George R.R. Martin confirms he was "out of the loop" for the later seasons of 'Game of Thrones'

Martin became estranged from the show

"I was pretty much out of the loop."

The author of the fantasy world that has become one of the biggest modern franchises of all time, has thrown former 'GOT' showrunners Dan Weiss and David Benioff under the bus. And rightly so. George R. R. Martin has said that as the later seasons of 'Game of Thrones' progressed, he was left more and more in the dark.

Martin was once an integral part of the show from its inception at HBO. However, as the series continued to surpass the fantasy novels on which it's based (only five of the expected seven 'A Song of Ice and Fire' have been published), the show began to noticeably feature longer action sequences and far less dialogue between the characters.

Talking with The New York Times, Martin told the publication: "By season five and six, and certainly seven and eight, I was pretty much out of the loop."

Pushed for an answer as to why he became more estranged from the show as the series progressed, Martin admits: "I don’t know — you have to ask Dan and David." Unsurprisingly, showrunners Weiss and Benioff declined the Times' request for a comment on the matter.

Fans of the HBO fantasy series were left flabbergasted by what unfolded during 'Game of Thrones' eighth and final season, as the once fan-favourite Daenerys Targaryen (Elimia Clarke) descended into brief madness over the course of the last few episodes, rushing her character arc at an unfathomable speed. The end result sees her die at the hands of her lover/nephew Jon Snow (Kit Harington). Fans were not happy.

With the later season of 'Game of Thrones' getting quite the bashing from fans, HBO has made sure this (hopefully) doesn't happen again in their plethora of spin-off series, with martin on board all of the upcoming productions. 'House of the Dragon' launches later this month, while Harington is confirmed to be returning to the character of Jon Snow in a sequel series.

HBO’s chief content officer Casey Bloys told The Time about the author's involvement in the upcoming 'HOTD' prequel: "George, for us, in this process has been a really valuable resource. He is literally the creator of this world. He is its historian, its creator, its keeper. And so I can’t imagine doing a show that he didn’t believe in or didn’t endorse."

'House of the Dragon' will begin on Sky Atlantic and NOW on Monday, August 22.