[Book spoilers]: GoT producer expects at least 7 seasons

[Sun]

D&D stated 8 seasons as their target during their Emmy panel discussion. Unless something has changed in the past month, I'm inclined to think Volger/Doelger is lowballing.

ETA:

Although personally, I would much rather the 7 season number.

[ColdDrake]

7 sounds good, it'll keep things tight and the pace moving along. GRRM just needs to pick up his pace. I think most of us would rather read the ending first.

[franko99]

A single season condensed version of AFFC/ADWD would be incredible.

I absolutely agree, I always felt it was a mistake for GRRM to split it the way he did. He thought people should have "the whole story for half the characters" but judging from the reader reactions, a lot of people would have preferred the opposite.

Well, maybe that's because we didn't get the whole story of half the characters, most (if not all) of the plotlines ended in annoying cliffhangers. Appart from Theon's no one has a closure to their story.

Not good... It would be detrimental to the readers experience. :bang:

I watch season 1 before read the first book, and ot didn't ruined AGOT to me...

"too many cliffhangers=no cliffhanger"

That's one of the main critics aDwD have in this forums, enough with the cliffhangers

[BericDondarrion]

HBO won't put more then 7 seasons.There were way too many optimistic fans who think they will air GoT for 10+ seasons and also include all of these minor characters.Dorne and Iron Islands will be minimal on the show.Balon is supposed to die soon and his name wasnt mentioned once so far aside from Theon being tortured.

And also HBO's 1 hour long shows

The Wire-5 seasons, 60 episodes

Oz-6 seasons, 56 episode

Sopranos-7 seasons (technically 6A and 6B seasons), 86 episodes

7 season and 70 episodes is the most GoT will get.The ratings have practically peaked, and HBO surely will not want to be paying 6-8 mil an episode for 10 years.To be honest, 7 seasons is more then enough for the show, anymore and it will drag out too much.Even with 7 seasons, can you imagine Bran,Arya,Sansa etc what they will look like in 5 years?Bran already has a deep voice which is weird for someone supposed to be like 12.

[Jorah the Explorer]

I don't think the kids ageing up is as big of a problem as it's made out to be. A lot of the characters have been aged up from the very start and it has worked out well by it. And to say something that dwells in many a deep dark mind, it gives opportunity for a Sophie Turner nude scene.

Also, Bran turns into a Jojen-paste eating tree. And Merry and Pippen grew taller than any hobbit after living with the Ents. So his growth fits in that respect.

[HouseHarrison]

I absolutely agree, I always felt it was a mistake for GRRM to split it the way he did. He thought people should have "the whole story for half the characters" but judging from the reader reactions, a lot of people would have preferred the opposite.

As I caught up with the book series only last summer and read AFFC and ADWD back to back, I didn't have much of an issue with the way the book was split up and just treated the two like one very long book. That being said I can see how it would have been maddening to wait 6 years for ADWD given that AFFC left out so much, and I think the wait is what really pissed people off. Really GRRM should have written them together then released them a year apart or something.

As for kids aging, having been breezing through the ADWD books on tape, I noticed Bran comments that he's a "man grown" and is noted to be bigger then Jojen by the events of the book. It doesn't seem to be that big of a deal to me imo, though Bran's actor seems to be growing very quick and he's still quite young so I dunno if he's going to end up 6'4" or something.

[sperry]

I don't think the split of the books like that was intentional. More like GRRM just wasn't getting a printable manuscript ready, and the publishers needed some way to get a new book out to prevent losing all of the momentum of the series.

Also, I doubt it will go like this, but hopefully the impending TV catch-up inspires GRRM to put TWOW on the front burner.

[Golden Lion]

I think 7 seasons could work fine.

The books can give you pages and pages without much happening, great for an immersive read but terrible for tv. Once you strip everything away and start streamlining ADWD/FFC could be done in a season or in the show's case start in season 4 and the remaining bits in season 5.

Should also mean less invented scenes, or at least less pointless invented scenes.

[Pellaeon]

So did the producer of Rome

I doubt they manage seven seasons I think the show will lose the hipe around season 5 and then end. HBO won't continue the show if it's lose viewers and the plots of the two filler books are most likely predestinated to cause that

[Claymore]

I'm hoping they'll pull certain stuff from aFfC and aDwD into season 4, such as Bran's story up until the point where he meets BR, the introduction of Dorne and Arianne's plot to put Myrcella on the throne, and Dany's book 5 story until around the point where she imprisons the dragons. They should also mess with the timeline a bit so they can have the Red Viper vs the Mountain and Jon's election at the end of the season.

