Speaking to
Deadline Benioff and Weiss had the following to share about their work on
Game of Thrones:
DEADLINE: So has the early success of Game of Thrones surprised you? This is probably a difficult question to answer honestly: if you say ‘No’ it sounds immodest, and if you say ‘Yes’ it appears insecure.
DAVID BENIOFF and D.B. WEISS: We, the insecure, say ‘Yes.’ We always believed the show would find a loyal audience, but our fear was that it could be an audience of 40. Both the number and the passion of the viewers stunned us
DEADLINE: What’s the pressure to satisfy the famously picky fans of Martin in particular and the fantasy genre in general?
BENIOFF/WEISS: We’re more concerned with making a good show than trying to please all the people all the time. As far as pressure goes, we put our careers on the line with this series. After nearly 6 years invested, if the show had failed we would have thrown away a hefty portion of our working lives. Hollywood screenwriters tend to have the longevity of NFL running backs. So the truth is no one can put more pressure on us than we put on ourselves.
DEADLINE: How has it been working with HBO? Anything you’ve wanted to do creatively that you haven’t been able to?
BENIOFF/WEISS: So far, nothing we’ve considered important to the show has been axed for creative reasons as opposed to financial reasons. That may change this coming season with the ‘2 Dothraki, 1 Cup’ scene in Episode 7.
DEADLINE: Has the budget been sufficient for what you’ve needed to do creatively or is there simply never enough money on these things?
BENIOFF/WEISS: HBO has been generous and there’s never ever enough money. There will always be a creative tension between a production and the network, where the production is yelling ‘¡Más!’ and the network is yelling ‘¡No más!’ But in the grand scheme of things, they have given us ‘¡Más!’ and let us run with it.
DEADLINE: Which makes you prouder: the Emmy nomination for Outstanding Drama Series or Drama Series Writing?
BENIOFF/WEISS: In some ways Drama Series. Because that nomination rewards everyone we’ve worked with on the show – a crew of passionate, talented people who have built this series with us. And in some ways Writing, because first and foremost we’re writers.
DEADLINE: How will Season 2 of Thrones differ creatively from Season 1?
BENIOFF/WEISS: More characters. More locations. More dragons. Less sleep. Less Ned. Less frequent bowel movements.
There's a little bit more in the interview, so be sure to click the link at the bottom and head over to
Deadline to read the full transcript. Personally, I have to say that I'm very surprised by the success of the show. Being a
Wheel of Time fan myself, I actually stumbled across these books many years ago and didn't think anything special of them. But then I became swept up in the show like everyone else. Now I'm re-reading
A Clash of Kings and I think I'll have to chalk up my initial reaction to the ignorance of youth. George R.R. Martin is a master of his craft and I can't wait to see what Martin,Benioff and Weiss have in store for us when they adapt this book for Season 2!
Game of Thrones is an American medieval fantasy television series created for HBO by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss. The series is based on author George R. R. Martin's best-selling A Song of Ice and Fire series of seven planned fantasy novels, the first of which is called A Game of Thrones. The series debuted in the U.S. on April 17, 2011. Game of Thrones has been extremely well received, and has garnered a loyal fanbase. The series was picked up for a second season on April 19, 2011, two days after its premiere.
By TwitterButtons.com
ComicBookMovie.com, and/or the user who contributed this post, may earn commissions or revenue through clicks or purchases made through any third-party links contained within the content above.