“There always seems to be someone on hand who thinks he can do better” - George R.R. Martin calls out TV and film adaptations

Author George R.R. Martin recently called out producers and screenwriters who don't remain faithful to the original source material. The Game of Thrones creator took to his personal blog on Friday, May 24, 2024, to share his frustrations with TV and film adaptations.

"No matter how major a writer it is, no matter how great the book, there always seems to be someone on hand who thinks he can do better, eager to take the story and ‘improve’ on it," he wrote.

Citing famous authors like Stan Lee, Charles Dickens, Ian Fleming, J.R.R. Tolkien, and Jane Austen, among others, he explained that it doesn't matter who wrote the source material, as screenwriters and producers are eager to "take great stories and make them their own." George R.R. Martin continued:

"The book is the book, the film is the film,’ they will tell you, as if they were saying something profound. Then they make the story their own. They never make it better, though. Nine hundred ninety-nine times out of a thousand, they make it worse."

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George R.R. Martin praised FX's historical drama series Shogun

He, however, noted that once in a while there are some "really good adaptations of a really good book," adding that FX's version of Shogun is one such instance. The series is an adaptation of a 1975 novel by James Clavell of the same name.

The novel itself was a critical and commercial success and prompted a TV adaptation starring Richard Chamberlain in 1980. The mini-series won several awards, including a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Limited Series, a Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series - Drama, and a 1981 Peabody Award.

George R.R. Martin explained that he was initially skeptical of the new series, as the previous adaptation was good. However, he wrote that he was glad he watched it. He explained that both series have significant differences from each other but remain "faithful to the Clavell novel in their own way." Praising its acting, directing, set design, and costume, he remarked:

"I think the author would have been pleased."

This is not the first time George R.R. Martin has criticized Hollywood for straying from the source material. Back in 2022, at a joint event with Sandman author Neil Gaiman in New York City, the pair discussed the "obligation to be faithful to the written material." Martin stated:

"How faithful do you have to be? Some people don’t feel that they have to be faithful at all. There’s this phrase that goes around: ‘I’m going to make it my own.’ I hate that phrase. And I think Neil probably hates that phrase, too."

Gaiman agreed and added:

"I spent 30 years watching people make ‘Sandman’ their own. And some of those people hadn’t even read ‘Sandman’ to make it their own, they’d just flipped through a few comics or something."

In his blog post, George R.R. Martin also added that things have gotten worse since this 2022 interview. Martin has not released any other statements on this matter at the time of writing this article.