George R.R. Martin saw right through Game of Thrones’ direction and was worried that the show might badly disappoint.

The HBO series Game of Thrones is deemed as another entry in the long list of TV series that captivated audiences for years. However, while fans have appreciated the show for its grandeur and mesmerizing storyline, the series finale turned out to be quite disappointing for most. And seemingly George R.R. Martin began dreading this very problem after season 5.

George R.R. Martin
George R.R. Martin (image: Gage Skidmore/Wikimedia Commons)
Leaving a trail of disappointment in their wake, showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss curtailed a certain major arc which made the ending seem abrupt. This particular approach that the show followed after season 5, began worrying George R.R. Martin. The author’s representative, Paul Haas, thus opened up about Martin’s thoughts on his behalf.

George R.R. Martin Predicted a Flaw in Game of Thrones

While Game of Thrones holds a special place in people’s hearts, no one can deny how badly the series deteriorated by the end. Falling foul of the curse of the series finale, the HBO show left a trail of disappointment for fans to remember it by. Now, netizens simply wonder whether the ending of A Song of Ice and Fire novels will mirror the conclusion delivered by showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss in Game of Thrones, or it might differ.

Meanwhile, revelations from George R.R. Martin’s representative, Paul Haas notify fans that the author had predicted a flaw in the storyline of Game of Thrones, right after season 5. According to Haas’s comments from an excerpt in Tinderbox: HBO’s Ruthless Pursuit of New Frontiers (via The Independent), Martin was well aware that the show would end up disappointing fans because the showrunners didn’t follow his template.
Isaac Hempstead Wright

Isaac Hempstead Wright as Bran Stark in Game of Thrones
According to Paul Haas, George R.R. Martin has “not told anybody” the answer to the question “who gets the throne?”. However, quite early in the show, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss started predicting who was going to sit on the Iron Throne. Eventually, fans witnessed the Game of Thrones showrunners executing the idea of Bran Stark becoming Ruler of the Seven Kingdoms. While the books refrained from dropping hints while maintaining suspense, the show simply ruined it.

George R.R. Martin Worried About Game of Thrones’ Fate

There’s still a looming apprehension about who gets the Throne in George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire. Not just that, fans are even dreading the future of Jon Snow in the books as compared to how he was resurrected in the HBO show. There are so many suspenseful arcs yet to be explored by the author, but Game of Thrones seemingly turned them all commercial, to capitalize on fans’ expectations.

This is something that George R.R. Martin wasn’t happy about. Realizing how David Benioff and D.B. Weiss switched direction midway through the show, the author was highly disappointed with their approach. According to Paul Haas, Martin dreaded the fact that the series finale would disappoint gravely because of the way the showrunners dismissed his well-built strategy by season 5.

“George loves Dan and Dave, but after season 5 he did start to worry about the path they were [going down] because George knows where the story goes. He started saying, ‘You’re not following my template’. The first 5 seasons stuck to George’s roadmap. Then they went off George’s roadmap.”

A Song of Ice and Fire writer A Song of Ice and Fire author George R.R. Martin | image: Wikimedia Commons
Eventually, George R.R. Martin’s fears came true as Game of Thrones denied the approach followed by the author. But, certainly, everything can’t be blamed on the showrunners since MovieWeb purposefully pointed out how the main issue was Martin’s lengthy process of completing the final books, which began with A Game of Thrones back in 1996.

 
Game of Thrones [Credit Home Box Office Inc.]A still from Game of Thrones
Although Game of Thrones caught up with George R.R. Martin’s novels midway, it was quite clear that the show was going to reach its conclusion long before Martin completed the novels. Perhaps, the unfinished storyline is what drove David Benioff and D.B. Weiss to figure out their own ending, which is obvious to be devoid of the charm and suspense unlike Martin’s.

Game of Thrones is available on Max.