When Game of Thrones actor Kristian Nairn let slip that his character Hodor and Isaac Hempstead Wright's Bran wouldn't be appearing in the show's upcoming fifth season, fans were a little confused.

It marks the first time a major character has taken a season off in the show, but showrunner David Benioff's recent explanation to Entertainment Weekly makes perfect sense for anybody who has read the books. Bran's story is simply further along than those of the other characters.

"Ideally that wouldn't have gotten out and it's unfortunate it did," Benioff tells EW. "The fact is, even though we're making changes to the books and adapting as necessary, we're trying to keep the various storylines the same as the books and trying to keep them roughly [chronologically] parallel.

Bran in the show has already caught up with Bran in the latest Song of Ice and Fire book, A Dance With Dragons, upon which Game of Thrones is based. Having Bran in season five would move his character much further ahead, and would also go in front of the show's source material. Game of Thrones author George R.R. Martin is currently working on the sixth installment of the book series, but there is currently no word on when it might be complete.

At the end of last season, Bran, Hodor and the Reed siblings finally made it north of the Wall to the Three-Eyed Raven, who is poised to help Bran better understand his ability to "warg" into other creatures. While Theon in the books is unheard from for a long period of time, the show kept him at the forefront, depicting his torture by Ramsay Snow. But it didn't make sense for the show to depict what is coming next in Bran's story.

"It made sense to stop where we did," Benioff says. "He's now entering a training period which is going to take quite some time, much of which isn't particularly cinematic."

It will also give the show more time to focus in on numerous new characters, as season five travels to the realm of Dorne for the first time. Benioff goes on to say that it was more interesting to leave Bran out for an amount of time so that when viewers do meet him again, presumably in season six, his character will be a much different state.

Photo: HBO