This was bound to happen sooner or later, but with HBO churning out a season of Game of Thrones once per year, George R.R. Martin won't be able to finish the last two books in his Song of Ice and Fire series in time. People were wondering how HBO would proceed with filming beyond what's been written and if you thought they would sit on their hands until Martin delivered more books, guess again! Speaking to the Oxford Union this past weekend, show writer David Benioff revealed what he and Dan Weiss have planned for when the show reaches that moment.
David Benioff on what will happen when the show outpaces the books:
Luckily, we’ve been talking about this with George for a long time, ever since we saw this could happen, and we know where things are heading. And so we’ll eventually, basically, meet up at pretty much the same place where George is going; there might be a few deviations along the route, but we’re heading towards the same destination. I kind of wish that there were some things we didn’t have to spoil, but we’re kind of stuck between a rock and a hard place. The show must go on. . .and that’s what we’re going to do.
Benioff on why fans would want to finish the books after seeing the show:
I think the thing that’s kind of fun for George is the idea that he can still have surprises for people even once they’ve watched the show through to the conclusion. There are certain things that are going to happen in the books that are different in the show, and I think people who love the show and want more—want to know more about the characters, want to know more about the different characters who might not have made the cut for the show—will be able to turn to the books.
HBO's fifth season of Game of Thrones starts airing on April 12th, and it looks like it will more or less wrap up the plot points from books 4 and 5. There's still ample time for Martin to finish writing Book 6, "The Winds of Winter", before season 6 shows up NEXT year, but when it comes to book 7, it looks like HBO is going to beat the book by a wide margin. Weiss and Benioff are doing a hell of a job with Thrones so far, although I am admittedly a little uneasy about them writing a season without a book to work off of. Thankfully they're in pretty close with Martin so it looks like they'll share enough material to make sure we're not missing out on anything.
Season 5 of Game of Thrones will air on HBO on April 12, 2015.