Warning: Spoilers ahead for the finale of Game of Thrones
Hundreds of thousands of people signed a petition to remake the final season of Game of Thrones after fans were upset and disappointed with the ending of the decade-long show. Despite the fact that showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff warned fans that they wouldn’t be happy with the ending, fans were still outraged with the outcome of Season 8’s wrap enough to want it completely redone. As realistic as that was, fans were going to have to cope with the less than satisfactory fate of the beloved Game of Thrones characters.
Somewhat of a cliffhanger ending left fans to speculate whether or not HBO and George R.R. Martin had something up their sleeves regarding a spinoff for the series. “What’s west of Westeros? No one knows…” says Arya Stark before embarking on a journey to a new world in the show’s ending. This line sparked speculation that a potential spinoff was in the works to explain where Arya is headed. That is, until HBO shot it down on Tuesday.
HBO’s Confirmation
The network’s programming president, Casey Bloys, gave an interview with Deadline this week about the explosive ending to the show, discussing the polarizing finale and whether or not a spinoff series would be in the works. Unfortunately, HBO has no plans to create a spinoff for the series—at least not one that takes place so soon after the happenings within Game of Thrones. As for the universe that Martin created, that’s another story.
“It is within that universe, but Jane [Goldman] has created a different show — it’s not the same show, it’s not the same characters, it’s not the same time frame, it’s not the same dynamic. It’s a tough line to walk, but you want to do a show that is of that world but not a replica,” said Bloys of the upcoming prequel starring Naomi Watts. HBO has been pretty hush hush about the new prequel, as the only information we know so far is is that it will take place thousands of years before the happenings of Game of Thrones. For example, our last coverage of the prequel surrounded a rumor that it’s already begun filming. Bloys shot that down pretty quickly, claiming it won’t begin filming until June.
That being said, a pilot isn’t a confirmation that the show is happening for sure. “Here is what I will tell you. I wanted to get through the final season and let that stand as a cultural moment. We have the pilot starting in June and then we will decide whether to want to do another one or not. I’m letting those things happen before we decide whether to do another one or not,” Bloys said to Deadline.
Where Did Arya Go?
Ultimately, the answer to that question is going to remain unanswered. HBO has no plans to create a spinoff series to explain where Arya ends up after the events of the show finale that premiered last weekend. On that note, HBO also has no plans to remake season 8 from the beginning. Fans are going to have to get used to the polarizing ending to the show, regardless of whether or not they feel that it was well written.
