George R.R. Martin Is Really Never, Ever Finishing That Damn Book

Three seasons into AMC and AMC+ series Dark Winds, the acclaimed noir drama starring Westworld‘s Zahn McClarnon, two of the show’s executive producers decided to drop in for a cameo. Last night’s season three premiere featured a brief but memorable scene of legendary actor Robert Redford and legendary fantasy author George R.R. Martin playing a little jailhouse chess, with McClarnon’s character Lt. Joe Leaphorn offering some clutch advice. But the funniest part has got to be Redford’s opening line:

“George, the whole world’s waiting! Make a move!”

Now, obviously, within the scene he’s referring to George, the character, taking too long to move his chess piece. But there’s a meta-meaning there that fans of Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire book series—basis for Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon, as well as the upcoming A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, all on HBO—will certainly pick up on. The last book in the series, A Dance With Dragons, released in 2011. The yet-to-materialize follow-up, The Winds of Winter (and its follow-up, A Dream of Spring), have since become the most despairingly awaited literary event for fantasy fans, maybe of all time?

Of course, every now and then, we do get updates; in December, Martin joked that he’s still very much alive and plans to stay alive long enough to finish the damn book (s). You could interpret the Dark Winds season three premiere as a sort of proof of life, perhaps.

You can catch new episodes of Dark Winds, which also stars Kiowa Gordon, Jessica Matten, and Deanna Allison, Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on AMC and AMC+. According to an AMC press release, “Season three picks up six months after the events of Season two and follows Lt. Joe Leaphorn (McClarnon) and Jim Chee (Gordon) as they investigate the disappearance of two boys, with only an abandoned bicycle and blood-stained patch of ground left in their wake. Meanwhile, Bernadette Manuelito (Matten) attempts to settle into her new life 500 miles from home with the Border Patrol, but stumbles across a conspiracy involving human and drug smuggling with far-reaching implications.” Dark Winds is itself based on a book series—the Leaphorn & Chee books by Tony Hillerman—and has already been renewed for a fourth season.

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.