At HBO’s Executive Session this morning at the Television Critic’s Association, incoming programming president Casey Bloys confirmed what we all sort of knew and feared: Game of Thrones will end with Season 8. Here’s what Bloys said, as reported in Entertainment Weekly:
"Yes, they have a very specific plan about the number of seasons they want to do. Believe me, as the new [programming executive] coming in, if I could get them to do more. I would take 10 more seasons. But we take their lead on what they think they can do the best version of the show."
That wasn’t the only bad news of the session. Bloys also confirmed that the “Summer 2017” start of Game of Thrones Season 7 will be late enough that the show will not be in contention for the 2017 Emmy race. Well, that’s bad new for HBO and Game of Thrones, anyway. Everyone else in the drama division across the other networks probably silently cheered. However, Bloys insisted that awards weren’t the goal—they were just a bonus. Still, considering that Season 7 will air at the very beginning of the Emmys eligibility period for 2018, that also works against the show being nominated the way it has been over the last two years. “It’s something we’ll live with,” he said.
In news that will cheer fans, though, Bloys said that a spin off show for Game of Thrones has been discussed, although no details were forthcoming.
"We’ve talked about it, it’s something I’m not opposed to, but of course it has to make sense creatively. I’m not sure that [Benioff and Weiss] could really wrap their heads around it when they’re just about to start production [on season 7]. It’s a pretty intense production, they’re about to start production soon. I’m open to it. The guys weren’t opposed to it, but there’s no concrete plans for it at this point."
Finally, Bloys weighed in on the persistent claim that Season 8 will consist of only six episodes, saying only that the exact number wasn’t final. We’ll keep our ears to the ground.