‘Game of Thrones’ Final Season Will Be All Ninth Episodes, Says Star
Game of Thrones’ TV budget has taken its toll here and there, but few would question Season 8’s dedication to an epic end. As such, one star promises Game of Thrones will uphold its traditional commitment to climactic ninth episodes at least six times over.
As any Game of Thrones fan will attest, the majority of seasons reserve some major event or battle for ninth episodes; whether Ned Stark’s execution, the Battle of the Blackwater, Red Wedding, Wall attack and so on, even as Season 7’s shortened run split between Loot Train Battles and “Beyond the Wall.” As such, the eighth and final season’s six episodes might again imbalance that ratio, though star John Bradley tells The Huffington Post Season 8 will make the most of its limited run:
I think what we used to call Episode 9 in Game of Thrones folklore — the episode when everything comes to a head and you get a lot of spectacular sequences — I think you’re gonna get six ‘Episode 9s’ this year. You can tell that because we’ve got directors who have been in charge of some of the most huge setpieces in the past doing episodes all throughout the season.
For what it’s worth, Game of Thrones recently stepped up to specify that veteran directors David Nutter and “Battle of the Bastards” / “Hardhome” director Miguel Sapochnik would helm the final six episodes, joined by series creators David Benioff and Dan Weiss for the finale. Episode divisions weren’t specified, but it would certainly follow Bradley’s claim if major action directors were to tackle all six (potentially feature-length) episodes.
In the meantime, stay tuned for further news on Game of Thrones’ eighth and final season.