Games of Thrones fans will have to wait longer than previously for a new batch of episodes. HBO usually premieres each season of the fantasy phenomenon in the spring (typically April) of every year. Season seven, however, won't debut until next summer.
Another blow to viewers: for the first time in the show’s history, the new season will consist of only seven episodes, down from the usual 10.
The delay in between seasons does not come as a huge surprise: Game of Thrones executive producers David Benioff and DB Weiss prompted speculation that the show's return date might be pushed back after revealing on the UFC Unfiltered podcast that production was getting a later start this year to film in wintry locations. Season seven will be shot largely in Northern Ireland, with additional portions to be filmed in Spain and Iceland.
As Entertainment Weekly noted, the show’s producers had always planned to keep the seventh season shorter than the rest, in order to cap the series off at 73 hours, with an eighth-and-final season that will reportedly run at six episodes.
The drama topped the Emmy nominations last week with 23 nods, followed closely by The People v OJ Simpson: American Crime Story.
