Game Of Thrones: George R.R. Martin Told Showrunners Bran WILL Be King In The Books
Bran will become King in A Dream of Spring.
Game of Thrones made a number of controversial decisions in its final season, from Jaime going back to Cersei's side to Daenerys burning King's Landing and all those who live there, but few were more divisive than the moment in the series finale where a new King is crowned: Bran Stark.
Bran, or the Three-Eyed Raven, wasn't many people's first choice to be King by the end of the show, especially not when compared with the likes of Jon, Daenerys, or Sansa (although he was the favourite in the betting odds before the season started, so someone with knowledge made a LOT of money on that 'secret').
However, he is a logical choice: not only does he have access to the entire history of Westeros, meaning he can see where every King before him has gone wrong, but he's a person who simply doesn't 'want'. He is incorruptible. It's not just a left-field pick from the showrunners either but, according to actor Isaac Hempstead Wright, something that came from George R.R. Martin. Speaking to Making Game Of Thrones, the Bran actor said:
David [Benioff] and Dan [Weiss] told me there were two things George R.R. Martin had planned for Bran, and that was the Hodor revelation, and that he would be king. So that’s pretty special to be directly involved in something that is part of George’s vision. It was a really nice way to wrap it up."
Back in 2013, Benioff & Weiss went out to Santa Fe for an extensive meeting with Martin. At that point, although it wasn't certain they'd overtake the books, it looked very likely, so the trio went through the endings that the author had planned for each major character, and it's expected that most of those we saw in the finale came from that, even if the journeys are different. This was the same meeting where Martin told them three 'holy s**t' moments, one of which was indeed Hodor, so it was back here in 2013 when they learned Bran would be King.
Of course, there is always the chance Martin has changed his mind, or will do so. The Winds of Winter is still in the writing stage, never mind A Dream of Spring (where Bran will become King as it stands), and his gardening approach to writing could lead him down a different path. As of right now, though, King Bran will be in the books.
What did you think of Bran becoming King? Let us know down in the comments.