Season 7

Season 7 of Game of Thrones was announced by HBO on 21 April 2016. In contrast to previous seasons, the seventh season will reportedly consist of fewer than ten episodes, due to the smaller amount of story content remaining, as well as the increased production values and time required to film episodes involving larger set pieces than in previous seasons.

Like the sixth season, Season 7 will be based on an outline of the two final, presently-unpublished novels in George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series, The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring. Filming will commence for a 2017 release.

Plot
After almost a decade-long summer, Westeros now braces itself for an equally-harsh winter, in more ways than one.

In King's Landing, Cersei Lannister has finally seized the absolute power that she has craved for many years. In one swift move, she has eliminated nearly all of her enemies, rivals and obstructions, including Queen Margaery Tyrell, Lord Mace Tyrell, Loras Tyrell, her uncle Kevan, Grand Maester Pycelle, the High Sparrow and the entirety of the Faith Militant, by destroying the Great Sept of Baelor using large amounts of wildfire. Her three children, Joffrey, Myrcella and Tommen are all dead, Tommen having taken his own life shortly after the Sept's destruction, and thus Cersei has crowned herself the undisputed Queen of the Seven Kingdoms, with Qyburn as her Hand and the undead knight Ser Gregor Clegane at her side. After years of serving as the power behind the throne, House Lannister has now finally become the new royal house. However, Cersei is still haunted by the prophecy she was told about during her childhood, which claimed that the deaths of her children would only predate her own, making her all the more determined to crush her enemies once and for all, and though she now sits on the Iron Throne, she is Queen of the Seven Kingdoms in name only, given that her actions have undoubtedly earned her the hatred of all of Westeros, most of which is either in open rebellion against the Iron Throne or has fallen out of her allies' control. It is the beginning of the end.

Despite Cersei's rise to power, the seemingly endless War of the Five Kings continues to ravage the country.

In the Riverlands, the last bastion of King Robb Stark's independent Northern/Riverland Kingdom, Riverrun, has fallen to House Lannister and House Frey, led by Ser Jaime Lannister. Robb's great-uncle, Brynden "The Blackfish" Tully, is dead, having chosen to fight to the death rather than surrender Riverrun, a move that was made possible by his own nephew, Edmure Tully, who ordered the Tully garrison to stand down for the sake of his wife and child. Despite the victory of House Frey, Lord Walder Frey is also dead, having been murdered by Arya Stark for his role in the Red Wedding, leaving the rule of the Riverlands in unknown hands. Also, Sandor "The Hound" Clegane has survived his brutal fight with Brienne of Tarth and attempted to build a new, humble life, but has been dragged back into conflict by the Brotherhood Without Banners, who intend to head North to fight in the war that is coming. Brienne and her squire, Podrick Payne, were only barely able to escape the fall of Riverrun, following their failed attempt to recruit the Blackfish to their cause.

On the Iron Islands, King Balon Greyjoy is dead, having been murdered by his psychopathic brother, Euron Greyjoy. Balon's son, Theon, who returned to the Iron Islands after helping Sansa Stark escape from Ramsay Bolton, endorsed his elder sister, Yara, as their father's successor at the subsequent Kingsmoot, but Euron has usurped the Salt Throne with the promise of an alliance with Daenerys Targaryen across the Narrow Sea to help him conquer the Seven Kingdoms. In desperation, Theon and Yara have stolen most of Euron's fleet and sought out Daenerys's help first, and secured an alliance between House Targaryen and House Greyjoy to help Daenerys retake the Iron Throne and execute Euron for his crimes. Euron, however, has ordered the construction of an even bigger fleet to destroy all who may stand in his way.

Also aiding the Targaryens are the Tyrells and the Dornish. In Dorne, Ellaria Sand and the Sand Snakes have staged a coup and murdered Prince Doran Martell and his heir, Trystane, and taken control of Dorne in retaliation for Doran refusing to avenge his dead brother, Oberyn, on the basis that he was killed by Gregor Clegane in a lawful trial by combat. With Cersei declaring war against the Sands for the murder of Myrcella, Ellaria has turned to Daenerys and her loyalists to bring the Lannisters down, though Daenerys's Hand, Myrcella's uncle Tyrion Lannister, may demand justice against the Sands for murdering his niece in cold blood. Meanwhile, Lady Olenna Tyrell, incensed by the deaths of her son, grandson and granddaughter, has also declared for Daenerys, through a meeting with Ellaria, facilitated by Varys.

Most of the strife in the Seven Kingdoms, however, lies at the North. At Winterfell, Roose Bolton is dead, having been murdered by his own son, Ramsay, along with his wife and newborn child, leaving Ramsay as the new Warden of the North and enabling him to solidify alliances with House Karstark and House Umber, with Rickon Stark as a hostage. At the Wall, following a horrific mutiny, the deceased Lord Commander Jon Snow has been revived by the Red Priestess Melisandre, while Sansa Stark has escaped from Winterfell and Ramsay, to seek shelter with Jon. Having resigned his post in the Night's Watch, Jon has built an army to retake Winterfell from Ramsay, aided by Ser Davos Seaworth, Tormund and Lady Lyanna Mormont, and though they have achieved victory, defeated Ramsay and destroyed House Bolton thanks to the Knights of the Vale, courtesy of Lord Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish, House Stark's future is left in a questionable position. With Robb and Rickon dead and Bran believed dead as well, the Northern Lords have turned to Jon and named him the new King in the North, while Sansa has rejected Littlefinger's proposal to help him take the Iron Throne and serve as his queen. Given that Littlefinger was instrumental in the outbreak of the war by conspiring with Lysa Arryn to murder Jon Arryn and pit the Starks and Lannisters against each other to throw Westeros into complete chaos, and one of Littlefinger's initial goals was to become the new Warden of the North, Jon's ascension to King in the North is now a major obstacle in Littlefinger's master plan, setting the stage for a looming conflict between Jon and Littlefinger. Melisandre, meanwhile, has been dismissed from Jon's service following the discovery of her role in Shireen Baratheon's death, stripping Jon of easily one of his most valuable advisors, and is now heading to locations unknown.

