Game of Thrones and Westworld are skipping SDCC 2018 - and it might be because their new seasons have release dates

Something unprecedented is going to happen at SDCC 2018. For the first time ever, Game of Thrones won’t have a presence at the event, and neither will Westworld. To thicken the plot further, their reasonings for not being there make it seem very likely that Game of Thrones season 8 and Westworld season 3’s release dates are set in stone for post-SDCC 2019.

As reported by Deadline, HBO confirmed in a statement: “Due to production schedules and air dates for Game of Thrones and Westworld, these series will not be presented at San Diego Comic-Con this summer.”

Wait, what? Air dates?

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SDCC takes place in July every year and, with neither of HBO’s premiere shows making an appearance, it only indicates one thing: Westworld season 3 and Game of Thrones season 8 aren’t ready for SDCC 2018, but, rather, SDCC 2019 because of their “air dates” - i.e. they’re both coming after next year’s Comic Con in July 2019.

Think about it. HBO wouldn’t straight-up avoid SDCC 2018 unless they a) Didn’t have footage ready or b) They felt it was redundant to talk about the same seasons two years in a row.

Game of Thrones season 8 has been confirmed for 2019, but it looks like we could again be getting a later return for the final six episodes a la Game of Thrones season 7, as well as the traditional year-plus gap heading into Westworld season 3, too.

Of course, we could go the other way with it. It may be as simple as Game of Thrones season 8 airing just before SDCC 2019 (a late April release date would see it finishing a month before the event), with Westworld season 3 airing straight after.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments!

Heck, even if both of those shows don’t make it for at least another year, feel safe in the knowledge you’ve got plenty of new TV shows to pass the time until then.