[HouseLark]

The big worry is that seven seasons will almost certainly mean the show finishing ahead of the books, perhaps even 2-3 years ahead. I wonder how Martin would react to this; would he withdraw further and further from the show?

[Werthead]

I doubt they manage seven seasons I think the show will lose the hipe around season 5 and then end.

This is unduly pessimistic. The show makes HBO a lot of money. At some point it will indeed peak and begin trailing off, but we are not at that point yet. Even if we were, many shows carry on at a profitable level long after the peak is reached. Interest in The X-Files probably peaked at Season 3 or 4, but the show kept going for nine seasons, even surviving major cast changes (though it was running on fumes by the final episode). Interest in True Blood peaked in Season 3, yet the show has gone on for another three years. Interest in Lost probably peaked as early as Season 2, yet it kept going for another four years.

I can see GoT's interest and profile peaking maybe in Season 4. If they handle the slam-dunk of late ASoS events well, maybe even Season 5. If that happens, the show could easily go seven or even eight or nine seasons, even with declining profile and viewing figures. We only have to worry if the show's ratings and DVD/Blu-Ray sales fall off a cliff, which is rather unusual in TV.

Not good... It would be detrimental to the readers experience

There are about 4 million readers of the books worldwide. The show has 5 million first-run viewers in the USA alone. At this point, worldwide, many more people are watching the show than have read the books, so HBO's first priority will be them.

[Peasant Rebel Leader]

I wouldn't reat too much into that quote, it's an after-show side comment and seems to make a very short calculation: 1 series per book = 7 seasons (ASOS, AFFC and ADWD in this case just add up to ~3 seasons again).

And if HBO is thinking long-term (=the next 10-20 years and later on even if you think of television nerds), having a complete series covering all the story is worth much more than an abbreviated product. They've seen that with Rome as well by now by the way. We don't know how books 6, 7 (and 8?) turn out, which is the real question if the series goes to 7, 8 or 9 seasons. I'd be fine with either, but I want to know the end ;)

[TheeMikeHoncho]

If the finale of the entire series is going to be as epic as most think, what about a movie for the final half(?) of the last book?

[tws1978]

So did the producer of Rome

I doubt they manage seven seasons I think the show will lose the hipe around season 5 and then end. HBO won't continue the show if it's lose viewers and the plots of the two filler books are most likely predestinated to cause that

Except Rome was a standard television show developed on a per season basis (I know they had some longterm plans, but not in anyway as concrete as a book series is). GoT is uniq because it´s based on a closed and finished (in GRRM´s mind atleast) story. When you look at ASOIAF as a whole, you clearly can see the standard three act structure and realize we have only now reached the end of second act in the books and we are about to reach the end of first act on the show. The viewers understand this as well and will be much more forgiving for the weaker parts in middle knowing the best is still to come. That´s completely different from standard TV production where most of the original concept gets lost by season 3 and then it´s basically just lots of improvisation and working around actors demand, departures and network/studio notes.

Also, look at any recent book series adapted into movies. Once the audience gets hooked up they stay with it till the end even when they complain endlessly about certain parts. HP 6 was not greatest movie, yet everyone went to see HP7, part 1. And even when that turned even weaker, part 2 was still the most successfull HP movie ever.

Btw. WB is the studio which came with the idea to split the last book into two movies and WB also happens the be the sole owner of HBO.

[Roose Seal]

I don't know, I can definitely see the show peeking with the last of the SoS material and then people losing interest.

AFFC and DWD are nothing but travelogue appart from their respective last few chapters. That does not make for good tv.

You can only keep the Dany story-line separated from the rest for so long before people start thinking "why the fuck are we even following her?"

How are they going to make us care about the Dorne characters when we know pretty much nothing about their history with the targaryens and Robert's Rebellion?

How are they going to make us care about the Ironborn/kingsmoot crap when Balon/Yara and co have been mentioned only in passing this season?

Will people stick around when the fate of the Starks just keep getting more and more grim?

But hey, if True Blood can stay on for 7(6?) seasons, then why the hell not?

[King Zee]

Maybe a season and a half if they manage to "start" AFfC/ADwD around the episode 5 or 6 point of next season.

