Fans of Game of Thrones know George R.R. Martin loves his twists and turns. Martin upended so many conventions in his works as he seemingly built up Ned Stark as the hero of the saga, only to kill him off midway through the first book. He kept it up with more stunning turns like the Red Wedding, and made readers realize no one was safe in the saga.
During a recent talk at Seattle WorldCon 2025, Martin took part in a panel where he related this love of twists to his childhood and also offered up quite an interesting take on The Lord of Rings.
As many know, Martin always cited The Lord of the Rings as his biggest early influence in writing. He’s not alone, as J.R.R. Tolkien's epic was the inspiration for many a burgeoning author. While he's a big fan of the works, that doesn't mean there aren't some things he'd change.
"I know. Gandalf came back. Actually, I would have kept him dead. But that’s an issue for me and J.R.R. to discuss down the line. I still love Tolkien, and there’s no doubt that his influence was great. But as a reader, I like books that are not familiar to me. I like to be surprised. I like twists and turns," Martin revealed during the event.
Given his love of twists, it should be no surprise that Martin wishes the storyline had played out a bit differently.
Martin’s observation is interesting, as many fans of the book (and the first film) were stunned at Gandalf’s death, and his return in The Two Towers was a good boost to the storyline. However, it’s not hard to imagine Martin (who’s always been more grounded in his works) not doing Gandalf’s resurrection. He’d have let Gandalf remain dead, and that loss would have impacted the storyline.
Without Gandalf, it’s likely things would have gone very badly, as he couldn’t free Theoden from Saruman's influence or lead the battle against the Witch King at Gondor. Indeed, his absence would have likely meant Sauron would have won. Then again, it could also have upped the stakes and the challenge for the heroes to overcome for a more emotional victory.
Either way, Martin’s view of LOTR sheds more light on his own writing and why he helped change the game for the fantasy genre.
Game of Thrones is streaming on HBO Max.
More Game of Thrones news from Winter is Coming: