The author of the books HBO's Game of Thrones is based on has opened up about the controversial season finale, saying he wanted the show's ending to be slower paced.
George RR Martin has also spoken about how the end of his A Song of Ice and Fire series will differ from the TV show, without giving much away.
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The showrunners of Game of Thrones, David Benioff and Daniel Weiss, have been targeted by some angry fans for how the show finished.
Among the complaints is that the final two season of the show were "rushed", to the detriment of the narrative.
In a 2018 interview with Variety that has recently resurfaced, Martin appears to be in agreement, saying he wanted at least 10 seasons to finish the stories of Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen and the other major characters.
"David and Dan have been saying for, like, five years that seven seasons is all they would go. We got them to go to eight, but not any more than that... I was saying 10 seasons, and, er, they won," said Martin.
"We could have gone to 11, 12, 13 seasons, but I guess [Benioff and Weiss] wanted a life. If you've read my novels, you'll know there was enough material for more seasons. They made certain cuts."
In a post on his blog, Martin also elaborated on how his final two books - The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring - will end the story differently to the TV show.
"How will it all end? I hear people asking. The same ending as the show? Different? Well... yes. And no. And yes. And no. And yes. And no. And yes," said Martin.
"I am working in a very different medium than David and Dan, never forget. They had six hours for this final season. I expect these last two books of mine will fill 3000 manuscript pages between them before I'm done... and if more pages and chapters and scenes are needed, I'll add them.
"Book or show, which will be the 'real' ending? It’s a silly question... I'll write it. You read it. Then everyone can make up their own mind, and argue about it on the internet."
As well as the last two Song of Ice and Fire books coming out, HBO has multiple Game of Thrones spinoffs in development.
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