Moviefone Editorial

Tag: george-rr-martin

  • Upcoming TV Shows That (May Have Been) Inspired by ‘Game of Thrones’

    Photo from FOX's 'Son of Zorn' (2016)“Game of Thrones” is like that high school kid whose punk-rock band won the talent show, but also played Dungeons & Dragons on the weekends — it may have a nerdy heart, but it’s wrapped up in layers of sex, gore, and rock n’ roll. Its epic fantasy core is also wrapped up in transcendent performances, political intrigue, betrayal, and the possibility of key characters kicking the bucket at any moment. You can thank George R.R. Martin‘s no-holds-barred storytelling for that.

    And just as your high-school hero inspired others to break out their punk-rock regalia, “Thrones” wildly popular formula has inspired legions of loving imitators who hope to catch some of that scorching hot Drogon fire. Lucky for you, networks across the board are willing to scratch your “Thrones” itch in 2016 and onward.

    ‘His Dark Materials’ (BBC)

    A critically acclaimed network aims to adapt a series of epic fantasy novels from the 1990s. No, it’s not an upcoming doc about the creation of HBO’s “Game of Thrones,” it’s real news about the BBC’s upcoming TV adaptation of Philip Pullman‘s “His Dark Materials” trilogy. Hollywood took a not-so-successful swing at Pullman’s work with 2007’s “The Golden Compass,” but BAFTA-nominated scribe Jack Thorne — the pen behind the skinhead drama “This Is England” — is sure to inject the series with darker sensibilities. And while the books’ fantasy world is a Victorian-flavored multiverse of zeppelins and religious ponderings rather than a bloody medieval drama, it still packs your recommended servings of warring families, royal corruption, and “accidental” deaths. Plus, it’s really hard to mess up when you’re dealing with armored polar bears.

    ‘Still Star-Crossed’ (ABC)

    Think about it. “Romeo and Juliet” — with its lust, familial blood feuds, sword fights, and dramatic deaths — is the 1590s version of “Game of Thrones” but with a whole lot fewer Tyrion-themed cocktails.

    Those are the things ABC is banking on when it rolls out “Still Star-Crossed” as part of its 2016-2017 lineup. This “Romeo and Juliet” followup — which picks up after the double suicide to focus on the warring Montagues and Capulets — has all the treachery and blood-soaked romance of “Thrones.” It’s from Grey’s Anatomy” and “Scandal,” so it’s okay to start getting excited.

    ‘Emerald City’ (NBC)

    Time to get this out of the way: “Emerald City” is “Game of Thrones” meets “Daredevil” will tune in, no questions asked.

    ‘Son of Zorn’ (FOX)

    This is where the “may have been” in the title really comes into play. “Game of Thrones” has big, beefy, barbaric men with swords. “Son of Zorn” has a big, beefy, barbaric man with a sword. The thing is, the men of “Thrones” go about uniting the factions of the North and lopping off essential body parts, while the titular Zorn just wants to be good at his office job and make things right with his estranged teenage son.

    The animated, Jason Sudekis-voiced Zorn inhabits a live-action world with all the dryly awkward humor you’d expect from a Fox sitcom, and his fish-out-of-water shtick probably resembles He-Man more than The Hound. But you can’t deny that HBO’s medieval epic has made audiences a little more accepting of the fantasy genre in all its forms — think of it as equal rights for shirtless dudes with long hair and magical weapons.

    ‘The Legend of Zelda’

    It’s not often that the Wall Street Journal reports entertainment rumors, but that’s exactly what happened in 2015 when the outlet claimed Nintendo’s long-running “The Legend of Zelda” video game series was destined for a live-action TV series, allegedly in the planning stages at the time of the report. More than that, WSJ went right for the nose when it described the would-be series as “‘Game of Thrones’ for a family audience.”

    Nintendo itself has remained characteristically tight-lipped, but they can’t hide the fact that 2016 is the 30th anniversary of the Zelda series, and the ideal year for a some major announcements. If they need someone to play Ganondorf, Sean Bean‘s “Game of Thrones” contract expired a few years ago.

