Derek Tsang (‘3 Body Problem’ director) on his desire ‘to be authentic and be truthful to the book’ [Exclusive Video Interview]
“This is a book that I think needs to be read by everyone because it really changes your perspective on a lot of things,” declares director Derek Tsang about “3 Body Problem” and the acclaimed novel on which the series is based. The hit Netflix sci-fi drama was co-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 he adds, “We were at South by Southwest [film festival] and we’re doing an interview with David and Dan, and I think they put it very accurately: after you read the book, it changes the way you look at things. At night, when you walk out onto street, when you look at the stars and the moon, it changes the way you look at them.” Watch our exclusive video interview above.
SEE Exclusive Video Interview: David Benioff, D.B. Weiss and Alexander Woo (‘3 Body Problem’ creators)
The groundbreaking book that Tsang refers to is 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. Tsang directed the pilot (“Countdown”), which was co-written by Benioff, Weiss and Woo, taking 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. Rosalind Chao and Zine Tseng star as the older and younger version of Chinese astrophysicist Ye Wenjie, alongside an international cast including Jess Hong, Benedict Wong, Jovan Adepo, Eiza Gonzalez, Alex Sharp, Sea Shimooka, Marlo Kelly and “Game of Thrones” alums Jonathan Pryce, John Bradley and Liam Cunningham.
Tsang directed the first two episodes of the series, working with Benioff, Weiss and Woo to set the tone for the series as a whole. It was a huge undertaking for the Oscar-nominated director (for the Best International Feature-nominated “Better Days” from Hong Kong), which he welcomed with open arms. “I think the biggest pressure for me was bringing this novel to life. I don’t think a lot of Western audiences appreciate how big, how revered this novel is in Chinese literature and to Chinese readers in general, because this novel came out in 2008 and it eventually became one of the biggest sci-fi books ever in Chinese culture,” he explains. “It’s revered and it’s on a pedestal,” he says, adding, “I think the biggest thing for me right from the start was how to be authentic and be truthful to the book. A lot of credit has to go to David, Dan and Alex. They really wanted to be authentic. That’s why they reached out and looked for a Chinese director to come on board for the first block, for episode one and two,” he says. “I’m just very honored and very happy that this this series is doing so well, and everybody’s genuinely so interested and so captivated by it.”
PREDICT the 2024 Emmy nominees through July 17
Make your predictions at Gold Derby now. Download our free and easy app for Apple/iPhone devices or Android (Google Play) to compete against legions of other fans plus our experts and editors for best prediction accuracy scores. See our latest prediction champs. Can you top our esteemed leaderboards next? Always remember to keep your predictions updated because they impact our latest racetrack odds, which terrify Hollywood chiefs and stars. Don’t miss the fun. Speak up and share your huffy opinions in our famous forums where 5,000 showbiz leaders lurk every day to track latest awards buzz. Everybody wants to know: What do you think? Who do you predict and why?
SIGN UP for Gold Derby’s free newsletter with latest predictions