"Game of Thrones" fans finally had some good news last week when HBO confirmed the series will air this summer. However, there will be one downfall: the last two seasons are shorter than usual, with Season 7 having only seven episodes, and Season 8 with only six.
According to Entertainment Weekly, the news was confirmed by GOT showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss last Sunday at the South by Southwest Film Festival in Austin, Texas. "It's going to be six episodes for the final season," Benioff said at the panel. He also added that they have always wanted the series to tell the story in a 70-hour movie, but that it turned out to be 73 instead, as he didn't want to compromise the cast members along the way.
HBO is yet to confirm the episode count, but with the seventh season all wrapped up and ready to premiere in a few months, it seems that the producers don't have any doubts regarding the length of the remaining final season, and even noted that they were already able to divide the remaining episodes amongst themselves.
Benioff also shared that they argued over who gets to kill Sansa (played by Sophie Turner). However, considering the way the GOT cast and crew tease their fans, there is no telling how serious they are of killing another one of the Stark children. After all, Boston Herald also noted that the producers announced Ed Sheeran as a guest star in the new season, and there's no telling if the crooner is ready to transition from the radio to the small screen.
On the bright side, it seems that there will be returning (dead) characters., including Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley) and Joffrey Baratheon (Jack Gleeson). Unfortunately, fan-favorite friendly giant Hodor (Kristian Nairn) is said to no longer make any appearances on the show.