George R. R. Martin started to "worry" about Game of Thrones after season 5, new book reveals

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The author was concerned when the show stopped following his plan

Game of Thrones
(Image credit: HBO)

Game of Thrones author George R. R. Martin was worried about the HBO show after season 5, a new book reveals.

"George loves Dan [Weiss] and Dave [Benioff, showrunners], but after season 5 he did start to worry about the path they were [going down] because George knows where the story goes," Martin's representative, Paul Haas, is quoted in James Andrew Miller's Tinderbox: HBO's Ruthless Pursuit of New Frontiers, as reported by Winter is Coming. "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."

Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire book series is incomplete, so his intended ending is still a mystery – according to Haas, the author has "not told anybody" who will sit on the Iron Throne when all is said and done. In the show, it was Isaac Hempstead Wright's Bran who emerged victorious in the season 8 finale.

While Game of Thrones has finished airing, that doesn't mean we won't be returning to Westeros. The prequel series House of the Dragon is due for release in 2022, focusing on House Targaryen and their civil war that became known as the Dance of the Dragons.

"I've always thought this was a cool story, it's one I like, so I'm looking forward to seeing it come alive on screen," Martin has said of the prequel. "And of course I'm looking forward to the dragons. Obviously, I love the dragons. We had three of them in Game of Thrones, but now we got like 17 of them."

House of the Dragon doesn't have a firm release date just yet, but in the meantime, check out our guide to the best Netflix shows streaming now to fill out your watchlist.

Molly Edwards
Molly Edwards
Deputy Entertainment Editor

I'm the Deputy Entertainment Editor here at GamesRadar+, covering all things film and TV for the site's Total Film and SFX sections. I previously worked on the Disney magazines team at Immediate Media, and also wrote on the CBeebies, MEGA!, and Star Wars Galaxy titles after graduating with a BA in English.