Liam Cunningham (Davos) on the possibility of longer episodes in Game of Thrones season 8

The first cast read-through of Game of Thrones season 8 happens in just a few days, and the Game of Thrones nation is primed for news. More and more cast members, including Lena Headey and John Bradley, are teasing bits and pieces of what’s in store as we ramp up to filming. Today, Liam Cunningham (Davos Seaworth) joins their ranks.

Speaking to TV Guide, Cunningham addressed a question on a lot of fans’ minds: are the final six episodes of the series going to be longer than the average episode? Said Cunningham:

"[The episodes are] definitely going to be bigger and what I hear is longer. We’re filming right up until the summer. When you think about it, up until last season we’d have six months to do ten episodes, so we’re [doing] way more than that for six episodes. So that obviously will translate into longer episodes."

The show set itself up for longer episodes in season 8 with “Beyond the Wall” and “The Dragon and the Wolf,” the final two episodes of season 7 — those ran for 70 minutes and 80 minutes respectively, the longest episodes of the show up to the date when they aired. Will every episode of season 8 receive the same kind of treatment? Might they even be longer?

It’s possible, although we should keep in mind that we don’t know if Cunningham has actually read the scripts yet — when Iain Glen (Jorah) spoke on this subject, he predicted that the actors would get their first taste of the plot when they sit down for the table read. And Cunningham admits that not even showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss will know exactly how long the episodes are until they get into the editing room.

Cunningham’s comments also clash with some other ones floating around out there. He says that the production will be “filming right up until the summer,” which implies a stop date around May or June of 2018. However, HBO programming president Casey Bloys previously implied it could go as late as August. Also, while Iain Glen agreed that they’re going to be filming for a long time, he pinned the reason for the extended shoot time on the fact that HBO is only working with production one unit for season 8, whereas in the past it’s usually had two.

Of course, Cunningham and Glen could both be right, particularly if HBO shoots for a full 10-or-so months, which is a really freaking long time to spend on a season of TV. But then again, if any show is worth it, it’s this one.

Next: Game of Thrones prequel writer Jane Goldman finishes her script

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