    Sources

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  • ‘Game of Thrones’ Showrunners Confirm THAT Was Coldhands

    The TV series “Game of Thrones” and its parent series “A Song of Ice and Fire” parted ways once again tonight on Season 6, Episode 6, “Blood of My Blood.”

    Bran Stark’s long lost Uncle Benjen Stark (Joseph Mawle), First Ranger of the Night’s Watch, returned for the first time since Season 1 when he rode in and saved Bran and Meera. What happened to him? He said a White Walker stabbed him in the gut with a sword of ice, and The Children of the Forest found him and stopped the WW’s magic from taking hold by plunging a shard of dragonglass into his heart.

    It sounded like Benjen was taking on the role of Coldhands, and the showrunners confirmed that after the episode aired. In the book series, Coldhands is a mysterious character with a wight’s black hands from congealed blood, but the intelligence of a human; he guides Bran Stark and company North of the Wall.

    Author George R.R. Martin had apparently shot down the fan theory that Coldhands was Benjen. So, in the book, the identity of Coldhands is still unknown, and book readers who watch the show were left a bit confused.


    But the showrunners just openly called him “Coldhands Benjen” in the “Inside the Episode” video, so that’s the show taking its own stand.

    David Benioff: “Benjen was so important in the early episodes. He’s an important character who just disappears. It’s one of the mysteries that’s been out there for several seasons and we’ve been looking forward to bringing him back.”

    Dan Weiss: “Coldhands Benjen obviously had a lot to do with the Three-Eyed Raven over the past several years since his disappearance and he’s got a bit of window into Bran’s purpose.”

    Benioff: “Bran had to absorb the history of the world, the entire history of the world in imagery. They talk about the Three-Eyed Raven, it’s not just a title that you get. There’s a part of him that’s no longer Brandon Stark but is the Three-Eyed Raven and the Three-Eyed Raven is not entirely human.”

    Watch the full video, including those glimpses of the past (The Mad King!):

    We still don’t know exactly what Benjen has been doing, but co-executive producer Bryan Cogman, who wrote “Blood of My Blood,” talked a little bit about the character in a Q&A with Entertainment Weekly:

    And then there’s the return of Benjen Stark. Perhaps no character in TV drama history has spent so much time off screen, going from the pilot to reappearing midway through season 6! Was this something you guys had always planned and what does it mean to actually gain a Stark on a show that’s so notorious for killing them?

    It’s hard for me to talk about Benjen’s return without getting into the nitty gritty of the adaptation process. But, yeah, season 6 is rife with Stark reunions! That’s another thing that’s been very heartening to track with the fans. The show is so sprawling and there are so many threads, but, at it’s heart it’s largely about this good family that was torn apart. So seeing some of them connect again (Jon, Sansa), (Benjen, Bran) was very satisfying to write and to shoot. And it was great to have Joe Mawle back with us – it must have been a trip for him to step back into the character after so long – but he’s also decidedly not the Benjen of season 1, so that was fun to explore.

    We’ll have to wait and see how much more we can expect from Coldhands Benjen on “Game of Thrones.” Read our full recap for more on “Blood of My Blood,” including the promo for Episode 7.

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  • George R.R. Martin Assures Fans He’s ‘Not Dead Yet’

    67th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards - Press RoomLegendary music producer George Martin, the man who worked with The Beatles and shepherded them to superstardom, died earlier this week at the age of 90. But fans of another George Martin — George R.R. Martin, author of the books that inspired HBO series “Game of Thrones” — were momentarily confused by the similarly-monikered men, prompting the latter Martin to clear the air online, and declare himself very much alive.

    In a blog post titled “Not Dead Yet,” George R.R. Martin did his best to assuage “GOT” fans’ worries that he was the one who had died, writing, “It was Sir George Martin, of Beatles fame, who has passed away. Not me.”

