"These things take time."
HBO just last week confirmed that us Game of Thrones fans will indeed have to wait until 2019 for the last season.
The delay was probably not very surprising given the reported scope and ambition for the final six episodes – but what's the official reason?
Entertainment Weekly spoke to HBO president of programming Casey Bloys about the decision to hold the return back.
"Here's what I'll tell you," he said. "They take the time they need to do the show at its highest level of quality.
"As the show has gone on, it's gotten bigger – big battle scenes, big special effects. These things take time.
"Here's the one thing I can assure you: [showrunners DB Weiss and David Benioff] were not sitting around on a beach waiting to go back to work.
"They're perfectionists, and this is the soonest it can come back at a level of quality that they are comfortable with."
Elsewhere, Bloys dismissed any suggestion that Game of Thrones will be revived or rebooted in the near future, while none of the planned spin-offs features any current characters.
"This story, A Song of Ice and Fire, is done. There's no revival, reboot, spinoff talk," he confirmed.
Game of Thrones season 8 will premiere in 2019. The show airs on HBO in the US and Sky Atlantic and NOW TV in the UK. Season 7 is now available to buy on DVD, Blu-ray or digital download.
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