‘Game Of Thrones’ & ‘Westworld’ Skipping San Diego Comic-Con, HBO Says

Hall H of the San Diego Convention Center is going to be a little hollowed out this year as HBO has just declared that fan faves Game of Thrones and Westworld will not be attending Comic-Con 2018.

“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,” the premium cabler said Thursday. “HBO has a longstanding relationship with SDCC, and we are very grateful for the fans’ enthusiastic response over the years. We look forward to returning in the future.”

In fact, not only will the Comic-Con veterans not be at the July 19-22 fanboy and fangirl fest, but there won’t be any HBO presence at all, Deadline has learned. So if you were hoping to learn more about the GoT prequel that recently got a pilot order from HBO, sorry but it seems you’re out of luck.

With just over a month until hundreds of thousands descend on SDCC, no GoT or the Jonathan Nolan/Lisa Joy-run Westworld certainly takes some serious wind out of the fest’s sails, at least in the small-screen aspect. Although fellow blockbuster series The Walking Dead and its spinoff Fear the Walking Dead still are expected to have their own Hall H love-in for AMC, a presumed dimmed Marvel presence might turn SDCC’s spotlight to newer prospects like Syfy’s upcoming Deadly Class and Nightflyers.

The latter, of course, is based on a novella by GoT author George R.R. Martin — which means in some sense there will be a Thrones presence even if there isn’t, it you know what I mean.

Renewed for a third season on May 1 and having been at both SDCC and NYCC in the past, Westworld ends its multi-layered second season on June 24.

Still deep into work on its allegedly epic eighth and final GoT season due to debut next year, the David Benioff- and D. B. Weiss-EP’d series based on Martin’s books has been a constant crowdpleaser at SDCC since its first season in 2011. However, don’t think the big-budget two-time Emmy Best Drama winner is done with Comic-Con — there is always next year when all may be revealed, or not.