With HBO's "Game of Thrones" seventh season over and done, fans were distraught to be left with such a cliffhanger at the end of episode 7. However, information has sprung forth revealing some key details regarding what fans can expect from season 8.
According to The Morning Call, the producers will be shooting multiple endings for the series finale. The main reason behind this drastic decision is that the showrunners do not want the ending to be spoiled. This tactic is most especially essential, since the highly popular show has been a target of multiple hacks and major plot spoilers in the past, which makes filming multiple endings that important.
TV Guide stated that shooting multiple endings is a good way of preventing leaks that could prove to be devastating for loyal followers of the series. In the event of a leak or a major hack, the show will have enough material to thwart any malicious attempt at spoiling the show's ultimate ending. Given how hotly anticipated the show is, any small detail can blow up disproportionately, which could lead to fan theories that may spoil the show further.
According to Fortune, season 7 had an estimated 30.8 million viewers for the entire season, and about 12 million watched the season finale. Additionally, with "Game of Thrones" being notorious as one of the most pirated show ever, it was reportedly pirated over one billion times. The numbers do not lie, and shows of this magnitude and length have to protect the interest of both fans and the production. Thus, multiple endings would help.
The final season of "Game of Thrones" will begin production sometime in October, and will only have six episodes. This number may be small, since previous seasons had more episodes. Yet, if what fans are speculating is correct, then these episodes could all have movie-like running times.
