By Ned Ehrbar, CBS News

Fans excited about the return of “Game of Thrones” might do well to savor the new episodes, since there might not be that many more left for the hugely popular series.

Season 6 kicks off on April 24 and will be a 10-episode season as usual for HBO’s flagship fantasy series. But after this season wraps up, things could get tricky, the show’s executive producers warn in an interview with Variety. David Benioff and Dan Weiss explained that the series could go to eight seasons instead of the seven they’ve always envisioned, but that extra season could call for some adjusting of the episode orders.

“I think we’re down to our final 13 episodes after this season,” Benioff said. “We’re heading into the final lap. That’s the guess, though nothing is yet set in stone, but that’s what we’re looking at.”

Those 13 episodes would be divided up into a seven-episode Season 7 and a six-episode Season 8.

HBO’s Michael Lombardo admitted that while plans for Season 7 and beyond haven’t been worked out, he has been made aware of Weiss and Benioff’s desires to wind things down.

“That’s my understanding from them right now, those have been the conversations we’ve had,” he said. “Because where these narratives go, it feels like another two years to them. As a television executive, as a fan, do I wish they said another six years? I do.”

Editor’s note: This story was first published on CBSNews.com.