David Farnor | On 01, Sep 2020

Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss will adapt The Three-Body Problem for Netflix.

Liu Cixin’s renowned novel tells the story of humanity’s first contact with an alien civilisation.

“The first time I read The Three-Body Problem trilogy (Remembrance of Earth’s Past), it changed what science fiction meant to me forever,” said Peter Friedlander, Vice President, Original Series Drama, in a blog post announcing the project. “Chinese author Liu Cixin’s ability to interweave science with fiction made his vision of the future and extra-terrestrial contact feel more realistic than any other science fiction I’ve read.”

Now, the Hugo Award-winning novel and its two sequels – The Dark Forest and Death’s End – are heading to Netflix as an English-language series. Benioff and Weiss will be joined by Alexander Woo (The Terror: Infamy, True Blood) as writers and exec-producers, with other EPs including Rian Johnson and his producing partner Ram Bergman (Looper, Knives Out, Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi).

Cixin has also joined the project as a consulting producer alongside Ken Liu, who wrote the English translation for The Three-Body Problem and Death’s End.

The series is produced by Plan B Entertainment and Rosamund Pike and Robie Uniacke’s Primitive Streak, which specialises in prestige international literary property.

Benioff and Weiss said in a statement: “Liu Cixin’s trilogy is the most ambitious science-fiction series we’ve read, taking readers on a journey from the 1960s until the end of time, from life on our pale blue dot to the distant fringes of the universe. We look forward to spending the next years of our lives bringing this to life for audiences around the world.”

Cixin added: “I have the greatest respect for and faith in the creative team adapting The Three-Body Problem for television audiences. I set out to tell a story that transcends time and the confines of nations, cultures and races; one that compels us to consider the fate of humankind as a whole. It is a great honor as an author to see this unique sci-fi concept travel and gain fandom across the globe and I am excited for new and existing fans all over the world to discover the story on Netflix.”

The project announcement comes after Netflix inked an overall deal with Benioff and Weiss last year.

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