Kit Harington is a big name in showbiz today thanks to his role as Jon Snow on HBO's Game of Thrones. Now Harington is poised to return to HBO in a brand new role that almost certainly will not involve any dragons or ice zombies. His limited series Gunpowder is slated to make its U.S. debut on HBO in the not-too-distant future.
Gunpowder tells the story of the 1605 Gunpowder Plot in London. Kit Harington stars as Robert Catesby, who is largely responsible for kicking off the Gunpowder Plot. As a Catholic in a Protestant England that regularly persecuted Catholics, Catesby's life is quite difficult. He's on the verge of social, financial, and even psychological destruction as he refuses to give up his Catholicism.
The show also stars Mark Gatiss, Peter Mullan, and Liv Tyler. Gatiss plays King James' spymaster Robert Cecil, who leads the persecution of Catholics, including hunting down priests to torture and kill them. Mullan plays a Jesuit priest by the name of Father Garnet, who prefers peaceful protests over Catesby's more extreme measures. Tyler is on board as Catesby's cousin Anne Vaux, who comes to believe that Catesby's attempts to further his cause will backfire and result in the opposite of what Catesby wants to happen.
The show will tell the tale of the Gunpowder Plot from the beginning, from the selection of people who would contribute, the amassing of what they need to attempt their desperate mission, and what gets in their way as they plot. The spy network will complicate things. If you're familiar with the story of the Gunpowder Plot, you know how the story is going to end, but it should be intriguing to see this new interpretation of history.
Gunpowder will run for three episodes over three nights beginning on Monday, December 18 at 10 p.m. ET on HBO. The next episodes will air on Tuesday, December 19 and Wednesday, December 20, all at 10 p.m. ET. The project was originally produced for BBC One, and the first two episodes have already aired across the pond in the U.K. Folks on the American side of the pond have to wait a while longer to see Kit Harington in action as a player in the Gunpowder Plot, but it's not too long, all things considered. Fans of Harington's from Game of Thrones will be accustomed to waiting much longer than a couple of months for new content.
You'll be able to watch Gunpowder on HBO On Demand, HBO NOW, HBO GO, and affiliate portals in addition to HBO as part of a cable package. Gunpowder will air exclusively on HBO platforms in the U.S., so be sure to have access if you want to catch the limited series when it debuts in December. For what you can watch while we wait, take a look at our 2017 Netflix schedule and our fall TV guide.
