Game of Thrones creator George RR Martin has revealed his least favourite scene across the whole eight seasons of the fantasy saga.
While some fans were left cringing as they watched Theon Greyjoy (Alfie Allen) get tortured, others found themselves completely perplexed as Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) turned into the mad queen.
But for the writer, it was King Robert Baratheon’s hunting scene that touched a nerve in the first ever season, as the budget didn’t do it justice.
When chatting to Entertainment Weekly editor James Hibberd in his upcoming book Fire Cannot Kill a Dragon, the 72-year-old confessed that $6 million (£4.7 million) per episode wasn’t quite enough to recreate what he had in mind.
‘Where we really fell down in terms of budget was my least favourite scene in the entire show, in all eight seasons: King Robert goes hunting,’ he said.
‘In the books, Robert goes off hunting, we get word he was gored by a boar, and they bring him back and he dies. So I never did [a hunting scene]. But I knew what a royal hunting party was like.’
The star went on to express how there should have been hundreds of men, pavilions, huntsmen, dogs and even horns blowing – but the HBO series managed to muster up just four men.
‘He wouldn’t have just been walking through the woods with three of his friends holding spears hoping to meet a boar,’ George explained. ‘But at that point, we couldn’t afford horses or dogs or pavilions.’
The show was in its infancy at the time, but has now managed to gather thousands of fans across the globe, and even has the budget to continue the franchise with a prequel series.
Just recently, HBO boss Casey Bloys provided an update on House of Dragon, where she confirmed the cast and crew is still on track for a 2022 release.
The spin-off will centre around the Targaryen Dynasty – 300 years before Game Of Thrones – and will be adapted from the author’s book Fire and Blood.
Bloys announced the news in 2019, where she told fans: ‘One of the things about House of Dragons, there is a text, there is a book so that made it a little bit more of a road map for a series order.’
It’s thought that casting is already underway with Knife Edge Media claiming a casting call for the three leads was released earlier this year.
The publication revealed the call featured descriptions of three of the most famous figures in the Targaryen dynasty – siblings Aegon, Visenya and Rhaenys Targaryen.
We cannot wait!
House of Dragons is expected to arrive in 2022. Game of Thrones is available to stream on NOW TV.
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