Bad news for Game of Thrones fans who are sticklers to the books: the series’ author says characters who live on the page are going to die on the screen.
A Song of Ice and Fire series author George R.R. Martin revealed the news at the Writers Guild West Awards on Saturday, Showbiz411 reports. “Everybody better be on their toes,” Martin said, adding that the creators of the HBO show, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss “are even bloodier than I am.”
The popular show returns with a fifth season on April 12, and the network has already commissioned a sixth season. Martin is working on the penultimate book now, The Winds Of Winter, and will then finish the series with a novel entitled The Dream of Spring.
Considering that those two books will tally up to about 3,000 pages, it could be years before fans have a final death tally between the books and the show.
See The Real-Life People Who Inspired Game of Thrones Characters
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![Portrait of Henry VIII. By Hans Holbein Date c. 1540. Henry VIII (28 June 1491 - 28 January 1547) was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was also Lord of Ireland (later King of Ireland) and claimant to the Kingdom of France.](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/anne-boleyn-talisa.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
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![Portrait of Henry VIII. By Hans Holbein Date c. 1540. Henry VIII (28 June 1491 - 28 January 1547) was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was also Lord of Ireland (later King of Ireland) and claimant to the Kingdom of France. Portrait of Henry VIII. By Hans Holbein Date c. 1540. Henry VIII (28 June 1491 - 28 January 1547) was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was also Lord of Ireland (later King of Ireland) and claimant to the Kingdom of France.](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/king-henry-viii-robert-borathean-copy.jpg?quality=75&w=2400)
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