George R. R. Martin has addressed fandom attitude towards popular franchises.
The author penned the novels that formed the basis for the Game of Thrones TV show and is an executive producer on the upcoming prequel series House of the Dragon.
"I don't understand how people can come to hate so much something that they once loved," he told The Independent. "If you don't like a show, don't watch it! How has everything become so toxic?"
He then elaborated further on his thoughts. "The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power isn't even on yet, but if you follow what's going on online, the controversy about it is like World War Two. They're dropping atomic bombs on each other," he commented.
"You hear controversies about some of the Marvel shows and the Marvel movies, certainly about the DC characters. It used to be if you were a fan of Star Trek, you liked Star Trek. Now it seems like half the people who call themselves Star Trek fans hate Star Trek, and the Star Wars fans hate Star Wars, and the Tolkien fans hate Rings of Power," the author continued. "What the hell? Now maybe it's because it's changing, but as a writer you'd go crazy if you didn't change it somehow. You want to tell new stories, not tell the same stories over and over again."
House of the Dragon is arriving this August 21, and it will be soon followed by The Rings of Power, which lands this September 2. Martin has said he wants both shows to succeed, though admitted he hopes House of the Dragon does better.
While you wait for both series, check out our guide to the best Netflix shows streaming now to fill out your watchlist.
