[Update: George R.R. Martin is now walking back these comments, so maybe he spoke too soon.]

Game of Thrones is the most popular series in the history of HBO, and as of just a couple of weeks ago, the show can now add “Best Original Drama Series Emmy Winner” to its list of accomplishments. But all good things must end, and as we push into the sixth season of Game of Thrones, there’s been plenty of talk about when and how this adaptation of author George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire book series will conclude.

This summer, HBO President of Programming Michael Lombardo said that, per his most recent conversations with showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, Game of Thrones will likely come to an end after Season 8. However, over the years there have been rumblings that Game of Thrones won’t actually come to an end on the small screen, but could be destined for a series-ending movie in theaters instead. And now, according to a pretty knowledgable source, that idea is looking very, very likely.

Speaking with Daily Star (via Pajiba), George R.R. Martin claims that there will be a Game of Thrones movie, but it’ll be missing one key ingredient:

“There will be a movie but I will not be involved. I have too much to do. That is something HBO and DB and David are dealing with. I have two more books to finish and I still have so much to do.”

A movie adaptation isn’t something entirely new for the folks at HBO—they did it successfully with Sex and the City and less successfully with this summer’s Entourage—but for a series as massive as Game of Thrones, it makes a lot of sense. The scale is huge, and the prospect of seeing the series make the leap to the big screen is highly promising. But, according to the Daily Star, the movie may offer something more than just a larger canvas—it could provide the opportunity to resurrect long-dead characters in flashback form:

“They are looking at dipping back in time during certain periods of the series, which could be examined as a one off plot. That means that some of the big characters who fans have seen die on screen could be resurrected.”

Obviously it is very early to start talking about the plot of the Game of Thrones movie—which, despite Martin’s comments, has yet to be officially confirmed—but the idea of toying with flashbacks would ensure a grand finale to the show. Lombardo himself has admitted that they’ve already discussed doing some sort of prequel story once Game of Thrones concludes, given the vastness of the Song of Ice and Fire universe, so the GoT movie traveling back in time would be a nice primer for that eventual spinoff or follow-up series.

What do you think, folks? Do you want to see Game of Thrones go out in a blaze of glory with a feature film, or would you rather it conclude the way it began, as a TV series? Sound off in the comments below.