George R.R. Martin Declined A Game Of Thrones Season 8 Cameo And He Explains Why

Game of Thrones showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff invited author George R.R. Martin to come to Ireland to film a cameo for the upcoming eighth and final season--but he said no.

Martin explained to Entertainment Weekly that he had a very good reason for staying hunkered down at home in New Mexico--he was working on the sixth novel in A Song of Ice and Fire saga.

"David and Dan invited me to a cameo in one of the final episodes, which I was tempted to do," he explained. "But I didn't hink just for the sake of a cameo I could take the time to return to Belfast."

Martin also confirmed that he filmed a cameo in the pilot episode of Game of Thrones, but it was cut. "I was a guest at Dany's wedding. But that was when she was played by Tamzin Merchant, so all that footage got thrown out when we recast with Emilia Clarke."

An image of Martin in costume for the cameo can be seen here on the Game of Thrones wiki.

Game of Thrones Season 8 premieres on April 14 on HBO--you can see the latest footage here. While the main show is ending, a prequel series is in development.