickens.
Kit Harington set to star in MGM+ and BBC series adaptation of Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities
If you're looking to catch up on your summer reading from high school, Kit Harington will help you brush up on the Dickens classic you probably pretended to read. As reported by Deadline, Harington will star in a new adaptation of A Tale of Two Cities, which has been picked up by BBC in the United Kingdom and by MGM+ in the United States and other territories.
The series will adapt the classic novel in four parts and comes from creator Daniel West, who previously wrote episodes of Top Boy. Hong Khao has been tapped to direct all four parts of the series, which will also star François Civil and Mirren Mack. According to Deadline, A Tale of Two Cities will make its premiere on MGM+ and BBC sometime in 2026.
Harington will play Sydney Carton in the series. He's an "erratic young lawyer" that Lucie Manette (Mirren Mack) seeks help from when Charles Darnay (François Civil) gets arrested after sharing the news with her that her father might not actually be dead. Lucie hopes Sydney can help set Charles free in order to join him to Paris to find her father amid the war tensions of 1782.
In a statement expressing their excitement about the series, Harington and West revealed a bit more of what to expect from this particular adaptation: "A Tale of Two Cities is the original historical blockbuster – a heartbreaking romance and a brutal revenge mystery, all set against the iconic backdrop of the French Revolution. Our adaptation will be a twisting period thriller; one with a contemporary, volatile love triangle at its heart."
"A twisting period thriller" sounds exactly like what most fans are looking for when they're in search of the next great series to binge-watch, though it might not exactly be your first thought when you think of a Charles Dickens adaptation. While A Tale of Two Cities has been adapted into multiple films and television series, a new iteration hasn't been tackled since the 1980s.
There's no doubt that fans of Harington should get excited, not only because he's returning to the small screen in a very intriguing and high-profile series but because A Tale of Two Cities has a lot of promise. Let's hope that the book's iconic opening line — "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times" — only halfway describes what's to come from the upcoming series adaptation!