In an interview with Vulture, Sean Bean talked about the possibility of returning to Game of Thrones and inadvertently revealed one of the biggest mysteries of the series: who Jon Snow's parents are. In reference to appearing in flashbacks via Bran's connection to the heart tree, Bean said:
I've definitely got some unfinished business that needs to be resolved there. I'm obviously not Jon Snow's dad. And you need that to be revealed at some point, don't you? So Bran would kind of be the one having the flashback, and he would see Ned praying, right? And revealing those things? You never know what those guys are going to do with that. It's got to be something special. But I'm into that. I certainly would be into that.
Sean Bean confirming that Ned isn't Jon's father all but confirms R + L = J. We've seen Ned refer to Jon as having his blood, so they must be related. The most common theory points to his sister, Lyanna, being Jon's mother, and Rhaegar Targaryen being his father. Best of all, that'd make Jon a possible heir to the Iron Throne.
There's a possibility that this is all wishful thinking on Sean Bean's part, because who wouldn't want to come back to that show, but chances are he's got some insight we don't and he just SPOILED IT FOR EVERYONE. Thanks, Bean. This is probably why you get killed off all the time.