    Of course, if concerned fans had done any kind of independent research on the topic, they could have easily figured that out for themselves, but alas, sometimes a simple Google search is too much to ask. But Martin was a good sport about the mix-up, citing another famous author’s remarks on a similar misconception.

    “While it is strangely moving to realize that so many people around the world care so deeply about my life and death, I have to go with Mark Twain and insist that the rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated,” Martin wrote.

    It’s long been a fear that Martin won’t live long enough to finish his “A Song of Ice and Fire” series, which still has two books to go. Martin’s writing has been so famously delayed that “Game of Thrones” is now moving past the source material, and, with Martin’s blessing, will soon divulge plot details from his novels that have yet to be published. He may not be dead yet, but we doubt fans will ever stop worrying about losing him before he wraps his series.

    The author assured everyone, though, that he was still hard at work.

    “I am still here, still writing, still editing, still going to movies and reading books, and I expect to hang around for quite a while yet, thank you very much,” he wrote. “But thank you all for caring.”

    You’re welcome, George. But maybe a little less reading and movie-watching, and more writing? Please and thank you.

    [via: George R.R. Martin, h/t Paste]

    Photo credit: Getty Images

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  • ‘Game of Thrones’ Sets Season 6 Premiere Date; Plus, the Latest on Seasons 7 and 8

    Game of ThronesFinally, “Game of Thrones” fans know when they’ll find out if Jon Snow lived or died (come on, he totally lived). HBO announced that the fantasy drama will return for a sixth season April 24.

    HBO president Michael Lombardo had even more exciting news to deliver at the winter Television Critics Association press tour — they are in negotiations with executive producers David Benioff and Dan Weiss for seventh and eighth seasons, according to Deadline.

    “David and Dan are feeling there’s probably two more years after season 6, that’s what we’re looking at right now,” Lombardo said back in July. “We hope that they would change their mind, but that’s how they are feeling now.”

    It’s unclear if the showrunners have received insight from author George R.R. Martin on how he plans to wrap up his epic saga. Already, the show has caught up to the book series, and Martin admitted earlier this month that he had not met his end-of-year-deadline for the sixth novel, “Winds of Winter.”

    If the author takes as much time to write the final book in the “A Song of Ice and Fire” series as he did the last two, “Game of Thrones” may very well outpace its source material.

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  • ‘Game of Thrones’ Author and HBO ‘Disappointed’ Book 6 Not Done Before Season 6

    It’s now January 2016 and “Game of Thrones” Season 6 starts in April, so at this point it’s not too shocking to hear “The Winds of Winter” — the next book in author George R. R. Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire” series — is not going to come out in time.

    But it is a bit surprising to see the author take to his blog at the start of the year to offer a detailed explanation on why Book 6 isn’t ready.


    Here’s a portion of GRRM’s January 2 blog post, titled “Last Year (Winds of Winter)”:

    THE WINDS OF WINTER is not finished.

    Believe me, it gave me no pleasure to type those words. You’re disappointed, and you’re not alone. My editors and publishers are disappointed, HBO is disappointed, my agents and foreign publishers and translators are disappointed… but no one could possibly be more disappointed than me. For months now I have wanted nothing so much as to be able to say, “I have completed and delivered THE WINDS OF WINTER” on or before the last day of 2015.

    But the book’s not done.

    Nor is it likely to be finished tomorrow, or next week. Yes, there’s a lot written. Hundreds of pages. Dozens of chapters. (Those ‘no pages done’ reports were insane, the usual garbage internet journalism that I have learned to despise). But there’s also a lot still left to write. I am months away still… and that’s if the writing goes well. (Sometimes it does. Sometimes it doesn’t.) Chapters still to write, of course… but also rewriting. I always do a lot of rewriting, sometimes just polishing, sometimes pretty major restructures.

    I suppose I could just say, “Sorry, boys and girls, still writing,” and leave it at that. “It will be done when it’s done.” Which is what I have been doing, more or less, since… well, forever. But with season 6 of GAME OF THRONES approaching, and so many requests for information boiling up, I am going to break my own rules and say a little more, since it would appear that hundreds of my readers, maybe thousands or tens of thousands, are very concerned about this question of ‘spoilers” and the show catching up, revealing things not yet revealed in the books, etc.

