With the "Game of Thrones" season four finale out of the way, showrunners Dan Weiss and David Beinoff are already teasing fans about the upcoming season.

The showrunners strayed from George R.R. Martin's novels in season four, which some fans enjoyed, even if the appearance of one of their favorite characters failed to make it into the finale.  During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Weiss and Beinoff explained the books provide them with a direction, but there is more than one way to get to a "destination."

Weiss: "We try not to talk about what's coming in future seasons, especially while the current season is still airing - and when we're not even finished writing the future seasons. I should probably be doing that right now, actually. The books are the reason we're doing this; they're our road map, and they provide many or most of our destinations. But there are many ways to get to each destination, and some are more appropriate for our show than others, and I am totally losing the thread of this metaphor here, aren't I? Yup. No idea where I was going with that. Destination unknown."

Benioff: "While it's good to hear that those scenes were positively received by the fans, we've stayed away from the message boards and whatnot since season one. Did we mention those anti-anxiety pills? We have to make a show that succeeds on its own terms, and sometimes that means veering away from the books. Some people will be upset by that. Some people will like it. Obviously we hope for more of the latter, but if we ever write a scene (or avoid writing a scene) because we're afraid of pissing someone off, we're sunk. As for season five, we're still figuring out how we can afford everything we want to do. There are a few sequences that are absolutely terrifying from a production standpoint."

You can read Weiss and Beinoff's full interview with The Hollywood Reporter here.  The showrunners have yet to announce when the next season of "Game of Thrones" will premiere next year.

What would you like to see in season five of "Game of Thrones?"  Leave us a comment below.