“Tyrion is cracking jokes constantly. And I spent weeks racking my brain to come up with these witticisms”. An Interview With George R. R. Martin
Iconic American author George R. R. Martin — Creator of the cycle of novels “a Song of ice and fire”, which put the series “Game of thrones”, first visited Russia. Film critic of “Medusa” Anton Dolin met with the writer in the vicinity of St. Petersburg and talked about the dead Starks, American fiction, political metaphors in “Game of thrones” and the most beloved characters of the novels.
— I’m one of those critics who began with the reading of your books, and then started the series. Maybe that’s why I still think that the “book is better”. And you are jealous of the crazy popularity of the series? Or is he in your eyes is your brainchild?
— I also started with books! And then joined in series history, which at some point went away. Of course, the books are 100% mine, and show only partially. My world, my characters, writing scripts, I participated in the first four seasons. But do not count those who have participated in the creation of our magnificent series. David Benioff and Dan Weiss, the showrunners, in the first place. Their work differently as phenomenal not name. And all Directors, great actors, and all those who deservedly received the “Emmy” — there costume design, and casting, and special effects, and camera work, everything! I’m proud to be a part of this process. It best describes my feelings towards the series.
— How the showrunners independent from you? To put it simply: they can save the life of the character you decided to kill? Or kill someone who is alive in your books?
— They are quite independent, believe me. What I want, I do. I have no legal ways to stop them — nothing that is prescribed in a particular contract. But we communicate regularly, and a few years ago we had the decisive meeting where I told them the most important plot twists and surprises of the not yet written books. However, I can’t say that they move strictly according to the outline.
From my story, a lot of what has departed, and quite far away. Here we are talking about why they continue to kill.
Probably, today there are about 20 characters long dead in the show but still alive in my stories. And secondary, and Central — such as rickon stark, Barristan Selmy, Myrcella Baratheon: they’re all dead only in the TV series, keep in mind! There are also important characters who in the series did not appear at all. Exactly. They are not something that was killed — they were not allowed to be born. It’s Heartless, Arianna Martell from Dorne, Victarion Greyjoy — brother of Balon and Euron… they are All very important to my books, among other things.
You are in your cycle, in fact, embodies Bakhtin described the principle of the polyphonic novel, when the characters are equal and the reader can root for any of them. In the series it is impossible to convey.
I tried to make each of my characters have been human. Real, live. In my first novel the seven heroes, on behalf of whom is the narrative, in each of the following added a few more. You see the world through their eyes and I make our way into the head of each to live with it. I wish they were different. Some noble and fair, the other selfish. Some smart, some not so good, or even stupid. However, they are all people.
I always wanted to create great characters, and they are not black or white.
In fantasy quite often describes the clash between good and evil, and sometimes it works. However, I don’t believe it. Not believe that on the battlefield there are good and bad and the good in white and villains in black, and they are ugly and eat human flesh…
— How do Tolkien!
Yes. He did it brilliantly, but in the hands of his imitators that have become clichés. And I didn’t want to write about the Dark Lords. I believe that the battle between good and evil takes place daily around the world, and here the battlefield is the human heart. We all make choices many times a day, sometimes the choice is very difficult: there is no absolute opposition between good and bad. That’s what I wanted to show.
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— “Game of thrones” begins with a shockingly explicit scenes of eroticism and violence. Now they have almost disappeared from the show, although not one of your books. How do you feel about this decision of the showrunners of the series?