How was George Martin’s universe created and how much did it bring?
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75 years ago, writer George Martin, creator of the saga “A Song of Ice and Fire,” was born. Based on his series of novels, Game of Thrones became not only one of the biggest budget projects on television, but also had a huge impact on pop culture.
American Tolkien
George R.R. Martin gained fame in the 1970s and 1980s for his science fiction stories and novellas, for which he was awarded a number of literary awards. Having admired the works of John Ronald Reuel Tolkien since childhood, Martin wanted to create his own epic fantasy, but did not start work for a long time. He was afraid of becoming just an imitator of the English writer.
“After Tolkien came a dark period in the history of epic fantasy, with many terrible imitations… I think every modern fantasy writer writes under Tolkien’s shadow, but I haven’t had the opportunity to capture his unique voice. He was a completely different person from a different time, with completely different views. And although we both wrote about medieval society, I had a completely different view of it, of war, of sexuality, so I simply told my story,” he said in interview The Guardian.
The A Song of Ice and Fire saga was originally conceived as a trilogy. The first Game of Thrones book was published in 1996. It received critical acclaim, but did not immediately become a bestseller. The first circulation was approximately 5 thousand copies. By words HarperCollins editor Jane Johnson said, “word of mouth recommendations soon spread like wildfire among fans.”
The second part of the Clash of Kings saga was released in 1999 and appeared on 13th place on The New York Times bestseller list. The next part came out a year later and took 12th place.
While working on the trilogy, Martin realized that he could not fit the entire story into three books, and planned seven. Volume 4, A Feast of Vultures, topped The New York Times bestseller list and was named one of the 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time. according to Time magazine.
Magazine named Martin is “a major force in the evolution of fantasy” and proclaimed him “the American Tolkien”: “Of those working in the great tradition of epic fantasy, Martin is by far the best… A Feast of Vultures is not beautiful elves against gnarly orcs. These are men and women who go to hell for money, power, lust and love.”
The latest book in the series, A Dance with Dragons, was published in 2011. On the first day of release there were purchased record 298 thousand copies, the same year Martin took 12th highest earning author in the world according to Forbes ($15 million).
At the same time, interest in the writer’s other books began to grow sharply – in 2013 it was sold 1 million copies “Game of Thrones” that brought him $12 million Today, sales of copies of novels that have been translated into 40 languages of the world, exceeded 90 million copies, and the fortune of the creator of the saga is estimated at $120 million
$1.5 billion media phenomenon
Proposals for film adaptations of the novels began to come to Martin in the early 2000s, when, after the success of Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings, producers began to look for other fantasy projects. The writer refused because he doubted the directors’ ability to bring his entire story to life on screen.
“It took three films to make The Lord of the Rings, and the entire Lord of the Rings, all three Tolkien books, is the same size as one of mine. What studio is ready to make 20 films?.. And then it occurred to me that someone like HBO could do this, in the form of a television series,” he explained in interview The New York Times.
In 2007, HBO acquired the film rights. Four years later, the first season was released, the filming of which cost $60 million One of the central expenses was creating a realistic world for the series.
In the first seasons, the budget per episode averaged $6 million By the last season it increased 2.5 times – up to $15 million
The salaries of the series’ leading actors grew along with the show’s budget. In the seventh season, the five main stars – Emilia Clarke (Daenerys Targaryen), Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jaime Lannister), Peter Dinklage (Tyrion Lannister), Kit Harington (Jon Snow) and Lena Headey (Cersei Lannister) – received $500 thousand per episode. By the eighth indicator increased almost 2.5 times – up to $1.2 million
With the show’s total budget at $1.5 billion the project started working $3.1 billion only through subscriptions to HBO. In eight years, the channel has attracted more than 50 million new viewers by broadcasting his V 170 countries. In the last season alone, HBO’s revenue from Game of Thrones audiences is estimated at $900 million
In 2017, the show was included in the Guinness Book of Records as the most popular series on torrent trackers.
In the fifth and subsequent seasons, the showrunners were left with no source material – the sixth and seventh books have not yet been written. The creators of the series had to rely on Martin’s drafts and intuition. As a result, the ending received significant criticism.
On the IMDb portal, the last episode of the show received the lowest rating in the entire history of the series: 5.2 out of 10. USA Today wrote about “a disastrous ending that fans didn’t deserve,” and Bark launched a mental health support service for those who couldn’t cope with the disappointment of the ending.
Despite its controversial ending, Game of Thrones was celebrated 59 Emmy awards – a record for a drama series.
The show radically changed pop culture, especially television, by becoming an example of an ideal business case. After its success, the race began to create a new Game of Thrones, which led to Netflix’s The Witcher and Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.
From tutors to sneakers
The series’ influence spread beyond television. A course has opened at Harvard. “The Real Game of Thrones: From Modern Myth to Medieval Models.” In the wake of the popularity of the series, people began to name their children after its characters. For example, Aryas, Khaleesi, Brans and Sandors are popular in Britain. In the USA, in addition to them, there are Tyrions and Briannas.
Fans even learn languages specially created for the series. Courses on fictitious dialects have become income for tutors – the British site Bark.com offered Valyrian teachers payment up to £40 per hour. More than 1 million people — it turned out to be more popular than the Vietnamese and Norwegian ones.
Various brands have used the commercial potential of Game of Thrones to promote their products. Adidas released a limited edition collection of Ultraboost Game of Thrones sneakers. The Oreo company filmed a viral ad that played out the opening credits of the series. Johnnie Walker was inspired by the show when creating the whiskey bottle design.
Video game based on the saga “Game of Thrones: Conquest” from Warner Bros. within the first year after its release in 2017, it earned in the App Store and Google Play stores $125 million By 2021 income increased before $750 million
In the fourth episode of the final season of Game of Thrones, the crew forgot to remove a Starbucks cup from the frame. The incident hurt the show’s ratings, but proved beneficial for the coffee chain. In connection with the series, it was mentioned on various portals more than 10 thousand times. Experts assessed the potential cost of such advertising placement in $2.3 billion
To places of glory
The series is unique in its vast geography. Filming took place in several countries, including the UK, Malta, Croatia, Iceland and Morocco. Thus, “Game of Thrones” influenced the development of the tourism industry, provoking the interest of fans in various attractions.
For example, to the Spanish Zafra Castle, which was visited only in 2016 by 500% more tourists than a year earlier. Northern Ireland’s economy was boosted that year by the filming of Game of Thrones £150 million
The Croatian Dubrovnik is especially popular – scenes in King’s Landing were filmed there. An increase in tourist flow by 10% was noticed there a year after the start of the series in 2011. Nowadays the city is visited by about 4 million tourists in a population of 50 thousand.
Like Marvel
Today, A Song of Ice and Fire is a global entertainment franchise. According to analysts, the brand value can be estimated at about $1 billion
In August 2022, HBO released the prequel series House of the Dragon. The premiere was watched by more than 10 million viewers, which was the largest number in HBO history. In January 2023, the series received a Golden Globe Award in the Best Drama Series category.
According to George R.R. Martin, who receives regular royalties from the channel’s profits, HBO is preparing at least two more Game of Thrones spin-offs. In his opinion, the franchise should eventually turn into an expansive universe like Marvel or Star Wars.
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