‘Game of Thrones’ Star Defends the Showrunners Over Series Ending

The final season of Game of Thrones is almost here, premiering on HBO in less than a month with some of the longest episodes in the series yet. With just six more installments before the series ends, there are a lot of expectations riding on the conclusion to “A Song of Ice and Fire.” But Jaime Lannister actor Nikolaj Coster-Waldau loves the ending, even if it proves divisive.

The star of Game of Thrones praised showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss for staying true to their vision and not expanding the series beyond the story. Coster-Waldau expressed his admiration during an interview with Men’s Health.

“…That [show runners] D. B. Weiss and David Benioff stuck to their guns and said, ‘This is the story we wanna tell; we’re not gonna extend this’—because I’m sure HBO would have loved another couple years of this show. There’s an audience for it, for sure,” Coster-Waldau explained. “But I think everyone who watches the show will appreciate that it’s finished—that it was one story from episode 1 to episode 83, and we told it.”

The showrunners themselves spoke about the end of the series during an interview with Entertainment Weekly.

“If you’re going to spend 10 years working on one show, you better really love the people you work with, because you’re spending a sh—load of time away from your family and friends,” said Benioff. “You always put everything into it. So to spend time on a show that people respond to all over the world, it’s incredibly gratifying. You have these characters you love and you can come up with ideas for them, and a few months later these incredible actors will be saying those things. That’s such a rare gift.”

Added Weiss, “If 10 years ago somebody had given me a chance to write a ticket, I wouldn’t have been crazy enough to write a ticket to something this great. I just think about how bizarre it will be to not be doing this anymore, because it becomes the water you swim in. It becomes every minute of every day, 365 days a year, this show is on your mind or in your life. After it’s done, it will be like re-entering some weird universe where I don’t even know how people act there anymore.… When I’m 75 years old, I’m going to be [affecting a quivering, elderly voice], ‘You know, it would be great if Tyrion said… Ah, goddamn it!’”

Fans will get to experience the beginning of the end of Game of Thrones when the series returns to HBO on April 14th.