In the lead-up to the San Diego Comic-Con, author George R. R. Martin had stated he would be there on the panel for House of the Dragon.
But then, a day before the Q & A panel on Saturday, July 23, he pulled out unexpectedly, citing COVID-19 as the reason.
“We’re sad to report due to the high levels of the new variant of COVID that George has decided to cancel his in-person appearances at San Diego Comic-Con this year,” said the statement issued on the author’s blog.
The blog entry then went on to explain that fans still wanting Martin’s autograph still had some signed books and posters available for purchase at San Diego Comic-Con.
This had been an unexpected blow to fans who were looking forward to the insight Martin could give ahead of House of the Dragon premiering on August 21. HBO’s latest epic fantasy series is based on Fire and Blood, a faux history book Martin has written that deals with House Targaryen.
However, the author surprised everyone by actually attending the panel.
George R. R. Martin attended San Diego Comic-Con
The Q & A Panel for House of the Dragon was eagerly anticipated by fans even though the network had already released a trailer for the new series ahead of Comic-Con.
Because it is a new series set within the Game of Thrones universe, viewers were eager to find out as much as possible about what to expect when House of the Dragon drops. And the Q & A panel did not disappoint.
Neither did the virtual “ceremonial dragon hatching experience” on offer within the convention. This gave fans a chance to experience the world of Westeros as well as check out the impressive new Iron Throne that will feature in the TV show.
During the panel, the cast and crew discussed many things, but fans were surprised to see George R. R. Martin was also in attendance after his blog post a day earlier.
The author joined in with question time and offered up plenty of new information regarding House of the Dragon, including why both House of the Dragon and Game of Thrones have so many characters that we all love to hate and hate to love.
“The most interesting characters are gray characters… all of these characters have good and evil in them and it’s all about the choices they make,” Martin said.
Blog post gives updated reason for George R. R. Martin’s appearance
So, why did the author choose to attend San Diego Comic-Con after saying he wouldn’t?
According to his updated blog post from July 22, Martin decided to only attend the panel and not the in-person signings.
“NOTE GRRM will be at the Hall H House of the Dragon panel, but we felt in-person signings might be dangerous,” the blog post read.
This meant that those wishing to meet and greet with the author still missed out, having to resort to trying to track down the limited amount of re-signed merchandise on offer.
Season 1 of House of the Dragon will premiere on August 21 on HBO Max. San Diego Comic-Con runs from July 21-24, 2022.