    My publishers and I have been cognizant of these concerns, of course. We discussed some of them last spring, as the fifth season of the HBO series was winding down, and came up with a plan. We all wanted book six of A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE to come out before season six of the HBO show aired. Assuming the show would return in early April, that meant THE WINDS OF WINTER had to be published before the end of March, at the latest. For that to happen, my publishers told me, they would need the completed manuscript before the end of October. That seemed very do-able to me… in May. So there was the first deadline: Halloween.

    Unfortunately, the writing did not go as fast or as well as I would have liked. You can blame my travels or my blog posts or the distractions of other projects and the Cocteau and whatever, but maybe all that had an impact… you can blame my age, and maybe that had an impact too…but if truth be told, sometimes the writing goes well and sometimes it doesn’t, and that was true for me even when I was in my 20s. And as spring turned to summer, I was having more bad days than good ones. Around about August, I had to face facts: I was not going to be done by Halloween. I cannot tell you how deeply that realization depressed me…”

    Oh, my sweet summer child. No worries. Just make it good! Quality > Punctuality

    The most recently published book, “A Dance With Dragons,” came out in 2011. So GRRM is still on the same track when it comes to TWOW. Sample chapters have already been revealed from the new book — one being from Arianne Martell, who isn’t even on the HBO show at this point. So that’s a clue that the show and the book are so diverged that the text wouldn’t even give us that many tips on what’s ahead. And it’s kind of cool to all be in the dark together as Season 6 approaches. We have hints on what’s to come from stuff that hasn’t been covered from previous books, assumptions from past events, and maybe a few filming spoilers, but there are going to be equal-opportunity surprises for book readers and casuals, which makes this arguably the most highly anticipated season to date.

    That’s not to say we’re not also “disappointed” that “Winds of Winter” isn’t ready, but only because we want the new book to read, not to use it as a road map for the new season.

    Are you disappointed, empathetic, apathetic?

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  • George R.R. Martin Says Tolkien Inspired ‘Game of Thrones’ Ending

    67th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards - Press RoomFans of the “Game of Thrones.” According to the author, he’s taken lots of inspiration from fellow heavily-initialed author J.R.R. Tolkien, and the last two books in the series, “The Winds of Winter” and “A Dream of Spring,” will reflect that.

    But for those thinking that Gollum or a giant glowing eye are going to show up, think again. Instead, Martin revealed that he’s really looking to mimic the tone that Tolkien established in the final book in the “LOTR” series, “Return of the King.” During an alumni event at Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism on Wednesday, the author expanded on that thought. Vulture reports:

    “I think you need to have some hope,” he said, referencing the manners in which sagas end. “We all yearn for happy endings in a sense. Myself, I’m attracted to the bittersweet ending. People ask me how Game of Thrones is gonna end, and I’m not gonna tell them … but I always say to expect something bittersweet in the end, like [J.R.R. Tolkien]. I think Tolkien did this brilliantly.”

    Martin went on to explain that he himself “didn’t understand that” when he read the book as a boy. Now, however, he has a different view, as reported by Vulture:

    Tolkien’s use of allegory to reveal life’s grittier truths (the tragedy of post-war Britain in the late ’40s and early ’50s, in the case of Lord of the Rings), even in the face of a well-earned victory is brilliant. You can’t just fulfill a quest and then pretend life is perfect, he said. Life doesn’t work that way.

    Those comments reflect similar statements Martin has made about the series’s end in the past, and it’s good to know that his vision hasn’t wavered since then. That also could mean he’s actually a lot closer to releasing those elusive books, the next of which may or may not be coming out sometime next year.

    Either way, audiences can expect to see some of this vision play out their television screens soon, since the show is set to overtake the events of the already-published books any time now. May we suggest (with lots of love, of course) that Martin stop talking about “ASOIAF”‘s ending so much and maybe just write it already?

