The eighth and final season of HBO's "Game of Thrones" is still over a year away, but that has not stopped fans from speculating on how the hugely popular television series will end. From hints of big battles to hints of major character deaths, it seems that there is a lot to keep fans interested until season 8 premieres.
Castles are an important part to the stories in "Game of Thrones." Thus, when the production was spotted building a huge new castle set, replete with towers and turrets, fans were quick to speculate that it may be a new location, or maybe the site of a big battle.
It is possible that the castle may be a location that has been mentioned before in the series but has never been shown. However, it may also be a larger representation for the exterior of Winterfell, the ancestral stronghold of the Stark family. Earlier reports have shown the Winterfell set burning, which may mean that it is set to be the site of a huge battle.
However, it is also possible that this set is actually the Red Keep, where the ruler of Westeros resides. The appearance of a ruined wall may indicate a successful siege, which may end with Queen Cersei (Lena Headey), one of the series's main antagonists, dead and defeated.
Meanwhile, according to some, Arya Stark (Maisie Williams) may not survive until the end as well. The fan theory states that Gendry (Joe Dempsie), the bastard son of the late King Robert, will actually be both king of Westeros as well as the prophesized "Prince that was Promised." Gendry will then have to kill Arya as the necessary sacrifice that will make the prophecy come true.
There is also a possibility that Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) will die before the show ends. Back in the second season of the show, Daenerys had a vision in the House of the Undying. She saw herself walking across the ruins of the throne room in the Red Keep, before finding herself at the Wall up north. After this, she found herself reunited with Khal Drogo, her late husband, as well as their child who died in the womb.
This may indicate that after Daenerys captures the Red Keep, she will meet her death beyond the Wall in season 8.
Although these are simply speculations, there have been fan theories that have been proven true before. The best-known fan theory may be that Jon Snow is the son of Rhaegar Targaryen (Wilf Scolding) and Lyanna Stark (Aisling Franciosi). In season 7, the show proved this long-standing theory right, although it remains unconfirmed in the books.
However, many other fan theories have been proven off-base as well, which means that fans will simply have to keep speculating until season 8 premieres in 2019.
