The end is near — at least for HBO's "Game of Thrones." It has been recently confirmed that the popular fantasy series will conclude with season 8.

Showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss have previously voiced out their plan to stop at eight seasons. The two creatives clearly have a vision for how the show should end. But fans still remained hopeful that the show could go past eight seasons, especially since HBO has not made the announcement yet.

However, while speaking to Entertainment Weekly at the Television Critics Association's Press Tour, HBO programming president Casey Bloys crushed fans' hopes. "Yes, they have a very specific plan about the number of seasons they want to do," Bloys said. "Believe me, as the new [programming executive] coming in, if I could get them to do more. I would take 10 more seasons. But we take their lead on what they think they can do the best version of the show."

Benioff and Weiss have certainly planned ahead, envisioning the eighth season to only consist of six episodes. With season 7 poised to air only seven episodes, that brings a grand total of 13 episodes left for fans to enjoy.

But while the thought of having to say goodbye to a favorite series is disheartening, there may be renewed hope for "Game of Thrones" to continue — in some form or another. The possibility of a spin-off was discussed and Bloys admitted that they are not closing the door on the idea just yet.

"I'm open to it. The guys weren't opposed to it, but there's no concrete plans for it at this point," Bloys explained. Season 7 is about to start production, so it's understandable that plans for a spin-off has not yet been thoroughly laid out.

As for what the new season will bring, nothing concrete is known yet. Fans can't turn to the novels at this point as well because author George R.R. Martin has not yet finished the next installation.

However, that isn't to say that there aren't any predictions out there. The world of "Game of Thrones" is a vast one and its fan following is quite active online. Some predictions have ranged from Gendry's return to more nobles dying. A recent sighting of Iain Glen at Belfast has also sparked hope for his character's survival.

More news and updates should arrive soon.