    [via: Vulture]

    Photo credit: Getty Images

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  • George R.R. Martin May Be Making Another TV Show

    67th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards - Press RoomThe next “Game of Thrones” could be right around the corner, with author George R.R. Martin announcing that Cinemax has optioned the rights to another one of his works.

    Martin, who penned the “A Song of Ice and Fire” series that inspired “Thrones,” revealed the news on his blog, writing that Cinemax has already ordered a pilot script based on “The Skin Trade,” a novella Martin released in the 1980s that he describes as “werewolf noir.” The story was originally released as part of a horror anthology called “Night Vision 5,” which also featured a tale from Stephen King; it’s been reprinted as a standalone novella several times since then, and has also been adapted into a comic book series and graphic novel.

    According to Martin, he originally tried to bring “The Skin Trade” to TV way back in 1991, writing, “I have always thought there was a TV series (or maybe a feature film) in Willie Flambeaux and Randi Wade.” And while the author says a Cinemax series “would be very cool,” he’s remaining cautiously optimistic for now.

    “This being Hollywood, of course, you never know where things will end,” Martin wrote, ” … but if they like the script, we’ll shoot a pilot, and if they like that, hey, who knows, maybe we’ll get a series on the air.”

    Sadly, Martin won’t be able to do any writing on the show himself, and the pilot script was penned by screenwriter Prison Break,” “Once Upon a Time”). But that’s okay, since, of course, Martin is a little bit tied up trying to prevent “Game of Thrones” from spoiling the end of “A Song of Ice and Fire” (too much, anyway).

    ” … [W]hile I would have loved to write the script and run the show myself myself, that was never really in the cards,” Martin wrote. “I have this book to finish. You know the one.”

    We do indeed. Here’s hoping Martin stays on track with his writing, and everything pans out with “The Skin Trade.” We could use a distraction during HBO’s “Thrones” hiatuses.

    [via: George R.R. Martin]

    Photo credit: Getty Images

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  • UPDATED: ‘Game of Thrones’ Movie in the Works, Says George R.R. Martin


    UPDATE: Apparently the rumors of a “Game of Thrones” movie have been exaggerated, according to the person who started the rumors in the first place.

    On his blog, George R.R. Martin writes that the rumors are “completely false.”

    He went on to say that “no one is working on any movie just now. And if there was a movie, it would not be about Robert’s Rebellion.”

    Original story is as follows:

    Get excited, “Game of Thrones” fans. Winter A movie of your favorite show is coming.

    In an interview with Daily Star, “Thrones” creator and author George R. R. Martin claims plans are underway for Westeros to hit the big screen. But there is a catch.

    “There will be a movie but I will not be involved,” Martin said. “I have too much to do. That is something HBO and [showrunners] DB [Weiss] and David [Benioff] are dealing with. I have two more books to finish and I still have so much to do.”

    HBO has yet to officially confirm any plans for a feature, and plot specifics are too soon to call right now. But Martin seems to have a general idea of what the story will be about.

    “They are looking at dipping back in time during certain periods of the series, which could be examined as a one off plot. That means that some of the big characters who fans have seen die on screen could be resurrected.”

    If what Martin says is true, “Thrones” will soon join fellow HBO series “Sex and the City” and (sigh) “Entourage” as shows turned into movies.

    The new season premieres in early 2016.
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  • ‘Game of Thrones’ Sequel ‘Winds of Winter’ May Come in 2016

    Premiere Of HBO's "Game Of Thrones" Season 3 - Arrivals“Winter” may be coming a lot sooner than any of us thought: A new report suggests that “The Winds of Winter,” Game of Thrones”), is due out sometime in 2016.

    Alejo Cuervo, an editor for the Spanish publisher of the “Song of Ice and Fire” books, said during a recent interview with Catalan radio station El Mon a RAC1 that he knows, roughly, when the book will be published — and in fact, it’s due out next year. The interview has been translated into English by “Thrones” fan site Watchers on the Wall (who found it on Spanish “GOT” fan site Los Siete Reinos); here’s their transcript of the key intel from Cuervo:

    Radio Host: The sixth book will be?

