Around this time, cast members are receiving and reading their scripts for Game of Thrones Season 7. Maisie Williams (Arya) was kind enough to share her reactions on Twitter. They are heated.
just finished reading season 7
— Maisie Williams (@Maisie_Williams) August 22, 2016
shit gets REAL
— Maisie Williams (@Maisie_Williams) August 22, 2016
i'd start preparing yourselves now
— Maisie Williams (@Maisie_Williams) August 22, 2016
scratch that, nothing will prepare you for this
— Maisie Williams (@Maisie_Williams) August 22, 2016
holy BALLS
— Maisie Williams (@Maisie_Williams) August 22, 2016
Alright, so shit will get real in Game of Thrones Season 7, and there’s no way we can prepare ourselves for it. Holy balls.
Sophie Turner (Sansa Stark) retweeted that last one, by the way, the one about holy balls. Does this mean she signs on to Williams’ assessment of the season, or is she just retweeting something funny her castmate said? Are we reading too deeply into this? Probably. We can’t help it—we’re excited.
Williams’ language reminds me a bit of something Emilia Clarke (Daenerys Targaryen) said after she read the scripts for Season 6.
"[T]his season coming up, that we’re about to film, there’s none of that. It’s just go, go, go, go. Shocking moment to shocking moment. Epic moment to epic moment. It’s mental; it’s epic."
By and large, her assessment was borne out. Season 6 kicked off with the reveal of Melisandre’s real age, segued into Roose Bolton’s death and Jon’s Snow resurrection, continued with Daenerys’ khal barbeque and the revelations about Hodor, and wrapped up with the Battle of the Bastards and Cersei’s wanton property destruction. Williams seems even more breathless with enthusiasm. Granted, her reactions are more immediate, but I’m choosing to take this as a good sign.
In particular, I’m taking this as a sign that the showrunners will make good on their word to start “hurtling towards” an ending. Yes, it’s unfortunate that Season 7 will only be seven episodes long, rather than the usual ten. But if the showrunners are serious about going out with a bang, I’d bet that very few of those episodes will contain much in the way of fat. Imagine seven episodes of television as exciting as “Battle of the Bastards” and “The Winds of Winter.” It’s enough to make your heart skip a beat.
We’ll bring you more information on Game of Thrones Season 7 as it becomes available.