Netflix has renewed its sci fi series 3 Body Problem, but the extent of that renewal is not clear yet. The streamer has given the greenlight to continue the series and to bring it to a conclusion, but the number of seasons involved has not been announced. Showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss were hoping to have four full seasons to tell the story from the book trilogy by Cixin Liu, but Netflix has not committed to that yet.
3 Body Problem is one of the most expensive originals that the streamer has put out, costing $20 million per episode so far, and that does not include the exorbitant fee to attain the rights to the books. The first season topped the Netflix charts for three weeks and spent seven total in the Top 10. It has also spent three weeks at Number 1 in the Nielsen Streaming Rankings so far. But at the price tag, the streamer is likely still not coming out ahead with this one, and I would not be surprised if the show got only an extended second season to wrap up the full story. That would put Benioff and Weiss once again in a position where they are rushed to end a television series based on a beloved book series.
The showrunners have extended their deal with Netflix, so execs at the streaming service seem to be happy with their work, and maybe they will convince the higher-ups to let it go for at least three full seasons. But at this point, the number of episodes and seasons the show will get remains unclear. Benioff and Weiss made the following statement after the announcement:
We’re thrilled that we get to tell this story through to its epic conclusion. Ever since we read the last page of Cixin Liu’s magnificent trilogy, we hoped we’d be able to bring the audience to the end of the universe with us. Here we go!
This brings the Cancellation/Renewal Score for the current season to 25 renewed sci fi and fantasy entries (40% of shows tracked) vs. 14 cancelled and ending (23%). You can see the breakdown of the numbers and the full list of shows for the current and prior seasons at our Cancellation Watch Page.
In 3 Body Problem, a fateful decision from China’s past echoes across space and time to a group of scientists in the present, forcing them to face humanity’s greatest threat. It stars Saamer Usmani, Jess Hong, Jovan Adepo, Sea Shimooka, Benedict Wong, and Tsai Chin and it is based on the trilogy by Cixin Liu.
We are at the end of the broadcast network regular season and I expect more announcements to come over the next week or so. You can see the status of all this season’s shows at this link. And be sure to follow this site and the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Site for updates and breaking news.
Be sure to follow the Cancelled Sci Fi Twitter Site for breaking news and updates. And for the latest news and discussions on sci fi and fantasy television, follow r/SciFiTV
Follow our Sci Fi TV Schedule for all the currently airing and upcoming sci fi and fantasy television shows, and you can see the premieres for all the upcoming genre entries at this link.
That’s a contract that should come with any TV show. You’ll watch it, and I’ll guarantee you that in any form the story will be conclude, by more seasons if the show is a hit, or at least some episodes / tv movie to conclude the story. That’s the pact I want if I’m gonna invest time in your show.
Can’t disagree with that.