    Cuervo: It is expected next year

    Radio Host: In English, but in Spanish when will it be?

    Cuervo: We have been promised the manuscript in advance of the release in English which we will translate, there won’t be a big difference.

    Radio Host: But you are equally sure it will be next year?

    Cuervo: Well, let’s see, confident…but a meteor could fall.

    Watchers on the Wall notes that Cuervo knows Martin personally, so his information on the subject is probably the most accurate of anyone’s. (Especially considering he has to translate and prep his own publication of “Winter”‘s text.) So while it’s far from a confirmation, nor a personal voucher from Martin himself, it is certainly more believable than if it were to come from another source.

    As most fans know, “Thrones” is rapidly catching up to the all the plot lines from Martin’s previously-published books, and will soon start airing stories from the two remaining tomes that have yet to be finished (“Winter” and “A Dream of Spring”). But if Martin is indeed planning on publishing “Winds of Winter” in 2016, and in fact wants to have it out before “Game of Thrones” debuts its sixth season in spring 2016, then that would be ideal for fans of the books and series alike.

    We’ll keep our fingers crossed, though as Cuervo notes, there’s always the possibility of a meteor. Stay tuned.

    [via: Watchers on the Wall]

    Photo credit: Getty Images

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  • Warning: ‘Game of Thrones’ Will End With ‘Bittersweet Victory’

    One does not simply expect a happy ending on “Game of Thrones.” It is known. Fans are on standby for the sixth book in George R.R. Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire” series, aka the source material for “Game of Thrones.” The HBO show is now filming Season 6 of a planned eight (or more) seasons. GRRM currently has seven books planned — No. 6 being “The Winds of Winter” and then “A Dream of Spring.”

    GRRM just had a Q&A with Observer, and the final question was about the series’ end game. Here’s that portion of the conversation:

    The number one question people ask me about the series is whether I think everyone will lose—whether it will end in some horrible apocalypse. I know you can’t speak to that specifically, but as a revisionist of epic fantasy—

    I haven’t written the ending yet, so I don’t know, but no. That’s certainly not my intent. I’ve said before that the tone of the ending that I’m going for is bittersweet. I mean, it’s no secret that Tolkien has been a huge influence on me, and I love the way he ended Lord of the Rings. It ends with victory, but it’s a bittersweet victory. Frodo is never whole again, and he goes away to the Undying Lands, and the other people live their lives. And the Scouring of the Shire—brilliant piece of work, which I didn’t understand when I was 13 years old: “Why is this here? The story’s over?” But every time I read it I understand the brilliance of that segment more and more. All I can say is that’s the kind of tone I will be aiming for. Whether I achieve it or not, that will be up to people like you and my readers to judge.

    In case you’re not familiar, “The Scouring of the Shire” is the second to last chapter in J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Return of the King.” It wasn’t covered in the Peter Jackson movie, but it showed Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin returning to the Shire to find it was corrupted and taken over by ruffians led by Saruman. The four of them roused their fellow hobbits to take back the Shire, but the movie just shows the hobbits returning to a relatively unchanged Shire, then Frodo — who can’t really cope with normal life anymore — leaves Middle-earth.
    So it sounds like GRRM is going to go for a realistic approach, which matches what he’s already done. Many other authors would’ve just, for example, given Daenerys Targaryen a fully happy ending/freed slaves stay free victory at Astapor and never returned with news that the city was overtaken by new corrupt forces. But that’s the kind of thing that happens in real life — you cut off the head of the hydra and a new one grows back. We’re still guessing Dany (or an undead Jon Snow?) ends up on The Iron Throne when the series ends, but it would be naive to think it’ll be easy for our heroes to take and retain power. That chair is just not meant to be comfortable and it’s steeped in blood.

    But hey! Victory is still victory and we’re looking forward to reading GRRM’s ending, then seeing it play out on the small screen. Hopefully it happens in that order.

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