LOS ANGELES - "Game of Thrones" is considered by many to be one of the greatest TV shows of all time. But the hit HBO drama - which is based on the books written by George R R Martin - is also notorious for leaving fans heartbroken by killing off their favorite characters. Remember the Red Wedding? Yup...it couldn’t get any more brutal than that.

But in a recent interview with Los Angeles Times, Martin has finally revealed the reason he gets rid of his characters so easily. And ironically enough, it’s because of writer J R R Tolkien - the writer of another fantasy drama Lord of The Rings (LOTR).

Apparently, Martin was inspired by Tolkien killing off Gandalf from LOTR and began sending his own characters to early graves. He has also often praised the late British novelist for his work in LOTR.

“Gandalf dies. I can’t explain the impact that had on me at 13. You can’t kill Gandalf. Tolkien just broke that rule and I’ll love him forever for it because the minute you kill Gandalf, the suspense of everything that follows is a thousand times greater because now, anybody could die,” he said.

But unlike the characters of "Game of Thrones," Gandalf’s death wasn’t permanent. He was resurrected after spending 20 days as a corpse. Martin, on the other hand, is happy striking off his characters.

Last year, The Washington Post released a list of 1,243 characters that have been killed on "Game of Thrones" so far. With the last season releasing in 2019, it’s safe to say that there will be many more deaths. - Agencies