It's time for Game of Thrones to abandon the books

Four seasons in, the HBO drama has the rare opportunity to forge its own path

Game of Thrones
(Image credit: (Helen Sloan/courtesy of HBO))

When the credits rolled on Game of Thrones' fourth season finale earlier this month — after an episode that saw everything from the defeat of the wildling army to the death of Tywin Lannister — I breathed a small sigh of relief at the big plot twist that didn't happen. If you've read the books, you know exactly what I'm talking about; if you haven't, but want to be spoiled, you can read about it here. In a recent interview, the actor at the heart of that would-be storyline explains why it won't be happening in the series:

They can't stick to the books 100 percent. It's impossible — they only have 10 hours per season. They have got to keep it dramatic and exciting, and extraneous stuff along the way gets lost in order to maintain the quality of the brilliant show. [Entertainment Weekly]

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Scott Meslow

Scott Meslow is the entertainment editor for TheWeek.com. He has written about film and television at publications including The Atlantic, POLITICO Magazine, and Vulture.