'Game of Thrones' to Go on a One-Year Hiatus, Final Season Premieres 2019

Previously speculation, and now it’s a fact—”Game of Thrones” won’t be returning until next year. There’s been a lot of talk about the exact timeframe that creators David Benioff and Dan Weiss would be bringing back the beloved fantasy show on HBO, what with the explosive and shocking Season 7 finale.
As confirmed by HBO, “Game of Thrones” will return in 2019, meaning we won’t see any glimpse of Westeros this year. It’s the first time that the show will go on a year-long break, but it does make sense since it’s the final season of the show. Benioff and Weiss will team up once again to direct their first episode together since season 4. Miguel Sapichnik, the show’s battle expert & director, will also return along with “Red Wedding” and “Cersei’s Walk of Shame” director David Nutter. The writing team is once again on it’s most active, with Bryan Cogman and Dave Hill back to the fore with Benioff and Weiss.

However, beyond the backstage details for “Game of Thrones,” here’s what we do know: Vanity Fair confirms that a new character by the name of Harry Strickland will appear. Harry is a member of the Golden Company—a group of sellswords, who prefer to be called a brotherhood of exiles. However, they come with a price when needed for a fight. This principle makes them switch sides instantly depending on the amount of gold given to them. If you would remember, Cersei has something sinister planned against Daenerys Targaryen, and she enlisted the help of Euron Greyjoy—that sonovab*tch—to summon the Golden Company. Meera Reed, who spent most her “Game of Thrones” lifespan carrying Bran and bringing him back to the North, will not be back for the final season.

It’s a long wait, but hey, it will all be worth it as “Game of Thrones” Season 8 will indeed have longer episodes than the usual, with three of them running for more than an hour. But in any case, it’s sad to know that the show will be ending soon, so it’s up to George R.R. Martin to get “The Winds of Winter” out in bookstores too!