He had made no secret of the fact that he was ‘terrified’ of stripping off every night in his critically acclaimed West End show Slave Play.
And Kit Harington was so afraid that footage of him in his birthday suit would one day be seen outside the theater that theatergoers had to put special stickers on their cell phone cameras to prevent filming.
But despite the safety measures – and the threat of legal action if breached – frontal images and videos of the Game Of Thrones actor in action have been posted on internet forums.
The production, which last 12 weeks last month, involved Mr Harington, 37, in a 10-minute sex scene with Olivia Washington, 33, daughter of Hollywood legend Denzel.
Actor Kit Harington with Olivia Washington in Slave Play at the Noël Coward Theatre
One of the images of him naked on stage posted online
In a clip posted on a Spanish adult website, Mr Harington appears to be filmed from the front row of the theater taking off his trousers and exposing his genitals.
The same website features a graphic scene in which the actor roughly ties up his co-star with a rope while naked before simulating sexual intercourse with her.
The stage set included a wall of mirrors, which gave a clear view of the action on stage from all corners of the room – but it seemed to help those who took photos surreptitiously.
A site specializing in nude photos of male celebrities features several still images of the actor walking across the stage with his penis in full view.
When Slave Play opened in July, it proved to be the hottest ticket in town, with celebrities including Madonna, Zendaya and Anya Taylor-Joy spotted in the venue for the two-hour production.
It also caused controversy after hosting nights only for black spectators.
Kit Harington and Rose Leslie pictured in September 2021 in New York
For Mr Harington, the leaked footage will be a setback after he previously spoke of his fear of exposing everyone on stage. He said: ‘I thought it would be liberating – it’s proven not to be at all.
‘Every night I’m terrified. Every night.’
Last week, Mr Harington made his debut in season three of the raunchy BBC drama Industry.