: David Benioff and D. B. Weiss continued as showrunners, basing the season on outlines for the upcoming novels The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring .

: Ed Sheeran made a controversial cameo as a Lannister soldier in the premiere, a surprise arranged for fan Maisie Williams. Key Plot Developments

: By this season, the core cast members—Peter Dinklage, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Lena Headey, Emilia Clarke, and Kit Harington—were reportedly earning up to $1 million per episode .

Game of Thrones Season 7 , which premiered on July 16, 2017 , marked a significant shift in the series as it began to outpace George R.R. Martin's published novels and move toward its endgame. Consisting of only seven episodes, the season was notable for its accelerated pacing and massive production scale. Production and Development