Liam Cunningham (‘3 Body Problem’) said ‘yes’ to joining cast based purely on blind faith in show’s creator trio: ‘It was just unavoidable’ [Exclusive Video Interview]
“Storytelling, and the words that they put in their actors’ mouths. They’re just glorious,” declares Liam Cunningham when giving high praise to the creators of Netflix’s hit sci-fi drama “3 Body Problem.” The series was created by multiple Emmy-winning “Game of Thrones” duo David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, who serve as co-creators and producers with writer/producer Alexander Woo (“True Blood”). For our recent webchat, Cunningham (who worked with Benioff and Weiss as Ser Davos Seaworth on “Game of Thrones”) adds, “it’s just wonderful! They aim so high with difficult storytelling that most normal people wouldn’t attempt to go near.” Watch our exclusive video interview above.
SEE Exclusive Video Interview: Minkie Spiro (‘3 Body Problem’ director)
“3 Body Problem” is based on the Hugo Award-winning novel “The Three-Body Problem” by Chinese author Liu Cixin, the first in Liu’s “Remembrance of Earth’s Past” trilogy. Benioff, Weiss and Woo co-wrote the pilot together, titled “Countdown,” which takes place in both 1960s China and modern-day England, where astrophysicists try to uncover and expose what is ultimately revealed as an existential threat to humanity from a distant and more advanced alien civilization known as the San-Ti. Cunningham stars as chief planetary defense strategist Thomas Wade, the charismatic leader of the world’s most elite intelligence operation, hell-bent on fending off the threat of the looming San-Ti invasion. The series also stars Rosalind Chao, Zine Tseng, Jess Hong, Benedict Wong, Jovan Adepo, Eiza Gonzalez, Alex Sharp, Sea Shimooka, Marlo Kelly and Cunningham’s fellow “Game of Thrones” alums Jonathan Pryce and John Bradley.
The veteran Irish actor reveals that he took on the fan-favorite Thomas Wade role on a whim, trusting his blind faith in the creator trio behind the show. “I was in talks to do another job. Quite serious talks. Luckily enough, I hadn’t said yes; we were just discussing. And I got a phone call from Dan Weiss; from the guys. And Dan said ‘that job that you’re in talks? You’re not going with them. You’re coming with us.’ And literally, this is probably the most unprofessional thing I’ve ever done. I just said, ‘Okay! Right. Talk to you later,’ and I hung up,” he laughs incredulously. “I don’t even know what the part is! It could be a day. I could be turning down a rather spectacular part to go with these guys. It wasn’t until after that, that this beast of Thomas Wade showed up on the page. So, luckily enough, it worked out, but definitely not very professional of me,” he grins. “When you’ve got someone of the quality of David Benioff, D. B. Weiss and Alexander Woo. It was just unavoidable.”
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