The Big Picture

Game of Thrones showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss are gearing up to unveil their new series, 3 Body Problem for Netflix. The series is an adaptation of the Cixin Liu novel and features a stacked ensemble including Game of Thrones alum, Liam Cunningham. While promoting The Last Voyage of the Demeter, Cunningham revealed he passed on another project to reunite with Benioff and Weiss on 3 Body Problem.

While there may have been mixed reactions to Game of Thrones’ big finish, there’s no denying it was a hugely influential show that sparked a pop culture phenomenon and inspired other series to raise the bar and embrace similar behind-the-scenes ambitions.

On top of that, Game of Thrones’ success put David Benioff and D.B. Weiss on the map like never before. As the HBO phenomenon came to a close, anticipation was sky high waiting to see what the duo would tackle next. While things didn’t pan out for their follow-up series at HBO, Confederate, and their Star Wars films never came to fruition, Benioff and Weiss eventually landed another very exciting opportunity in the book-to-series realm. Back in 2020, it was announced that Benioff and Weiss would write and executive produce 3 Body Problem for Netflix along with Alexander Woo.

3 Body Problem is an eight-episode drama based on the book series by Cixin Liu. The official synopsis of the series reads: “A young woman’s fateful decision in 1960s China reverberates across space and time to a group of brilliant scientists in the present day. As the laws of nature unravel before their eyes, five former colleagues reunite to confront the greatest threat in humanity’s history.”

Image via Netflix

3 Body Problem will feature a wildly impressive ensemble including Jovan Adepo, Eiza González, Benedict Wong, Jonathan Pryce, Alex Sharp, Jess Hong, and also Game of Thrones alum, Liam Cunningham. But, there was a point in time when Cunningham nearly committed to a different project, a project that would have prevented him from reuniting with his Game of Thrones showrunners. The one and only thing that stopped that from happening and ensured Cunningham’s involvement in the Netflix show? Benioff and Weiss themselves.

While celebrating the release of The Last Voyage of the Demeter, Cunningham took a moment to discuss why Benioff and Weiss were the perfect fit to helm an adaptation of The Three-Body Problem. He began:

“It’s always the quality of the writing, and these guys, it’s some of the best writing I’ve ever come across in my life. And this is also saying I spent a year and a half with the Royal Shakespeare Company. I’ve done Shakespeare on stage. These boys are absolutely extraordinary, the words they put in an actor’s mouth.”

Paired with David Dastmalchian for his Demeter interviews, Cunningham went on to admit that Dastmalchian is a hardcore fan of the Three-Body Problem book series:

“David’s an enormous fan of the books. I haven’t even read the books. I didn’t read the Game of Thrones books either. He knows a lot more about it than I do, and I mean it.”

Image via Netflix

When it came to committing to 3 Body Problem, the source material wasn’t a factor for Cunningham anyway. He revealed that he was actually up for a role in a different project, but passed on that opportunity to reunite with Benioff and Weiss without even knowing what they were working on. Here’s how he put it:

“To tell you the truth, I haven’t told anybody else, I was in serious talks for another project and obviously the boys found out about it, and I got a phone call from David and Dan, they just said, ‘You’re not doing that. You’re coming with us.’ I didn’t even know what the project was, and I just said, ‘Yeah, okay. I’ll tell the other crowd no.’ It could have been a day’s work on the other thing, but when those two call, you run to the clarion call.”

3 Body Problem is set to premiere on Netflix in January 2024. Check out the series teaser trailer below: