The hard days of winter are nearly upon us now in the real world, and Game of Thrones season 7 filming is well underway. Because this season is the first one to take place primarily during the winter, with filming adjusted accordingly, the Game of Thrones season 7 release date is going to be later than ever. What’s more, we have a shorter season to look forward to as the show slowly winds down to its conclusion. The long wait for the short reward continues.
Game Of Thrones Season 7 Release Date Remains A Long Wait
In the past, Game of Thrones has always premiered in the spring. But because the show’s age-old saying that “winter is coming” finally came true, HBO moved the production schedule back a few months—not that it really matters in some locations like Dorne (filmed in Spain) or the Wall and beyond (filmed in Iceland), but in King’s Landing, the Riverlands and the Iron Islands, the season will make a difference.
Game of Thrones season 7 will premiere in the summer, and the cold weather in the show will set the tone for what’s likely to be a darker and more violent season than is typical, even for Game of Thrones. After a few years respite under relatively stable Lannister rule, the king is dead with no heir, the North has declared independence again, and the Reach and Dorne are on the brink of revolt. Plus, Daenerys and the Night King are both about to invade Westeros, each one wielding an incredibly devastating and destructive army, along with magic beasts. It’s going to be a tough time for the ordinary people of Westeros, and for the doomed Queen Cersei.
Alas, we still have a very long wait ahead of us. The one real hope we have is that the extra time allows George R. R. Martin to finish Winds of Winter and get it out on shelves before the Game of Thrones season 7 premiere—something that’s very possible, depending on his writing speed. And, while it’s disappointing that the next two seasons are just thirteen episodes between them, we can at least pin our hopes on the inevitable HBO prequel to keep us entertained in Westeros. But that too will be a long way away. Until the summer, we simply have to wait and wonder what will happen in Westeros. Luckily our seasons turn faster than they do in Game of Thrones.
