So, it’s official. You’re going to have to wait a whole year to get your final dose of Game of Thrones. The six-episodes that comprise the eighth season will be hitting HBO in 2019, the network confirms. The final season will be directed by David Benioff & D.B. Weiss, David Nutter, and Miguel Sapochnik. It was written by David Benioff & D.B. Weiss, Bryan Cogman, and Dave Hill. It’s the longest fans will have ever had to wait for a new season of wildly popular fantasy drama.
Showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss previously explained that they intended to spend a year and a half creating the last episodes of the show. To be fair, given the series’ global following, the stakes are pretty high. Fan’s probably aren’t too shocked, though. Star Sophie Turner previously relayed in an interview that she didn’t expect the show to return until 2019.
There’s business sense to the delay, too. As the biggest success in HBO’s history, keeping the show around for as long as possible isn’t a bad thing. There’s also the fact that season 7 of GoT is in the Emmy mix; postponing season 8 allows HBO to focus on its Emmy campaign. In addition, the delay creates more space for HBO’s other elaborately produced series, Westworld, which is coming back this year for its second season after a two-year hiatus.
So there’s only one question: when in 2019 will GoT come back? There is 12 months in a year, after all. If other season returns are any indication, season 8 should return in the spring. HBO hasn’t given us any clues, however.
