Game of Thrones star, Kit Harington , has recently opened up about his “gender-fluid” upbringing, as well as his take on toxic masculinity and how it has affected him.
The 35-year-old also got candid about his career, revealing his plans to leave typical, “heroic” male roles in the past.
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“Game of Thrones” star Kit Harington is opening up about his take on toxic masculinity, its effect on society, and its impact on his career choices.
In recent interviews , the 35-year-old explained that toxic masculinity is abundant and not as covert as one may expect. It’s something he sees frequently.
“I see it everywhere,” he told The Guardian, adding that toxic masculinity renders terrible role models that seemingly carry anger and resentment.
“I see confused men walking the streets. I see terrible role models. I see a lot of anger…”
Harington urged all men to consciously make an effort to unlearn toxic habits and start healing.
“And I think we need to start dealing with that anger – we as men, but we as a society as well,” he continued.
That wasn’t the first time that Harington has brought up the topic of toxic masculinity. In a 2020 interview with the Telegraph , he opened up about his ” gender-fluid ” childhood and how it has influenced him to stay away from stereotypical male roles in his acting career.
He shared that his mom, playwright Deborah Jane Catesby, always made it a point to expose Harington to things outside of stereotypical gender roles growing up, which meant he didn’t always get the toys that he hoped for.
But it was ultimately for the best!
“I asked for an Action Man and I got a doll,” he said.
Harington’s childhood was progressive and fluid from the very beginning and he had no objections to it at the time.
“It was very gender fluid from the word go. And I went with it,” he went on before adding that toxic masculinity is something that can be passed down through generations.
“I feel that emotionally men have a problem, a blockage,” he said, adding that these blockages have been taught and passed down.
“And that blockage has come from the Second World War, passed down from grandfather to father to son,” he pointed out.
“We do not speak about how we feel because it shows weakness, because it is not masculine,” the “Modern Love” actor continued.
“Having portrayed a man who was silent, who was heroic.”
He added that he’s simply uninterested in partaking in conventional, masculine roles.
“I feel going forward that is a role I don’t want to play anymore,” he said, adding that surely, we’ve all seen enough typically masculine characters by now.
“It is not a masculine role that the world needs to see much more of.”
So, it looks like we won’t be seeing Kit Harington in any brooding, masculine, heroic roles again any time soon.
Let us know what you think of the Game of Thrones alum’s message on toxic masculinity in the comments below.
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