The reported budget for the final season of Game of Thrones is eye-popping and historic. So can they bring back the direwolves then?
Are you surprised? I’m not.
Way back in season one, Game of Thrones (only) cost $6 million per episode to produce. But by the time season six rolled around, it went North (heh) of $10 million per episode. The show has only gotten more lavish since.
How lavish, you ask? $15 million per episode, as reported by Variety.
What a figure.
HBO has not confirmed the cost (nor will they divulge the budget of their shows), but it certainly seems like a plausible number. Production companies will generally only spend that kind of money for pilot episodes of highly visual, potentially expensive projects. By post-pilot production, the per-episode number drops significantly (although the paychecks of the cast and producers typically rise with time, but that’s another story.) Then again, Game of Thrones isn’t like any other show. I mean, it’s arguably the most popular television series in the world right now.
According to various sources, including HelloGiggles, the six episodes of season eight will follow season seven finale’s 79-minute, 43-second runtime format. “I imagine they’ll be longer but … I’m not sure ,” said the network’s programming president Casey Bloys. “Two hours per episode seems like it would be excessive, but it’s a great show, so who knows?”
Game of Thrones sound designer Paula Fairfield made a similar statement: “The finale, I’ve heard, it will be six shows, but I’ve heard they’ll be feature-length.”
If the episodes have the potential to be extended to feature-length, it would explain where all the money is going. And with such a swollen, colossal budget, Game of Thrones may no longer be forced to choose between Daenerys’ (Emilia Clarke) dragons and the direwolves (!). When asked why Jon’s (Kit Harington) direwolf Ghost didn’t appear in “Battle of the Bastards,” director Miguel Sapochinik cited the episode’s budget: “ was in there in spades originally, but it’s also an incredibly time-consuming and expensive character to bring to life. Ultimately, we had to choose between Wun-Wun and the direwolf, so the dog bit the dust.” Boo.
But Arya’s (Maisie Williams) Nymeria is expected to appear again. And if Nymeria appears, so does Ghost. Right?
Related Story: Who will direct Game of Thrones season 8?
Game of Thrones begins production for season 8 in October, and is currently slated to return in late 2018 or early 2019.