In the Reach, despite having to brave various obstacles, Samwell Tarly and his surrogate family, Gilly and her son, have finally reached the Citadel in Oldtown, where Sam intends to train as a maester to gain some insight into the White Walkers and how to defeat them. However, with his theft of his family's Valyrian sword, Heartsbane, he will have undoubtedly incurred the immense wrath of his father, Randyll Tarly, who will likely seek retribution, leaving it up to Samwell to use the sword in his studies and uncover the secrets behind Valyrian steel for the coming battle against the dead before all is lost.

In Braavos, though Arya Stark has regained her sight and favor with the Faceless Men, her code of honor has put her at odds with the guild, causing her to botch an assassination attempt on an innocent target. Despite almost being killed, Arya has escaped Braavos with her life and returned to Westeros, beginning her vengeance for her family by murdering Walder Frey and his sons, Lame Lothar and Black Walder, for orchestrating the Red Wedding that claimed the lives of her mother, brother, and pregnant sister-in-law. Arya, now possessing some of the Faceless Men's unusual techniques, sets about crossing off more names on her list of vengeance.

Across the Narrow Sea, after having finally defeated the Slave Masters and the Sons of the Harpy and acquired an army made from the Dothraki, the Unsullied, House Greyjoy, House Tyrell, and Dorne, Queen Daenerys Targaryen has finally set sail for Westeros, with Tyrion Lannister at her side as her Hand of the Queen, though at the cost of two of her advisors: Jorah Mormont, whom Daenerys has sent to find a cure for his spreading greyscale infection, and Daario Naharis, her lover whom Daenerys has ordered to stay behind with the Second Sons on Tyrion's advice so that she may pursue a marriage alliance to aid her in her campaign. The Mother of Dragons now prepares herself for a clash of queens unlike anything Westeros has ever seen. Unknown to Daenerys, however, there is somebody across the Narrow Sea who may very well have a stronger claim than her to the Targaryen monarchy, which will lead to Daenerys coming face-to-face with her only living relative who may be either her best political ally yet, or possibly her greatest enemy.

Beyond the Wall, Bran Stark has been training in his powers in greensight under the tutelage of the Three-eyed raven and learned some devastating secrets, such as origin of the White Walkers and the true parentage of his half-brother, Jon Snow: he is the son of Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryen, which would make him the nephew and a rival claimant to Daenerys Targaryen for the Iron Throne. Following an attack which claims the lives of the Three-eyed raven, Hodor and the last of the Children of the Forest, Bran and Meera Reed have been rescued by Bran's undead uncle, Benjen Stark, and taken back to the Wall to prepare for the arrival of the Night King, who at all costs must be defeated before Westeros can dream of another spring.

Filming
El Punt Avui reports that Season 7 will not return to Girona for filming. However, Fresco Films has been scouting Spain for several locations containing "castles." There have also been reports of a significant number of battles taking place in and near these castles.

Producers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss have confirmed that season seven will be both filmed and released later than past seasons of Game of Thrones. This is mainly due to the desire to accurately depict the winter that now grips Westeros.

Cast
Presumed returning starring cast Confirmed returning guest starring cast
 * Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister
 * Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Ser Jaime Lannister
 * Lena Headey as Queen Cersei Lannister
 * Kit Harington  as King  Jon Snow
 * Emilia Clarke  as Queen  Daenerys Targaryen
 * Liam Cunningham as Ser Davos Seaworth
 * Sophie Turner as Princess Sansa Stark
 * Aidan Gillen as Lord Petyr Baelish
 * Carice van Houten as Lady Melisandre
 * Indira Varma as Ellaria Sand
 * Rory McCann as Sandor Clegane
 * Nathalie Emmanuel as Missandei
 * Maisie Williams as Princess Arya Stark
 * Conleth Hill as Varys
 * Alfie Allen as Prince Theon Greyjoy
 * John Bradley as Samwell Tarly
 * Gwendoline Christie as Brienne of Tarth
 * Jerome Flynn as Ser Bronn
 * Isaac Hempstead-Wright as Prince Bran Stark
 * Kristofer Hivju as Tormund Giantsbane
 * Hannah Murray as Gilly
 * Iain Glen as Ser Jorah Mormont
 * Pilou Asbæk as King Euron Greyjoy
 * Anton Lesser as Qyburn
 * Gemma Whelan as Princess Yara Greyjoy
 * Josephine Gillan as Marei

Reported new characters
 * A 16-year-old Northern girl
 * A 10-year-old Northern boy

Producers

 * David Benioff: executive producer & showrunner
 * D.B. Weiss: executive producer & showrunner
 * Bernadette Caulfield: executive producer
 * Frank Doelger: executive producer
 * Carolyn Strauss: executive producer
 * George R.R. Martin: co-executive producer
 * Vince Gerardis: co-executive producer
 * Guymon Casady: co-executive producer
 * Greg Spence: producer
 * Chris Newman: producer
 * Lisa McAtackney: producer
 * Bryan Cogman: supervising producer
 * Michele Clapton: costume designer
 * Deborah Riley: production designer
 * Ramin Djawadi: composer
 * Nina Gold: casting director
 * Robert Sterne: casting director

Writers

 * David Benioff & D.B. Weiss
 * Bryan Cogman

Directors

 * Mark Mylod
 * Jeremy Podeswa
 * Matt Shakman
 * Alan Taylor