Game of Thrones prequels FAQ: Your Fragen answered 

prequel situation is admittedly pretty confusing — and perhaps became even more so after EW’s exclusive update on a fifth series last week. Below, a definitive FAQ for understanding HBO’s plan for

Well, see, straight away you’re asking something we can’t definitively answer. Normally

returns every year. Production starts in October. There is no announced air date. But

will either return in the second half of 2018 or in 2019. The eighth and final season will definitely air before any prequel series.

Umm … I’d guess 2019. But again, until HBO announces a date, that’s just speculation.

Yes. And there are some very cool Emmy-winning directors involved — Miguel Sapochnik (who did “Hardhome” and “Battles of the Bastards”) and David Nutter (who directed six previous episodes including The Red Wedding episode “The Rains of Castamere) are directing multiple episodes. Plus, showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss are directing the finale.

Given that the last two seasons broke records for Longest

Episodes Ever, it’s probably safe to assume season 8 will have some rather lengthy episodes as well. There are rumors this is the case. Nothing has been confirmed yet though.

Fewer episodes, but they’re likely to be among the most challenging the show has ever produced. Showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss have said they plan to spend a year and a half making the final season and previously stated that they’re committed to

concluding on a very high note. The Great War between humanity and the Army of the Dead has been teased since the show’s very first scene. So the 

team wants to spend time on the season to get it right and deliver an epic finish (and will spend an estimated $15 million per episode in the process). Beyond that, many other factors go into scheduling TV shows — for instance, since the recently aired season 7 will compete in next year’s Emmys, HBO would never air 

‘s final season until the eligibility period begins for the following year’s Emmys.

A “spin-off” is when a character from an existing show is spun off into their own series after the original series ends — like, say, 

. Which might be rad. But HBO isn’t doing that. The network is developing five prequel series and all of them are set before the events in

Really! And that is indeed strange. I’ve never seen a strategy like this in television before. But it also makes sense in this case. HBO’s programming president Casey Bloys has explained that 

is such a unique property, and such an enormous success, that the network wants to maximize its chances of finding a series worthy of continuing the most popular, award-winning and lucrative show they’ve ever had. Basically, just as the

showrunners are spending a lot of time on the final season, HBO likewise doesn’t want to blow the show’s legacy by having a successor series that’s considered a step-down. Also, fun fact: HBO has never made a follow-up series to one of their hits before —

Almost certainly not. “Developing” only means a script is being written. Once those are turned in, maybe one or two might become a pilot. Then they show that show to the people who pick shows and — look, do we need to quote

here? You know how this works. It’s a process. Bloys says they’ll be happy to ultimately find just 

So little is known that it’s easier to say what they’re

about. There are no current cast members in the stories. They take place during the prior history of Westeros and Essos. Robert’s Rebellion is

one of them. Author George R.R. Martin’s Dunk & Egg tales are not one of them either, since those stories are still being written (Martin’s not about to get into another “books vs. TV version” publication race). Beyond that, there’s only speculation. I mean, you gotta figure one of the projects has to involve the Targaryens, because how could it not? They ruled Westeros for 300 years.

Martin says that by the time his books are written fans will already have their biggest questions answered about that period of Westeros history. So much of

‘s drama — and serialized dramas in general — come from not knowing what’s going to happen next. A Robert’s Rebellion story would mostly rehash what we already know (like, have you watched 

Yes! Very much so. All the prequel writers are working with him to varying degrees. Benioff and Weiss, however, have declined to be involved and are instead focused exclusively on the final season.

A really exciting mix of voices with impressive credits. One name fans will recognize is Bryan Cogman, who has written some of the show’s best episodes (like “Kissed by Fire” and “The Laws of Gods and Men”). There’s also Max Borenstein (

Quite possibly, yeah. It’s like a screenwriting version of 

concludes. Likely not until a year later, Bloys says. So maybe 2020?

That’s a long time, and it sounds like there’s a lot of things that need to happen before any of this becomes a reality. 

Dude, that’s a totally different conversation! There’s a whole other post for our season 8 predictions.

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