HBO Reveals Stellar Director Slate for Game of Thrones‘ Last Season

As Game of Thrones draws ever closer to its fiery, icy conclusion, a sense of finality continues to set in. HBO, not helping matters, has revealed the directors for the series’ eighth and final season. The last six episodes of Game of Thrones will be directed by Miguel Sapochnik, David Nutter, and co-creators and showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss. Benioff and Weiss will direct the series finale, per THR.

While it’s sad how real this news makes the show’s impending end, it’s also incredibly exciting. Sapochnik is arguably the best director in Game of Thrones history, having helmed several of the show’s most superlative, action-packed episodes in “Hardhome,” “Battle of the Bastards” and “The Winds of Winter.” Fans were gutted when it was announced that Sapochnik would not direct a single episode of season seven, so it’s an absolute thrill to hear that he’ll be making a return to the series in season eight. There’s no director more well-equipped to deliver the kind of heart-stopping, epic storytelling that Game of Thrones’ last stand so richly deserves.

Nutter is no slouch, either: The director has helmed six Game of Thrones episodes, including the unforgettable Red Wedding episode, “The Rains of Castamere,” and the last two episodes of season five, “The Dance of Dragons” and “Mother’s Mercy,” the latter of which saw Jon Snow meet his (fortunately, temporary) end. Nutter, too, sat season seven out, but the Emmy-winning TV veteran is a more than welcome presence in a Game of Thrones director’s chair.

That just leaves us with Benioff and Weiss, who plan to film multiple endings in order to ensure that no plot details are leaked before the show makes it to air. Game of Thrones’ last season starts production next month, and is looking likely to air in late 2018 at the earliest. But with today’s news, we can certainly say the show’s grand finale is in excellent hands.