How can you fill an entire season with 30% of a novel? My best guess is that, while he may be correct concerning the number of remaining season, season 4 will finish the remaining portion of aSoS and get through a substantial portion of aFoC and a DwD.

well they've already started Theon's stuff in Season 3. I expect to see the Greyjoys and Mereen in Season 4. I see the battle at the Wall happening mideseason in season 4.

by the time we hit season 5 - Theon/ Victarion/Yara , Jon and Stannis and Dany's plots will be well advanced.

[Gannicus]

Seems like they're pretty much going to condense Ff and DwD into one season in that case.

That would be sweet! What a great season that would be. I expect season 4 to absorb some of the material as well.

Season 4 will eat up a chunk of material from Feast and Dance. It ought to be a wake-up call for GRRM to get writing more quickly. Season 5 will necessitate some WoW stuff. I mean, this seems likely to me:

S4:

Arya - Travel with the Hound till his death, get on the boat to Braavos

Sansa - Escape from the PW, stuff in the Vale till "Only Cat"

Bran - Realistically, he'll get to Bloodraven.

Jon - Battle at Castle Black, Battle at the Wall, Lord Commander vote.

Tyrion - Red Viper, Purple Wedding, Trial, Tywin.

Dany - Battle of Meereen, Jorah's exile, beginning of queendom.

Sam - Scheming for Jon's election

Stannis - Off to the Wall, dealing with Jon, Sam, et al.

Jaime - Everything he does in King's Landing

Cersei - Some bumbling around as a terrible regent

Theon - Reek identity, Moat Cailin stuff.

Ironborn - Kingsmoot

Dorne - Arianne's plot, Doran's "vengeance, justice, fire and blood"

S5:

Arya - Her assassin training in Braavos. All of it.

Sansa - Her Feast stuff, and whatever comes next in WOW

Bran - Whatever he does in WOW

Jon - Lord Commandering until his death.

Tyrion - His entire travels from Dance. Introduction of Aegon/ JonCon.

Dany - Hizdahr, fight pits, escape with Drogon

Sam - Everything in Braavos, getting to Oldtown.

Stannis - Deepwood Motte/ Yara capture, getting to Winterfell (possibly the battle of Winterfell)

Jaime - Riverlands travels to Brienne capturing him

Brienne - Sansa search through Stoneheart, run-in with Jaime for a cliffhanger

Cersei - Bumbling, arrest and penance walk

Theon -FArya and escape from Winterfell.

Ironborn - Traveling to Meereen, not much time

Dorne - Quentyn's whole thing.

Aegon - Parting with Tyrion, landing in Westeros.

Its a lot of plotlines to get through, but those are the logical endpoints for each. If they cut each character to 6 or 7 episodes (like they've shown the capability of this season) it will work out. If they decide to cut the "new characters," it becomes even easier. D+D will have surpassed GRRM by 2015 unless WoW comes out by then, and he'll have until 2017 (probably) to get ADoS out. 7 seasons makes sense if the show isn't going to drag/ be riddled with filler.

Most of that looks good to me. Those would be a great couple of seasons.

[The Pain Yak]

So long as GOT continues being a cash cow franchise for HBO to milk, we can probably reliably expect 8 seasons, if D&D want 8 seasons.

[hallam]

So did the producer of Rome

I doubt they manage seven seasons I think the show will lose the hipe around season 5 and then end. HBO won't continue the show if it's lose viewers and the plots of the two filler books are most likely predestinated to cause that

Rome was a joint production of HBO, RAI and BBC. HBO wanted to continue the series but the BBC did not due to the cost. HBO is doing GOT on its own and seems to have worked out a viable funding model. The US norm is to do seven series if at all possible as that is considered the minimum for perpetual syndication.

I think that they are going to have to go for more though because GRRM is not delivering books fast enough. As far as we know book 6 is at best half done and even with the number of script writers and other support, the HBO series has to take a lot of his time as well. So if they continue at one book per season they might have book 6 ready in time but certainly not book 7.

Extending the series to 10 seasons would give GRRM at least a chance of having Book 7 ready for concurrent release with the final series.

I don't see the characters aging being a problem. The children mostly have bit parts in any case. GMMR seems to like killing them off horribly. The only exception is Aryn who is a faceless man and the life she is leading is the sort of life you would expect to make her age rather fast. So she might end up having to play a 16/17 year old Arya at 24. that is a stretch but hardly a disaster.

The X files was a very different situation. The episodes were independent without a real plot arc binding them together. There were only two lead characters and one of them left the series. By season 4 I lost interest because the only thing I was interested in was the mythology episodes and the rest had become filler. Also the obnoxious Rupert Moloch anti-government paranoia peddling was grating.