George R.R Martin Slams Emmy Awards For Snubbing ‘Outlander’ And ‘Justified’

George R.R Martin’s Game of Thrones may have received the most Emmy nominations recently, but that doesn’t mean the veteran writer is completely happy with the Emmys.

Martin’s main contention with the Emmy nominations? Shows like Outlander, Justified, and other popular and critically acclaimed shows were left out of one of the Emmys’ most high-profile categories: Best Dramatic Series. The author voiced his concern on his Livejournal blog, Zap2It.com reports.

“‘Game of Thrones’ faces the usual formidable competition for the ‘Big One,’ the award for Best Dramatic Series… but as distinguished a list as that is, there are so many incredible shows that did NOT make the cut that it boggles the mind. It’s great to see ‘Better Call Saul’ and ‘Orange Is the New Black’ on this list, but where is ‘Masters of Sex’? ‘The Knick’? ‘Halt & Catch Fire’? How about [‘Vikings’]?” he writes.

The Song of Fire & Ice author didn’t stop there.

“I really thought ‘Justified’ might make it, for its final season. And ‘Outlander’, how in the world did they overlook ‘Outlander’, with its music and its costumes and its cinematography and the incredible performances of its three leads (especially Tobias Menzies in his double role)? Why is Nick [Offerman] not on the ballot for ‘Parks and Recreation’? How could ‘Big Bang Theory’ possibly fall off? Truly, the Academy (of which I am a member) moves in mysterious ways.”

Game of Thrones, an HBO drama based on Martin’s Song of Fire and Ice book series, received 24 Emmy nominations, the most of any series in any category, a fact that Martin says that he’s absolutely grateful for in his blog post.

“Congratulations are in order for David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, our showrunners, all our writers and directors and producers, our amazing cast and our incredible crew, and of course the good folks at Home Box Office, who made all this possible,” Martin wrote.

But he was quick to note, however, that although the show has consistently received lots of Emmy nominations, there was a significant difference between the number of noms and Emmy Awards won.

As Megan Vick from Zap2It.com writes, Game of Thrones often sweeps up Emmy Awards in categories like makeup, special effect, set design, and costumes. On the other hand, the show hasn’t been celebrated in the acting and directing categories. Peter Dinklage, who plays Tyrion Lannister on Game of Thrones, received an Emmy statuette for Best Supporting Actor in 2011. That’s been the only acting award the show has received since its first season.

Despite acknowledging the Emmy snubs, George R.R. Martin knows that the show has been fortunate to receive so many accolades.

“Okay, okay, I know, I am being greedy, and every producer on every other show on television is probably saying the same things about his own cast just now,” Martin writes in his blog. “Let me just savor the moment. ‘GoT’ did good.”

[Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images]