George R.R. Martin has been very critical of unfaithful adaptations of literature over the years, and in a recent blog post, the revered author once again vented his frustrations towards this practice. The Fire & Blood author slammed screenwriters and producers for being eager to make the stories their own by straying away from the original without improving upon them.
But despite his reasonable pushback towards this industry practice, Martin once again found himself in the crosshairs of fan outrage following the delay in his The Winds of Winter.
Fans Call Out George R.R. Martin Amidst His Complaints Against Adaptations
It has been over a decade since A Dance with Dragons hit the shelves, and fans have been imploring the author for the sixth book in the series. While George R.R. Martin previously revealed that he had “another 400, 500 pages” to go, there has been little movement since.
This has ultimately led to fans calling out the author after he vented his frustrations towards the screenwriters and producers, who often disregard the source material while adapting, stressing “things have gotten worse”.
He wrote:
Very little has changed since then. If anything, things have gotten worse. Everywhere you look, there are more screenwriters and producers eager to take great stories and ‘make them their own.’ It does not seem to matter whether the source material was written by Stan Lee, Charles Dickens, Ian Fleming, Roald Dahl, Ursula K. Le Guin, J.R.R. Tolkien, Mark Twain, Raymond Chandler, Jane Austen, or… well, anyone,
In response, fans shared their frustration towards the delay of the sixth book, with some even blaming Martin for Game of Thrones season 8, as there was no source for creators to go by.
1. just never do Game of Thrones ending
2. have someone else do it on TV, and it sucks
3. say "it was their fault"honestly respect the playbook, no-lose situation for him
— Brandon Ginsberg (@bginsberg2) May 28, 2024
It's easy for him to say that now. He still hasn't finished the books and he knew very well that the showrunners would have no choice but to fill in the void and create their own conclusion. Didn't he also give his approval for things to happen this way?
— Anthony Prezman (@5eDimension) May 28, 2024
Let’s be honest, you gave GOT writers the green light to put THAT ending
— OB (@GhostRMCF) May 28, 2024
I mean, wasn't he the one that was okay with them butchering GoT and now refuses to end the book? He's not wrong, though, but he is a hypocrite.
— Lily* (@300mirrors) May 28, 2024
Maybe if you finished it, maybe the ending wouldn't be so bad
— dismay (@KiNGDiSMaY) May 29, 2024
But despite his complaints regarding the modern landscape surrounding adaptations of classic literature, the author expressed that there have been some exceptions.
George R.R. Martin Applauds Shōgun for Honoring the Source Material
While George R.R. Martin stressed “Nine hundred ninety-nine times out of a thousand” times adaptations are often a step down compared to the original, there have been some exceptions. One recent example is Shōgun, which Martin deemed “superb”, stating author James Clavell would’ve been pleased with what Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks achieved.
He said:
I was dubious when I first heard they were making another version of the Clavell novel. It has been a long time, a long long LONG time, but I read the book when it first came out in the late 70s and was mightily impressed. I am glad they did, though. The new ‘Shogun’ is superb… I think the author would have been pleased. Both old and new screenwriters did honor to the source material, and gave us terrific adaptations, resisting the impulse to ‘make it their own
Another such instance occurred during HBO’s House of the Dragons, which ended up ameliorating King Viserys Targaryen‘s character in live-action compared to the books.
Shōgun is available to stream on Disney Plus.
Game of Thrones is available to stream on Max.
