Game of Thrones is more than half-way through its excellent second season, and the show has seen more than its fair share of ugly characters.  However, the Stark family provides the relief of watching honorable people, and Richard Madden and Kit Harington play two of the show's most admirable characters.  Madden plays Robb Stark who is leading a war to rescue his sisters from King's Landing, and gain independence for the North.  Harington plays Ned Stark's bastard son Jon Snow and we've seen the character try to retain his father's steadfast morality in the face of the Night Watch's cold-hearted pragmatism.  Our partners at Omelete got to sit down with the two actors and talk with them about a variety of topics including the series' popularity, the controversial amount of sex scenes, the show's production values, the influence of author George R.R. Martin, and more.

Hit the jump to check out the interview.  Game of Thrones airs Sunday nights at 9/8c on HBO.

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Richard Madden and Kit Harington

  • 0:10 – Richard Madden, who plays Robb Stark and is a fan of the George R.R. Martin novels, talks about how it feels to be part of such a popular series.
  • 0:25 –Kit Harington, who plays Jon Snow, comments on the possibility of Game of Thrones becoming an iconic series.
  • 1:00 – Madden comments further on reading the novels and trying to keep from reading ahead too far.
  • 1:35 – Harington talks about whether he believes Snow is actually Ned Stark’s son and how that plays into the role.
  • 2:25 – Regarding the realism on the set of Game of Thrones, Madden talks about how beneficial it is from an acting perspective.
  • 3:20 – Snow also talks about the “craftsmanship” of Game of Thrones versus the CGI nature of productions these days.
  • 3:50 – Madden laughs about watching the Game of Thrones-related jokes online.
  • 4:20 – Madden also comments on the fact that Sean Bean dies in almost every role he’s ever played and reflects on his role from the first season.
  • 5:10 – Game of Thrones is known for its sex scenes; Madden offers advice on how to interpret them.
  • 5:55 – Harington also talks about the “sexual explicitness” of Game of Thrones as a strength of the show and how the drama of it tests people.
  • 6:45 – Harington talks about Martin’s progress in finishing the novels.

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