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The Walking Dead's Robert Kirkman may not be a stranger to killing off beloved characters, but he knows who the real maester is: Game of Thrones' George R.R. Martin.
Speaking at Annecy (via Deadline), Kirkman said, "He is the master and I am but the learner. He is way better at killing characters than me."
But that's not for want of trying. While Martin may have made his name by putting characters on the chopping block – Ned Stark, Jon Snow (before his revival), and Joffrey Baratheon among them – Kirkman reveals he has a twisted sense of bloodlust, especially surrounding the AMC adaptation of his ever-popular The Walking Dead comic.
“When we started on Walking Dead I was the lunatic in the writers' room who was like, 'I don't know, just kill the main character, who cares? We'll do something weird.'"
That even extended to "pushing to kill Daryl Dixon for a while." Norman Reedus' Daryl Dixon went on to become a fan favorite, eventually starring in three seasons of his own spin-off series with a fourth on the way.
Kirkman added, "Any character in The Walking Dead, at some point I was in the writers' rooms saying, 'Why don't we kill them today?'"
The Walking Dead writer has continued his killstreak on the small screen with Invincible, which has left plenty of crushed skulls and unspooled organs in its wake.
But George R.R. Martin's work is matching him death for death. He may no longer be involved in the series after behind-the-scenes drama with showrunner Ryan Condal, but House of the Dragon season 3 featured plenty of casualties in its Battle of the Gullet premiere. One actor involved even revealed they had a specific request for their death scene.
For our verdict, check out the House of the Dragon season 3 review. If you're still playing catch up on Kirkman's bloodletting, we have a guide the best way to watch The Walking Dead in order.
