George R.R. Martin passed on a cameo in the final season of Game of Thrones

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

The massively successful HBO series GAME OF THRONES is coming to an end starting April 14, and there’s more than enough to look forward to, including twists, shocking deaths, dragon battles and hordes of undead soldiers clashing with the living. One thing we won’t be getting, however, is an appearance by the book series’ creator, George R.R. Martin, who recently revealed that he turned down a cameo in the final season – but for a very smart reason fans will appreciate.

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The author of the “A Song of Ice and Fire” books, which have been adapted into the hit show, was speaking with EW when he says show creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss invited him to Northern Ireland to film a brief cameo in an episode of the final season. However, he turned it down so he could keep working on his long, LONG gestating sixth book in the series – “The Winds of Winter”.

 “David and Dan invited me to a cameo in one of the final episodes, which I was tempted to do. But I didn’t think just for the sake of a cameo I could take the time to return to Belfast.”

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Martin did reveal that he turned up for a cameo once, but that was for the pilot episode of the series. He was a guest at the wedding of Daenerys Targaryen, but that initial pilot was not well-received by the network, and thus the entire episode was reshot (replacing then Daenerys actress Tamzin Merchant with Emilia Clarke) and as a result, the cameo is lost.

While a cameo from the author would’ve been cool and a nice nod to the fans after all the years of sticking with the show, the fact he’s trying to stay focused on the book is admirable. Martin has been famously struggling to get this next book out since the start of the show, to the point where release dates have been pushed back and with fans believing the book, unlike winter, may never come at all. You’re almost there, Martin! Write!

Regardless of if the book series ends, the TV series begins to air its final episodes starting April 14.