Game of Thrones Creators to Adapt Sci-Fi Trilogy The Three-Body Problem at Netflix

The renowned Chinese novels tell the story of humanity's first contact with an alien civilization

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David Benioff and D.B. Weiss are gearing up to tackle another iconic book series.

Netflix announced on Tuesday that a drama series inspired by the renowned science fiction trilogy The Three-Body Problem from acclaimed Chinese author Liu Cixin is in the works. The show will be helmed by the Game of Thrones creators and Alexander Woo (The Terror: Infamy, True Blood).

Bernadette Caulfield (Game of Thrones, The X-Files), the new president of Benioff and Weiss' production company, will also executive produce.

The series will cover all three books in the trilogy — The Three-Body Problem, The Dark Forest and Death's End — which tell the story of humanity's first contact with an alien civilization. Cixin and Ken Liu, who wrote the English versions of the first and third books, will serve as a consulting producers.

Netflix

"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," Benioff and Weiss said in a statement. "We look forward to spending the next years of our lives bringing this to life for audiences around the world."

Said Cixin, "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," he continued. "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."

Added Woo, "It's a privilege to be adapting one of the great masterpieces of Chinese science-fiction. The Three-Body Problem trilogy combines so many things I love: rich, multi-layered characters and true existential stakes — all told as an elegant and deeply human allegory. I'm thrilled to kick off my partnership with Netflix with this accomplished creative team."

Last fall, Weiss and Benioff announced that they had dropped out of their deal with Disney's Lucasfilm to create the next post-Skywalker era Star Wars movie. The Emmy award-winning duo explained that their schedules had become too busy since signing on to work with Netflix, according to Deadline, and felt they couldn't do the film justice.