A whopping 10 months ago, Game Of Thrones Season 6 ended its run with an epic, explosive finale. "The Winds Of Winter" was one of the best hours of the show to date, featuring plenty of shocking deaths, unexpected triumphs, and the moment we've all been waiting for: Dany setting sail for Westeros. But that was almost an entire year ago, and the buzz of a single great episode can only last so long. With the Game Of Thrones Season 7 premiere still a few months away, fans are probably finding themselves in need of a fix to help them through these last torturous weeks.
Given that it's been such a long road between the Season 6 finale and now, you may need a brief recap of everything that's gone down in the world of Westeros since last June. Some of this news might be old, but some might actually surprise you — depending on how avid your consumption of GoT articles is on a daily basis. Either way, these casting reports, mini spoilers, and other Thrones-related news should help ease the hours between now and July.
Let's relive everything that's happened since "The Winds Of Winter," shall we? Here are the major milestones:
1. Season 7 Was Delayed
Bummer, man. On July 6, just over a week after the Season 6 finale ended in fiery catastrophe, HBO announced that production on Season 7 would be delayed so the crew could shoot during the winter months.
2. Season 7 Was Cut Short
As if that wasn't bad enough, on July 18, after weeks of rumors, HBO officially confirmed that Season 7 would consist of only seven episodes, as opposed to the usual 10.
3. This Teaser Was Released
Apparently, in an effort to mollify fans, HBO released this "In Production" teaser on July 22. It did its best to assure impatient viewers that the network was already hard at work on the new episodes.
4. New Characters Were Added
On August 23, TVLine released a casting breakdown for new characters that are being added to Season 7. Those roles include a warrior, a priest, a gate guard, a merchant, and a lieutenant.
5. Jim Broadbent Was Cast
Professor Slughorn joined the cast of GoT on August 31, when Entertainment Weekly announced that the Oscar-winning Harry Potter actor had signed on to the show in a secret but "significant" role.
6. Joe Dempsie Was Spotted On Set
Gendry sighting! Four years after King Robert's handsome bastard was last seen rowing away from the shores of Dragonstone in Season 3, we might finally be seeing the return of the fan favorite character. Actor Joe Dempsie was spotted on Sept. 13 arriving in Belfast, where much of GoT films.
7. It Won The Emmy For The Second Year In A Row
GoT had been nominated for Best Drama Series at the Primetime Emmy Awards every year it was on the air, but it took until the show's controversial fifth season for it to finally take home the trophy. It repeated its victory on Sept. 18, also taking home trophies for Best Writing and Best Directing.
8. Freddie Stroma Quit
Fans of UnREAL were dismayed on Nov. 18 when it was announced that Freddie Stroma (who plays dreamy bachelor Adam on that Lifetime series) would not be returning to GoT to reprise his brief but memorable role as Samwell's brother Dickon Tarly, due to scheduling conflicts with his new ABC drama Time After Time.
9. Emilia Clarke Joined The Star Wars Franchise
Also on Nov. 18, Disney announced that the Khaleesi herself would be traveling to a galaxy far, far away to join the cast of the upcoming (and untitled) Star Wars anthology film featuring Alden Ehrenreich as a young Han Solo.
10. George R.R. Martin Teased A Release Date
If there's anything diehard GoT fans are more impatient for than Season 7, it's The Winds Of Winter, the highly-anticipated sixth book in George R.R. Martin's A Song Of Ice And Fire series. Although no release date has been set yet, the author teased in his livejournal on Jan. 10 that, "I think it will be out this year."
11. Peter Dinklage Joined The MCU
The Mother of Dragons isn't the only GoT star joining a major Disney franchise. On Jan. 11, it was revealed that Dinklage was in talks to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe in an undisclosed but "key" role in the upcoming Avengers: Infinity War.
12. Sophie Turner Spoiled Sansa's Fate
One year after Sophie Turner revealed on the red carpet that her character would survive Season 6, the actress revealed on another red carpet on Feb. 13 that Sansa will survive Season 7. Breathe a sigh of relief, Sansa fans.
13. The Game Of Thrones Live Concert Experience Started
To help ease the passage of time until the delayed Season 7 premiere, HBO launched a live stadium tour featuring GoT composer Ramin Djawadi conducting a live orchestra and choir through some of the show's most iconic tracks, accompanied by montages of the show's action along with special effects including falling leaves, smoke, and plenty of fire. The tour kicked off on Feb. 20 in St. Paul, Minnesota, and visited 24 cities throughout the United States and Canada over the next six weeks.
14. HBO Announced The Season 7 Premiere Date
After much hullaballoo involving a giant block of ice and a couple of flamethrowers, HBO officially announced on March 9 that GoT Season 7 would premiere on Sunday, July 16. The same day, they also released this awesome "Sigils" teaser.
15. Ed Sheeran Was Cast
As a surprise gift for Arya Stark (Maisie Williams, a huge Ed Sheeran fan) as well as for the show's viewers, it was revealed on March 12 that the popular musician would be joining Season 7 for a guest appearance.
16. This Epic Promo Was Released
We still haven't seen any actual footage from the upcoming season yet (other than a literal half-second glimpse in an HBO "Coming In 2017" commercial), but this GoT Season 7 promo, released March 30, is our closest look yet at what the new episodes have in store for us: namely, new throne rooms, an invasion of White Walkers, and lots of epic strutting.
12 weeks and counting until Game Of Thrones Season 7 graces our TV screens. That's still a lot of time for more exciting news, casting announcements, and promos before winter finally arrives.
