Did Maisie Williams Reveal ‘Game of Thrones’ 2019 Premiere Date?
We’ll spend the entirety of 2018 without Game of Thrones, but the final season’s 2019 bow may feel like we never left. Star Maisie Williams seemingly let slip exactly when Season 8 will air its first episode, and it feels wonderfully familiar.
Keep in mind that Williams is by no means the arbiter of HBO premieres, and network heads have stated that showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss will take as much time as needed to perfect the final episodes. Nonetheless, the once and future Arya Stark told Metro UK (h/t EW) that Season 8’s first episode is likely to premiere in April of 2019, returning to the month that the series most frequently premieres in:
We wrap in December and we air our first episode in April [2019]. That’s a four-month turnaround for these huge episodes. There’s a lot that goes into the final edit. You would not want to rush this season at all. We owe it to our audience and our fans to really do this final season to the best of our abilities.
One slight hitch – Liam Cunningham previously stated that final season filming would only run into summer 2018. Extending production another four or five months would seem notably odd, as does the idea that showrunners would risk the tight turnaround that Williams suggests. Still, the first half of 2019 is seen as a more likely target, and it’s even plausible Game Thrones’ ending might coincide with Veep’s 2019 curtain call.
HBO hasn’t commented on Williams’ suggestion, but is April 2019 a good bet for our Game of Thrones goodbye?
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