GAME OF THRONES could be returning to Northern Ireland in the not-too-distant future.
That's according to Richard Williams, the head of Northern Ireland Screen, who admitted to the BBC that HBO "may not" end up leaving the region for long.
Game of Thrones is partly filmed at Titanic Studios in Belfast and at several locations spread across Northern Ireland.
The final series of the show, which is due to be broadcast in 2019, wrapped production earlier this year with HBO unveiling plans to open the show's sets to tourists and visitors.
And despite the fact the show is apparently waving goodbye to Titanic Studios, Williams believes there's a good chance some of any spin-off series could see production return to Northern Ireland.
"Game of Thrones is still occupying Titanic Studios and I can't really think about what might replace them in Titanic Studios until they leave," he told BBC News NI.
"I don't want them to leave and who knows they may not.
"I can't say too much, but it is in the public domain that they have ambitions to have spin-off content likely to be a prequel in terms of the storytelling, so who knows?"
Sophie Turner and Aidan Gillen in Game of Thrones
Though details on the spin-off plans remain scarce, HBO did offer up the following outline of what to expect from the Game of Thrones follow-up:
"The series chronicles the world's descent from the Golden Age of Heroes into its darkest hour. And only one thing is for sure: From the horrifying secrets of Westeros' history to the true origin of the white walkers, the mysteries of the East, to the Starks of legend… it's not the story we think we know."
Three of Game of Thrones' most iconic settings, Castle Black, Winterfell and King's Landing are all based in Northern Ireland.
