Game of Thrones season 8 scripts are written – and some episodes could be two hours long

It is known that the eighth, final season of Game of Thrones will be only six episodes long, in contrast to the current season’s seven, and the 10-episode runs of previous years.

But HBO programming president Casey Bloys has now suggested that, when it comes to the length of the episodes themselves, we could be getting into decidedly film-like territory.

“We haven’t had that discussion yet because I don’t know how long the episodes are going to be. Two hours per episode seems like it would be excessive, but it’s a great show, so who knows?” he recently told journalists, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.

Bloys also confirmed that the scripts for the final season are finished, and made it clear that viewers probably won’t be seeing any of the planned Thrones spin-off shows until at least a year after the finale airs.

“The number one priority in all of this is the final season of Game of Thrones. I don’t want to do anything with a spin-off or anything that detracts or distracts from that,” he said.

Lena Headey, left, and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau in Game of Thrones season 7
Lena Headey, left, and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau in Game of Thrones season 7 CREDIT: HBO
“That season will happen, and my guess is it would be at least a year before you saw anything else.

“What I don’t want is the attention to be drawn from the final season, which I think is going to be epic and amazing, and somehow have the distraction of a new Game of Thrones airing right after that. It’s best to separate it and that’s what we’ll do.”

HBO is currently working on four spin-off shows, with the approval and input of George RR Martin, the author of the books series that inspired Game of Thrones.

The premiere of the current season was 59 minutes long, making it the longest season premiere since the show’s 62-minute pilot episode in 2011.