HBO's hit fantasy series Game of Thrones is winding down, with the pentultimate Season 7 debuting July 16, to be followed by the eighth and final season next year. The premium cable network is fleshing out plans for new follow-up shows. The network has brought in Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, along with author George R.R. Martin, to develop four new follow-up shows, with a new writer working on each series. The writers who have been brought in are Max Borenstein (Godzilla, Kong: Skull Island), Jane Goldman (Kick-Ass, Kingsman: The Golden Circle), Brian Helgeland (Mystic River, L.A. Confidential) and Carly Wray (Mad Man).

Entertainment Weeklky broke the news on these new shows, revealing that George R.R. Martin will be co-writing the shows that Jane Goldman and Carly Wray are working on, but no specific plot details were given. David Benioff and D.B. Weiss will be involved in the shows as executive producers, but they are not involved in the writing process, since they're currently writing the eighth and final season of the flagship series. The network didn't reveal any plot details about any of these shows, only stating that they will "explore different time periods of George R. R. Martin's vast and rich universe." Here's what a network representative had to say about David Benioff and D.B. Weiss' involvement.

"Weiss and Benioff continue to work on finishing up the seventh season and are already in the midst of writing and preparing for the eighth and final season. We have kept them up to date on our plans and they will be attached, along with George R. R. Martin, as executive producers on all projects. We will support them as they take a much-deserved break from writing about Westeros once the final season is complete."

We've reported several times that HBO was developing Game of Thrones prequels, but it wasn't specified if these new shows would be prequels, spin-offs, or something else entirely. EW also reports that some of these shows being developed could end up as a mini-series, instead of a full-fledged series. The site's sources claim that the network has several different options on the table, but the HBO representative also stated that they are in no rush to bring any of these shows to the small screen. Here's what the HBO rep had to say in an additional statement.

"There is no set timetable for these projects. We'll take as much or as little time as the writers need and, as with all our development, we will evaluate what we have when the scripts are in."

Game of Thrones showunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss had previously stated that they will not be involved in any future spin-off or prequel, but now it seems they'll be involved as executive producers. While they won't serve as writers or showrunners, they'll most certainly be involved in some way, shape or form, but certainly not to the extent of their involvement in the flagship Game of Thrones series. It remains to be seen when the network plans on revealing more details about these upcoming shows.