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Game of Thrones Creators Lied to HBO To Get The Show Made
Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss lied to HBO executives so that they could get the show made. The pair were huge fans of George R.R. Martin's novels when they pitched the show. Game of Thrones eventually became one of the most successful television shows of all times. It was also one of the most expensive shows ever produced.
The show ran for eight seasons on HBO, growing from a cult fantasy show into one of the most expansive stories ever told on screen. The Game of Thrones ending, which Weiss and Benioff had a heavy hand in, also turned out to be one of the most divisive television endings of all time. The show eventually surpassed the novels on which it was based and fans of the series are still waiting for author Martin to publish the final two books in the series. This surpassing of the novel's plot is one of the most contentious points of Game of Thrones, and one that many blame for the dip in quality in its final few seasons.
According to Digital Spy, while discussing the show in a new behind the scenes book Fire Cannot Kill a Dragon, Weiss and Benioff admitted to lying to HBO execs about the scope of the show when they were pitching it. "The lie we told was that the show was 'contained' and it was about the characters," Benioff said. Weiss continued:
As avid fans of the book, Weiss and Benioff knew exactly what they were doing when they did this and luckily, their gamble paid off. By the time the show got to such explosive scenes as the Battle of Blackwater Bay in Game of Thrones season 2 and the Battle of the Wall in season 4, HBO was willing to spend the money. As the show grew bigger and bigger, so did its budget. By the time it reached its final season, Game of Thrones was putting out some of the most expensive episodes of television ever produced.
For all the qualms about its plot in the final season, there is one thing fans could agree on: Game of Thrones sure provided spectacular action sequences. Battles became the cornerstone of each season, bookending the political intrigue and familial squabbles for which the show was initially known. While HBO skimped on the budgets for early battle sequences, they eventually relented, culminating in action sequences that television shows had never been able to do before.
Weiss and Benioff's lie is mostly just a funny anecdote now. HBO is surely appreciative of the lie. Game of Thrones not only went on to become one of the biggest shows of all time, but it spawned a prequel expected to air in 2022 set to feature even more dragons. HBO execs will probably be willing to fork over the budget necessary for this prequel series immediately and Weiss and Benioff are the ones to thank for that.
