HBO Rules Out Airing Any of Game of Thrones' Final Season in Theaters or IMAX

With the end of Game of Thrones approaching, the HBO drama is becoming more cinematic than ever. (The upcoming seventh season will feature the series' two longest episodes ever.) However, don't expect HBO to capitalize on this by debuting any of Thrones' final episodes in theaters or IMAX.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, HBO's president of programming Casey Bloys definitively ruled out the idea of any sort of theatrical release. "This is for subscribers," he explained.

Beyond nixing the idea of debuting any episodes in theaters (something which ABC is embracing with its IMAX premiere of the new drama Inhumans this September), Bloys admits the network hasn't solidified any airing plans for Thrones' final six episodes -- including whether they will air consecutively or be broken up into two halves. "I don't anticipate anything totally unusual, but again, until we figure out the production schedule, everything is going to come from that," Bloys said.

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If you're bummed that you won't get to experience the Game of Thrones Season 8 premiere, penultimate episode or finale in theaters, don't lose all hope just yet. The network previously aired two Season 4 episodes in IMAX ahead of Season 5 and did special theater screenings for the Season 6 premiere that aired simultaneously with the HBO debut. And so while Bloys seems opposed to anything like the latter, there still is a chance HBO will choose to show one or more of Thrones' final episodes in theaters after the series wraps up.

Game of Thrones' seven-episode seventh season premieres Sunday at 9/8c. It will return for a six-episode eighth and final season likely in either 2018 or 2019.