"Game of Thrones" Season 7 has kick started its production. The shooting of the penultimate season of the hit HBO show has officially begun in Norther Ireland.
While primary filming has quietly begun on Aug. 30, Tuesday, the cast of fantasy series have begun gathering at Titanic Studios in Belfast, Northern Ireland, the hit show's production hub, Entertainment Weekly reported. Apart from the recurring locations, the show will also be filmed in new locations in Spain and Iceland this time.
All the characters of the show that survived the bloody war at the end of season 6 are set to return, including raised-from-the-dead Jon Snow, played by Kit Harrington, Peter Dinklage's Tyrion Lannister, Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister and Emilia Clarke's Daenerys Targaryen. They will be joined by Oscar winning actor Jim Bradbentin in a significant role, although the producers have yet to reveal what it is.
"Game of Thrones" will only be shooting for seven episodes for the upcoming season, that is expected to debut in the summer of 2017, three months after its usual spring debut. Fans of the show will have to wait for the season to begin to catch up with the happenings in Westeros and Essos since the show has already surpassed its source novels by George R.R. Martin.
"Game of Thrones" Season 6 ended with Daenerys heading to Westeros and Cersei sitting on the Iron Throne. It is being highly speculated among the fans that the two queens are expected to clash in the first few episodes of the upcoming season.
A popular fan theory states that Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) will make a surprising visit to the Dragonpit, a huge ruin perched in King's Landing, in Season 7 after overthrowing Cersie in a bloody battle. The new filming location in Spain is expected to be film the scenes of Dragonpit, Watchers On The Wall reported.
Fans of the show are also expecting a reunion of Stark sisters in the upcoming season. Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner), Jon Snow and Arya Stark (Maisie Williams) were separated in Season 1. While Jon Snow and Sansa, who did not really have much of a connection prior to their family split-up, had an emotional reunion in Season 6, the fans are hoping for a more dramatic one this time when the two meet their younger sister.
Meanwhile, watch the final scene of "Game of Thrones" Season 6 below: