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Ah Tiongs offended, says Netflix's 3 Body Problem makes China look fucked up
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This same gal was leslie's sister in this movie too三太太 iz ze hottest among all zhang’s ladies
leslie's brother-in-law made him kissed and fuck his sister in the movie (9min:30sec), no nude scene.
Leslie went on to be a women's man.
https://wilfmovies.com/movies/temptress-moon-1996/
Problems with 3 Body Problem? Experts discuss physics, mathematics behind hit Netflix show
Credit: AI-generated imageThe science fiction television series 3 Body Problem, the latest from the creators of HBO's Game of Thrones, has become the most watched show on Netflix since its debut last month. Based on the bestselling book trilogy Remembrance of Earth's Past by Chinese computer engineer and author Cixin Liu, 3 Body Problem introduces viewers to advanced concepts in physics in service to a suspenseful story involving investigative police work, international intrigue, and the looming threat of an extraterrestrial invasion.
Yet how closely does the story of 3 Body Problem adhere to the science that it's based on? The very name of the show comes from the three-body problem, a mathematical problem in physics long considered to be unsolvable.
Virginia Tech physicist Djordje Minic says, "The three-body problem is a very famous problem in classical and celestial mechanics, which goes back to Isaac Newton. It involves three celestial bodies interacting via the gravitational force—that is, Newton's law of gravity. Unlike mathematical predictions of the motions of two-body systems, such as Earth-moon or Earth-sun, the three-body problem does not have an analytic solution."
"At the end of the 19th century, the great French mathematician Henri Poincaré's work on the three-body problem gave birth to what is known as chaos theory and the concept of the 'butterfly effect.'"
Both the novels and the Netflix show contain a visualization of the three-body problem in action: a solar system made up of three suns in erratic orbit around one another. Virginia Tech aerospace engineer and mathematics expert Shane Ross discussed the liberties the story takes with the science that informs it.
"There are no known configurations of three massive stars that could maintain an erratic orbit," Ross said. "There was a big breakthrough about 20 years ago when a figure eight solution of the three-body problem was discovered, in which three equal-sized stars chase each other around on a figure eight-shaped course. In fact, Cixin Liu makes reference to this in his books. Building on that development, other mathematicians found other solutions, but in each case, the movement is not chaotic."
Ross elaborated, "It's even more unlikely that a fourth body, a planet, would be in orbit around this system of three stars, however erratically—it would either collide with one or be ejected from the system. The situation in the book would, therefore, be a solution to the 'four-body problem,' which I guess didn't have quite the right ring to use as a title."
"Furthermore, a stable climate is unlikely even on an Earth-like planet. At last count, there are at least a hundred independent factors that are required to create an Earth-like planet that supports life as we know it," Ross said.
"We have been fortunate to have had about 10,000 years of the most stable climate in Earth's history, which makes us think climate stability is the norm when, in fact, it's the exception. It's likely no coincidence that this has corresponded with the rise of advanced human civilization."
Eiza Gonzalez wears a dual-tone dress to a party for her new film
By Sam Joseph Semon For Dailymail.com
16:52 AEST 16 Apr 2024 , updated 17:04 AEST 16 Apr 2024
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Eiza Gonzalez made quite the impression at the after party that was held to celebrate the New York premiere of The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare, which was held at Ascent Lounge on Monday evening.
The 34-year-old performer appeared to be enjoying her time at the star-studded event, during which she blew a kiss while posing for a snap.
The actress - who recently claimed she missed out on roles for being 'too pretty' - was also joined by several of her costars from the film, including Cary Elwes, Babs Olusanmokun and Henry Golding.
Gonzalez donned a dress that featured a white polka-dotted top portion and a jet-black bottom for the after party, after rocking a gold frock for the red carpet premiere.
The Ambulance star also wore a pair of high-heeled shoes and accessorized with a pair of sparkling earrings.
Eiza Gonzalez made quite the impression at a party that was held to celebrate the New York premiere of The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare, which was held at Ascent Lounge on Monday evening
Eiza Gonzalez made quite the impression at a party that was held to celebrate the New York premiere of The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare, which was held at Ascent Lounge on Monday evening
The performer's beautiful brunette locks fell towards her shoulder during her time at the star-studded event.
Gonzalez portrayed Marjorie Stewart in The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare, which was directed, co-written and co-produced by Guy Ritchie.
The movie is based on Damien Lewis' book Churchill's Secret Warriors: The Explosive True Story of the Special Forces Desperadoes of WWII, which was originally published in 2014.
The feature is centered on a group of soldiers assigned to a group dedicated to covert operations against Nazi Germany.
Development on the project was initially revealed to the public in 2015, and Ritchie signed on as its director six years later.
Gonzalez was added to the cast in October of 2022, alongside her costar Henry Cavill.
Physical production on the project kicked off in Turkey in February of last year and continued for two months.
The Baby Driver actress spoke about working on the feature during an interview with MovieWeb and recalled that she, as well as the rest of the film's team, greatly enjoyed their time on set.
The 34-year-old performer appeared to be enjoying her time at the star-studded event, during which she blew a kiss while posing for a snap
The 34-year-old performer appeared to be enjoying her time at the star-studded event, during which she blew a kiss while posing for a snap
Gonzalez donned a dress that featured a white polka-dotted top portion and a jet-black bottom
Gonzalez donned a dress that featured a white polka-dotted top portion and a jet-black bottom
The Ambulance star also wore a pair of high-heeled shoes and accessorized with a pair of sparkling earrings
The Ambulance star also wore a pair of high-heeled shoes and accessorized with a pair of sparkling earrings
The performer's beautiful brunette locks fell towards her shoulder during her time at the star-studded event
The performer's beautiful brunette locks fell towards her shoulder during her time at the star-studded event
Gonzalez portrayed Marjorie Stewart in The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare, which was directed, co-written and co-produced by Guy Ritchie
Gonzalez portrayed Marjorie Stewart in The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare, which was directed, co-written and co-produced by Guy Ritchie
Gonzalez had worn a bright gold dress and matching shoes to the film's premiere event, which took place earlier in the evening
Gonzalez had worn a bright gold dress and matching shoes to the film's premiere event, which took place earlier in the evening
'You're always having a good time with Guy Richie. Like, I see BTS of our film and we're just endlessly laughing. It's just laugh after laugh after laugh. Everything was just fun,' she recalled.
Gonzalez also spoke about how Ritchie's method of inserting catchy dialogue into his writing made filming much easier to endure.
'It's easy to keep lines in your head, because it's so specific. There's no, "Oh, what was the word?" Like, you're never gonna forget the word entropy, never gonna forget that,' she said.
The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is currently scheduled to be released in the United States on April 19.
40 shares
This same gal was leslie's sister in this movie too
leslie's brother-in-law made him kissed and fuck his sister in the movie (9min:30sec), no nude scene.
Leslie went on to be a women's man.
https://wilfmovies.com/movies/temptress-moon-1996/
another of my favorite Zhang’s ladies performance. dis movie oso set during ze cultural revolution.
Thanks for sharing, i was never aware of this production.
One of my favourite Zhang movies. Very beautifully shot, very moving.
his critics said dis movie mark ze beginning of his selling out 2 ze ccp.
anyway luv how he paid homage 2 Titanic in ze movie.
Eiza Gonzalez Talks ‘Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare,’ ‘3 Body Problem’ Season 2 and Her Real-Life ‘Ambulance’ Sequel
The actor, who is juggling multiple Guy Ritchie movies in the next few years, is also eagerly awaiting Netflix's decision on more '3 Body,' saying of her character: "We don't know where she's going to be next, physically and emotionally, and that's pretty exciting."
Brian Davids
April 22, 2024 4:45PM PDT
Eiza González attends the London Photocall For The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare at HMS Belfast on March 22, 2024 in London, England.
Eiza González attends the London Photocall For “The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare” at HMS Belfast on March 22, 2024 in London, England.
Kate Green/Getty Images
From a certain point of view, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare star Eiza González may have just played the original real-life Bond girl.
Ungentlemanly Warfare, the first of González’s three Guy Ritchie movies to hit theaters, is loosely based on the recently declassified Operation Postmaster, chronicling Winston Churchill’s Special Operations Executive (SOE) and their covert mission to neutralize Nazi Germany’s U-boats during World War II. The efforts of these unauthorized commandos and spies helped change the course of the war, allowing the United States to then join the European Theater of Operations in 1942.
Box Office: 'Civil War' Draws Blood to Beat 'Abigail' and Stay No. 1 With $11M Second Weekend
In the action-thriller, González plays Marjorie Stewart, a talented soldier-spy who’s equally gifted as a performer. Together with Babs Olusanmokun’s Heron, Stewart set up shop at the Nazi-frequented island of Fernando Po where they communicated the Nazi’s latest comings and goings to their fellow SOE personnel, including a group of commandos that’s led by Henry Cavill’s Gus March-Phillipps. In real life, Stewart never participated in Operation Postmaster, but she did play a key role in its development, so González aimed to have her character reflect and honor all of the brave women of the SOE.
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Oddly enough, Stewart actually married March-Phillipps shortly after the operation, and it’s believed that novelist Ian Fleming, who’s also a character in the film, partially based the character of James Bond on March-Phillips himself. So Cavill, who was once the runner-up to play Bond in Casino Royale, is perfect casting in more ways than one. Unfortunately, Stewart and March-Phillipps’ marriage didn’t last long as he died in action just months after they were wedded. She proceeded to have a career in Hollywood, so her background in espionage and future in show business make a compelling case that she was the blueprint for all fictional Bond girls.
González, Cavill and Ritchie debated whether to acknowledge their future relationship beyond just the epilogue text that leads into the closing credits, but in the end, they decided to focus on their individual contributions during Operation Postmaster.
“We thought of a couple of ideas, but it ultimately felt way stronger with where it landed than digging into the romantic side,” González tells The Hollywood Reporter. “As a woman, you read a lot of these roles where you are an add-on to the male counterpart or a love interest or in a love situation, but it’s been a minute since I’ve played those roles. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with those roles, but it’s exciting that you can honor certain individual women for their own personal capacities.”
González has already reunited with Cavill on the set of Ritchie’s 2025 film, In the Grey, while also reteaming with her Ambulance co-star Jake Gyllenhaal. The 2022 actioner is Michael Bay’s best-reviewed film since 1996’s The Rock, and it includes a beloved scene where Gyllenhaal and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II sing along to Christopher Cross’ “Sailing” while sharing AirPods. And what puts the scene over the top is González’s character’s bewilderment in response to these two adoptive, bank-robbing brothers. Well, as fate would have it, “Sailing” came on the radio while González, Gyllenhaal and Cavill shared a car on the Tenerife-based set of In The Grey.
“It is absolutely bonkers that you just asked that. Henry [Cavill], Jake and I were in a car in Tenerife, and [Christopher Cross’] ‘Sailing’ was playing on the radio,” González recalls. “And I said to Jake, ‘How funny is it that this song is playing right now?’ And he was like, ‘That is mental.’ And Henry was like, ‘What are you guys talking about?’ And we were like, ‘Oh, nothing.’”
Below, during a recent conversation with THR, González also discusses the connection between Baby Driver and 3 Body Problem, before explaining how she had a hand in casting Rosamund Pike in In the Grey.
So The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is your first of three Guy Ritchie movies?
It’s the first out of three! A year and a half ago, I was begging to be a part of this movie, and here I am, as we speak, on my third set with him. It’s actually so wild now that people keep bringing it up.
He’s released six movies and a TV show in the last five years, and as you just said, the two of you have two more movies [In the Grey and Fountain of Youth] on the way. Have you asked Guy why he’s working like there’s no tomorrow? Is he worried that the San-Ti are arriving soon? [Writer’s Note: The San-Ti are the aliens that are headed for earth in 3 Body Problem.]
(Laughs.) I think that he thinks the San-Ti are coming. He’s in a rush, for sure! That’s hilarious. I actually talked to him about this three days ago. I was asking him about something else, and he was like, “I never like to stop.” When he’s on set, he’s just in the zone, and his crew is very much a family. I’ve worked with them for three movies in a row, and they’re just wonderful human beings. The environment on set is incredible, and his wonderful family also comes to visit often. So it’s nice to be working with sweet people that believe in you and push you. Guy really challenges me and I really like that about him. I really feel like I want to be around people that push me further into doing things that I didn’t think I was capable of doing.
Eiza González in The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare DAN SMITH/LIONSGATE
Marjorie Stewart is an intelligent British soldier-spy/performer who speaks many languages, and she is one of those characters who always seems like she’s a step ahead. Is confidence the ultimate key to creating that impression on screen?
Well, I appreciate that you say that. It may seem like I’m confident, but I don’t feel that way, especially when we get thrown into the vortex of Guy Ritchie. Five minutes before a scene, he’ll be like, “Can you sing this in German? Can you say this line in French? Can you say this in Italian?” I am a true believer that preparation is everything. Just be ready for everything. And that means, in your free time, expand yourself: learn and study to expand with dialogue and dialect. Ultimately, whether it works or not, that builds confidence and helps you step onto set with a different energy, even if you’re being thrown the scenes at the last minute.
With this specific character, I really worked on the accent for a very long time, longer than I was told to. For years, I’d been wanting to do something with a British accent, because I’ve managed to be able to play American, and as a Mexican woman, I got into acting because I wanted to transform in everything and into everything. If I wanted to play a Mexican woman for the rest of my life, I probably would’ve just stayed in Mexico. What I love about the craft is that you can be anything. So, for a very long time, I’ve wanted to play English, and it’s all about trial and error. Everyone is quite a perfectionist, and it’s really hard when you’re in a world where everyone is going to have an opinion of your craft, but you have to just take the leap of faith. I don’t think that everything I do is a hit, but I still try to push myself.
So that’s why someone like Marjorie was so thrilling to me. I knew I was going to have to be able to do all of this on the fly and really be up to the task, and I think Guy also saw that in me. He saw the passion and the desire that I had, and that’s why he likes to work with me as well. He likes people who want to grow and want to be better, and are open to anything.
As far as the British accent, did it help that you had just spent nearly a year in the U.K. filming 3 Body Problem, with a sizable British cast?
Yes, it definitely helped. I felt way more comfortable. I’ve always been quite passionate about languages. [Writer’s Note: Gonzalez is nearly quadrilingual.] It’s one of my personal passions, and so I always pay extra attention to dialogue and accents and pronunciation and cadence. So, being there for a year, you become acquainted with certain things that you hear. So, yes, it definitely helped, and then I worked with [dialect coach] William Conacher, who’s worked on The Crown. [Ungentlemanly Warfare lead dialect coach] Hazel Holder was also with me on set, so it’s just about trying. You’ve got to try.
I always see Swedish, Australian and American actors playing everything, so that’s the model that I’ve wanted to have with my own career. I don’t want to be limited by anything; I just want to be able to do it all. And the only thing that people will base [their casting decision] off is whether you can do it or not. It’s as simple as that. I don’t think there’s a pre-made idea. If you can do it, people will jump on the horse with you. So all I can focus on is doing it and working on it.
I know Ungentlemanly Warfare is meant to be a thrilling action movie, but I really did feel a sense of optimism coming out of it. Sometimes, all it takes is a half-dozen people to do the right thing in order to prevent widespread disaster. And given that it’s a complicated time in the world, has this movie also made you ponder today’s heroic people whose classified stories aren’t yet making headlines?
Oh, absolutely. This [Operation Postmaster] information just got declassified in 2016. It’s brand new information, comparatively speaking, to everything that is out there right now. So, it absolutely makes me think about that, especially with what’s going on in the world. I educated myself about the hard work of the women in the SOE [Special Operations Executive], and I’m honored to be able to dig into one of these stories.
I’ve always wanted to tell stories about World War I and World War II, and I’ve always just admired the tenacity of the people in these eras. They were made out of something different. They’re different from people in the 21st century. We’ve become so comfortable. And speaking for myself, when I read the unbelievable stories of these women, I feel useless in comparison. The things they had to go through just to survive were really spectacular, and all I can have is pure admiration.
So it’s hard to say what’s happening in the world. The world is literally all over the place at the moment, whether it’s in the U.S. or outside of it, and I just hope that people feel the same way that you felt coming out of this movie. That’s the intention of this film; it’s to feel like there’s hope. This was a small, random mission that Churchill went rogue with, and it worked. It literally changed the absolute trajectory of World War II, and people don’t know about it. So I’m hopeful.
In real life, Marjorie married Henry’s character, Gus March-Phillipps, after this operation. I know you had parallel stories in the movie, but were you and Henry, in your few scenes, able to plant that seed with a wink or a nod?
It’s so funny that you say that. We went through a couple of ideas at one point, and Guy wanted specific things. So we went back and forth on maybe adding some scenes, but then I just felt that the way that they wrapped the film is way stronger. It’s not feeding into any love story, and not that it’s not important, but it’s more about honoring their individuality as spies and what they accomplished. And then it just so happened that they got together afterwards. So we thought of a couple of ideas, but it ultimately felt way stronger with where it landed than digging into the romantic side. As a woman, you read a lot of these roles where you are an add-on to the male counterpart or a love interest or in a love situation, but it’s been a minute since I’ve played those roles. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with those roles, but it’s exciting that you can honor certain individual women for their own personal capacities, separate from their personal relationships.
You’ve told me before about how it’s important for you to defy perception, and I bring that up because I thought your opening scene on Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2024) was pure genius. You and Alex Skarsgard helped subvert expectations, as your introductory versions of Mr. and Mrs. Smith were swiftly removed from the equation. So the two of you made the point that the series is not remaking the 2005 movie and that anyone can be Mr. and Mrs. Smith.
Totally! That was the intention. It was really leaning into the looks and the makeup and the hair, but let’s make no mistake here, I’m a ginormous fan of Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005), the original movie. Yes, Angelina [Jolie] and Brad [Pitt] in that movie were the ultimate dream, and that’s what we were sold for many years. As an audience member myself, I remember thinking, “Oh, if I want to be a movie star, I have to be like her,” or someone who has a certain level of capacities, action-wise. So I loved when they invited us to be part of this project; I thought, “What a way to play into what people also like to put me in.” It’s a joke, and I like to make jokes about myself because I don’t take myself too seriously.
There’s a big joke on 3 Body Problem where Jovan [Adepo’s character, Saul] mentions that I look like an action actress from bad action movies, and I find that line hilarious. [Adepo’s Saul says, “You’re beautiful in a boring way. You’re like a movie star, but from really bad movies. You’d be the bad girl in Speed 3.”] By the way, when we were doing it, I didn’t think anything of it. I wasn’t like, “Oh my God, this is a personal attack on me.” On the contrary, it has much more to do with the social concept versus my own individuality. People get an idea based on someone’s look or superficial imagery, and think, “Oh, this is what they are.” And so I like to subvert that and turn it on its head.
So my performance on Mr. & Mrs. Smith is dramatic, cheesy, campy and melodramatic, playing into how funny and ironic it was as a counter [to Maya Erskine and Donald Glover’s versions of the characters]. I obviously was familiar with what they were going to do, and it just fed more into how sharp and witty their take is. Again, I like to make fun of myself, sometimes. It’s important. I also like to use myself as a vessel to show, “Oh, this is what you would think, right? You think this or that about me.” And at the same time, I also like to take roles that are the complete opposite, such as 3 Body Problem, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare and La Máquina, the show I did with Gael [García Bernal] and Diego [Luna] for Hulu this year. So I just like to really subvert the idea of what you would think of someone.
3 Body Problem began with Auggie ignoring Saul’s (Jovan Adepo) call, and the season ended with her ignoring Saul’s call. To her, it’s better not to call Saul. [Writer’s Note: Sorry, I couldn’t resist.]
(Laughs.)
However, at the end, when she’s in Mexico, she no longer has Saul’s photo set to appear when he calls. His photo did appear when he called at the start of the season.
Wow, that’s a good observation!
Thank you. So she’s really intent on distancing herself from her guilty conscience and her friends.
Absolutely. Auggie’s arc is really intense in season one. [Co-creators] Dan [Weiss] and Dave [Benioff] and Alexander [Woo] really went for it. If there’s one role in that season that they took a big swing at, it’s Auggie. They really leaned into a lot of things that people weren’t expecting. She’s not necessarily meant to be likable; she’s not a likable character. She’s a woman who’s in a complicated state, and there’s messiness that comes with it. So Auggie is just at a very interesting breaking point when we meet her in season one, and ultimately, you always have to trust [your showrunners], knowing what Dan and Dave did with eight seasons of [Game of Thrones]. They do know where to take characters, and not everything that we currently think of a character is what’s always going to be. So I’m just really excited about the potential opportunity of a second season happening and what the possibilities for Auggie are. We leave her behind at the end of season one, technically. So we don’t know where she’s going to be next, physically and emotionally, and that’s pretty exciting as an actress.
Eiza González as Auggie Salazar in episode 106 of 3 Body Problem. ED MILLER/NETFLIX
Did you tell Dan [Weiss] and David [Benioff] to cool it on the tequila jokes?
(Laughs.) Yes, no more tequila jokes! By the way, isn’t it funny that it’s the same joke that Jamie Foxx says in Baby Driver? I thought that was hilarious.
Whoa, that connection passed me by. Yeah, Jamie Foxx’s character spoiled the punchline. Were your 3 Body Problem writers aware of that?
I think they may have been, to be honest, but it’s a nice callback to that. Auggie’s reaction to [Benedict Wong’s character, Clarence] cracking that joke is hilarious because she’s so dry. She’s such an interesting cat. I know that she’s such a complex girl, but I like her.
I’m still enamored with Michael Bay’s Ambulance, and you and Jake Gyllenhaal reunited in your next Guy Ritchie movie, In The Grey. Did the crew ever reference or play “Sailing” around the two of you?
It is absolutely bonkers that you just asked that. Henry [Cavill], Jake and I were in a car in Tenerife, and [Christopher Cross’] “Sailing” was playing on the radio. And I said to Jake, “How funny is it that this song is playing right now?” And he was like, “That is mental.” And Henry was like, “What are you guys talking about?” And we were like, “Oh, nothing.” (Laughs.) But it totally happened. By the way, it’s not a song that plays too often on the radio, so it was very strange.
I not only reconnected with Henry and Jake on In the Grey, but also with Rosamund Pike, who I’ve been dying to work with again. So being on that set felt like Groundhog Day. I called Rosamund and asked, “Can you please do this movie with me? I really miss you.” And because she’s just so cool, she was like, “I’m down. I have some days off. Should I come?” So I connected her with Guy, and I basically cast Rosamund Pike in In the Grey.
Yeah, I had a feeling you helped recruit Rosamund Pike. The two of you bonded on I Care a Lot, and then she helped convince you to do 3 Body Problem. She and her partner (Robie Uniacke) happened to own the book rights at one point, so they executive produced the series.
That was so random. I actually called her to tell her that I was thinking of doing it, and she was like, “Wait, you’re up for it?” And I was like, “Yes!” And she was like, “That is so crazy.” And I was like, “How do you not know? Aren’t you a producer?” And she was like, “Yeah, but Dan and Dave are being super secretive about who they want. They are so specific about their creative choices.” So it was a surprise for her, too, but all roads lead to Rosamund Pike, I think.
Have you seen Flying Lotus’ Ash [co-starring Aaron Paul] yet?
I have seen Ash, and I’m so excited about it!
Lastly, during Marjorie’s climactic musical performance in Ungentlemanly Warfare, she makes a very dangerous mistake. When you make a mistake at work, how do you typically handle it? Do you beat yourself up over it, or do you just tell yourself that you won’t repeat it the next take or the next day?
It depends. This is the funny part about our industry. Just when you think you’ve conquered certain fears, you haven’t. Something will be sprung on you in the moment, but that’s also the beauty of our craft in that you always have to be open. So I tend to do both, and it just depends on my state of mind and how I’m feeling. I’m quite a perfectionist, and I’m trying to learn how to let that go, but I will think about a mistake for months and months. So I have to let performances exist, and sometimes, personal things or moments in life will feed a performance. It might work or it might not work, but you just have to be kind to yourself, ultimately. I try to be as kind as possible with myself, but I’m also contradicting myself, because I like to take really ballsy jobs. I don’t make safe choices. Funnily enough, you asked about Ash, and that’s definitely not a safe movie. It’s definitely not a safe movie to be the first movie that I basically lead on my own for the most part, but I like to be challenged to such an extent. It’s in my nature. So I like to push myself as hard as possible, and that can sometimes be really dangerous when it comes to mistakes or letting things go. I don’t forgive myself that easily.
***
The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is now playing in movie theaters.
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The actor, who is juggling multiple Guy Ritchie movies in the next few years, is also eagerly awaiting Netflix's decision on more '3 Body,' saying of her character: "We don't know where she's going to be next, physically and emotionally, and that's pretty exciting."
Brian Davids
April 22, 2024 4:45PM PDT
Eiza González attends the London Photocall For The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare at HMS Belfast on March 22, 2024 in London, England.
Eiza González attends the London Photocall For “The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare” at HMS Belfast on March 22, 2024 in London, England.
Kate Green/Getty Images
From a certain point of view, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare star Eiza González may have just played the original real-life Bond girl.
Ungentlemanly Warfare, the first of González’s three Guy Ritchie movies to hit theaters, is loosely based on the recently declassified Operation Postmaster, chronicling Winston Churchill’s Special Operations Executive (SOE) and their covert mission to neutralize Nazi Germany’s U-boats during World War II. The efforts of these unauthorized commandos and spies helped change the course of the war, allowing the United States to then join the European Theater of Operations in 1942.
Box Office: 'Civil War' Draws Blood to Beat 'Abigail' and Stay No. 1 With $11M Second Weekend
In the action-thriller, González plays Marjorie Stewart, a talented soldier-spy who’s equally gifted as a performer. Together with Babs Olusanmokun’s Heron, Stewart set up shop at the Nazi-frequented island of Fernando Po where they communicated the Nazi’s latest comings and goings to their fellow SOE personnel, including a group of commandos that’s led by Henry Cavill’s Gus March-Phillipps. In real life, Stewart never participated in Operation Postmaster, but she did play a key role in its development, so González aimed to have her character reflect and honor all of the brave women of the SOE.
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Oddly enough, Stewart actually married March-Phillipps shortly after the operation, and it’s believed that novelist Ian Fleming, who’s also a character in the film, partially based the character of James Bond on March-Phillips himself. So Cavill, who was once the runner-up to play Bond in Casino Royale, is perfect casting in more ways than one. Unfortunately, Stewart and March-Phillipps’ marriage didn’t last long as he died in action just months after they were wedded. She proceeded to have a career in Hollywood, so her background in espionage and future in show business make a compelling case that she was the blueprint for all fictional Bond girls.
González, Cavill and Ritchie debated whether to acknowledge their future relationship beyond just the epilogue text that leads into the closing credits, but in the end, they decided to focus on their individual contributions during Operation Postmaster.
“We thought of a couple of ideas, but it ultimately felt way stronger with where it landed than digging into the romantic side,” González tells The Hollywood Reporter. “As a woman, you read a lot of these roles where you are an add-on to the male counterpart or a love interest or in a love situation, but it’s been a minute since I’ve played those roles. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with those roles, but it’s exciting that you can honor certain individual women for their own personal capacities.”
González has already reunited with Cavill on the set of Ritchie’s 2025 film, In the Grey, while also reteaming with her Ambulance co-star Jake Gyllenhaal. The 2022 actioner is Michael Bay’s best-reviewed film since 1996’s The Rock, and it includes a beloved scene where Gyllenhaal and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II sing along to Christopher Cross’ “Sailing” while sharing AirPods. And what puts the scene over the top is González’s character’s bewilderment in response to these two adoptive, bank-robbing brothers. Well, as fate would have it, “Sailing” came on the radio while González, Gyllenhaal and Cavill shared a car on the Tenerife-based set of In The Grey.
“It is absolutely bonkers that you just asked that. Henry [Cavill], Jake and I were in a car in Tenerife, and [Christopher Cross’] ‘Sailing’ was playing on the radio,” González recalls. “And I said to Jake, ‘How funny is it that this song is playing right now?’ And he was like, ‘That is mental.’ And Henry was like, ‘What are you guys talking about?’ And we were like, ‘Oh, nothing.’”
Below, during a recent conversation with THR, González also discusses the connection between Baby Driver and 3 Body Problem, before explaining how she had a hand in casting Rosamund Pike in In the Grey.
So The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is your first of three Guy Ritchie movies?
It’s the first out of three! A year and a half ago, I was begging to be a part of this movie, and here I am, as we speak, on my third set with him. It’s actually so wild now that people keep bringing it up.
He’s released six movies and a TV show in the last five years, and as you just said, the two of you have two more movies [In the Grey and Fountain of Youth] on the way. Have you asked Guy why he’s working like there’s no tomorrow? Is he worried that the San-Ti are arriving soon? [Writer’s Note: The San-Ti are the aliens that are headed for earth in 3 Body Problem.]
(Laughs.) I think that he thinks the San-Ti are coming. He’s in a rush, for sure! That’s hilarious. I actually talked to him about this three days ago. I was asking him about something else, and he was like, “I never like to stop.” When he’s on set, he’s just in the zone, and his crew is very much a family. I’ve worked with them for three movies in a row, and they’re just wonderful human beings. The environment on set is incredible, and his wonderful family also comes to visit often. So it’s nice to be working with sweet people that believe in you and push you. Guy really challenges me and I really like that about him. I really feel like I want to be around people that push me further into doing things that I didn’t think I was capable of doing.
Eiza González in The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare DAN SMITH/LIONSGATE
Marjorie Stewart is an intelligent British soldier-spy/performer who speaks many languages, and she is one of those characters who always seems like she’s a step ahead. Is confidence the ultimate key to creating that impression on screen?
Well, I appreciate that you say that. It may seem like I’m confident, but I don’t feel that way, especially when we get thrown into the vortex of Guy Ritchie. Five minutes before a scene, he’ll be like, “Can you sing this in German? Can you say this line in French? Can you say this in Italian?” I am a true believer that preparation is everything. Just be ready for everything. And that means, in your free time, expand yourself: learn and study to expand with dialogue and dialect. Ultimately, whether it works or not, that builds confidence and helps you step onto set with a different energy, even if you’re being thrown the scenes at the last minute.
With this specific character, I really worked on the accent for a very long time, longer than I was told to. For years, I’d been wanting to do something with a British accent, because I’ve managed to be able to play American, and as a Mexican woman, I got into acting because I wanted to transform in everything and into everything. If I wanted to play a Mexican woman for the rest of my life, I probably would’ve just stayed in Mexico. What I love about the craft is that you can be anything. So, for a very long time, I’ve wanted to play English, and it’s all about trial and error. Everyone is quite a perfectionist, and it’s really hard when you’re in a world where everyone is going to have an opinion of your craft, but you have to just take the leap of faith. I don’t think that everything I do is a hit, but I still try to push myself.
So that’s why someone like Marjorie was so thrilling to me. I knew I was going to have to be able to do all of this on the fly and really be up to the task, and I think Guy also saw that in me. He saw the passion and the desire that I had, and that’s why he likes to work with me as well. He likes people who want to grow and want to be better, and are open to anything.
As far as the British accent, did it help that you had just spent nearly a year in the U.K. filming 3 Body Problem, with a sizable British cast?
Yes, it definitely helped. I felt way more comfortable. I’ve always been quite passionate about languages. [Writer’s Note: Gonzalez is nearly quadrilingual.] It’s one of my personal passions, and so I always pay extra attention to dialogue and accents and pronunciation and cadence. So, being there for a year, you become acquainted with certain things that you hear. So, yes, it definitely helped, and then I worked with [dialect coach] William Conacher, who’s worked on The Crown. [Ungentlemanly Warfare lead dialect coach] Hazel Holder was also with me on set, so it’s just about trying. You’ve got to try.
I always see Swedish, Australian and American actors playing everything, so that’s the model that I’ve wanted to have with my own career. I don’t want to be limited by anything; I just want to be able to do it all. And the only thing that people will base [their casting decision] off is whether you can do it or not. It’s as simple as that. I don’t think there’s a pre-made idea. If you can do it, people will jump on the horse with you. So all I can focus on is doing it and working on it.
I know Ungentlemanly Warfare is meant to be a thrilling action movie, but I really did feel a sense of optimism coming out of it. Sometimes, all it takes is a half-dozen people to do the right thing in order to prevent widespread disaster. And given that it’s a complicated time in the world, has this movie also made you ponder today’s heroic people whose classified stories aren’t yet making headlines?
Oh, absolutely. This [Operation Postmaster] information just got declassified in 2016. It’s brand new information, comparatively speaking, to everything that is out there right now. So, it absolutely makes me think about that, especially with what’s going on in the world. I educated myself about the hard work of the women in the SOE [Special Operations Executive], and I’m honored to be able to dig into one of these stories.
I’ve always wanted to tell stories about World War I and World War II, and I’ve always just admired the tenacity of the people in these eras. They were made out of something different. They’re different from people in the 21st century. We’ve become so comfortable. And speaking for myself, when I read the unbelievable stories of these women, I feel useless in comparison. The things they had to go through just to survive were really spectacular, and all I can have is pure admiration.
So it’s hard to say what’s happening in the world. The world is literally all over the place at the moment, whether it’s in the U.S. or outside of it, and I just hope that people feel the same way that you felt coming out of this movie. That’s the intention of this film; it’s to feel like there’s hope. This was a small, random mission that Churchill went rogue with, and it worked. It literally changed the absolute trajectory of World War II, and people don’t know about it. So I’m hopeful.
In real life, Marjorie married Henry’s character, Gus March-Phillipps, after this operation. I know you had parallel stories in the movie, but were you and Henry, in your few scenes, able to plant that seed with a wink or a nod?
It’s so funny that you say that. We went through a couple of ideas at one point, and Guy wanted specific things. So we went back and forth on maybe adding some scenes, but then I just felt that the way that they wrapped the film is way stronger. It’s not feeding into any love story, and not that it’s not important, but it’s more about honoring their individuality as spies and what they accomplished. And then it just so happened that they got together afterwards. So we thought of a couple of ideas, but it ultimately felt way stronger with where it landed than digging into the romantic side. As a woman, you read a lot of these roles where you are an add-on to the male counterpart or a love interest or in a love situation, but it’s been a minute since I’ve played those roles. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with those roles, but it’s exciting that you can honor certain individual women for their own personal capacities, separate from their personal relationships.
You’ve told me before about how it’s important for you to defy perception, and I bring that up because I thought your opening scene on Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2024) was pure genius. You and Alex Skarsgard helped subvert expectations, as your introductory versions of Mr. and Mrs. Smith were swiftly removed from the equation. So the two of you made the point that the series is not remaking the 2005 movie and that anyone can be Mr. and Mrs. Smith.
Totally! That was the intention. It was really leaning into the looks and the makeup and the hair, but let’s make no mistake here, I’m a ginormous fan of Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005), the original movie. Yes, Angelina [Jolie] and Brad [Pitt] in that movie were the ultimate dream, and that’s what we were sold for many years. As an audience member myself, I remember thinking, “Oh, if I want to be a movie star, I have to be like her,” or someone who has a certain level of capacities, action-wise. So I loved when they invited us to be part of this project; I thought, “What a way to play into what people also like to put me in.” It’s a joke, and I like to make jokes about myself because I don’t take myself too seriously.
There’s a big joke on 3 Body Problem where Jovan [Adepo’s character, Saul] mentions that I look like an action actress from bad action movies, and I find that line hilarious. [Adepo’s Saul says, “You’re beautiful in a boring way. You’re like a movie star, but from really bad movies. You’d be the bad girl in Speed 3.”] By the way, when we were doing it, I didn’t think anything of it. I wasn’t like, “Oh my God, this is a personal attack on me.” On the contrary, it has much more to do with the social concept versus my own individuality. People get an idea based on someone’s look or superficial imagery, and think, “Oh, this is what they are.” And so I like to subvert that and turn it on its head.
So my performance on Mr. & Mrs. Smith is dramatic, cheesy, campy and melodramatic, playing into how funny and ironic it was as a counter [to Maya Erskine and Donald Glover’s versions of the characters]. I obviously was familiar with what they were going to do, and it just fed more into how sharp and witty their take is. Again, I like to make fun of myself, sometimes. It’s important. I also like to use myself as a vessel to show, “Oh, this is what you would think, right? You think this or that about me.” And at the same time, I also like to take roles that are the complete opposite, such as 3 Body Problem, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare and La Máquina, the show I did with Gael [García Bernal] and Diego [Luna] for Hulu this year. So I just like to really subvert the idea of what you would think of someone.
3 Body Problem began with Auggie ignoring Saul’s (Jovan Adepo) call, and the season ended with her ignoring Saul’s call. To her, it’s better not to call Saul. [Writer’s Note: Sorry, I couldn’t resist.]
(Laughs.)
However, at the end, when she’s in Mexico, she no longer has Saul’s photo set to appear when he calls. His photo did appear when he called at the start of the season.
Wow, that’s a good observation!
Thank you. So she’s really intent on distancing herself from her guilty conscience and her friends.
Absolutely. Auggie’s arc is really intense in season one. [Co-creators] Dan [Weiss] and Dave [Benioff] and Alexander [Woo] really went for it. If there’s one role in that season that they took a big swing at, it’s Auggie. They really leaned into a lot of things that people weren’t expecting. She’s not necessarily meant to be likable; she’s not a likable character. She’s a woman who’s in a complicated state, and there’s messiness that comes with it. So Auggie is just at a very interesting breaking point when we meet her in season one, and ultimately, you always have to trust [your showrunners], knowing what Dan and Dave did with eight seasons of [Game of Thrones]. They do know where to take characters, and not everything that we currently think of a character is what’s always going to be. So I’m just really excited about the potential opportunity of a second season happening and what the possibilities for Auggie are. We leave her behind at the end of season one, technically. So we don’t know where she’s going to be next, physically and emotionally, and that’s pretty exciting as an actress.
Eiza González as Auggie Salazar in episode 106 of 3 Body Problem. ED MILLER/NETFLIX
Did you tell Dan [Weiss] and David [Benioff] to cool it on the tequila jokes?
(Laughs.) Yes, no more tequila jokes! By the way, isn’t it funny that it’s the same joke that Jamie Foxx says in Baby Driver? I thought that was hilarious.
Whoa, that connection passed me by. Yeah, Jamie Foxx’s character spoiled the punchline. Were your 3 Body Problem writers aware of that?
I think they may have been, to be honest, but it’s a nice callback to that. Auggie’s reaction to [Benedict Wong’s character, Clarence] cracking that joke is hilarious because she’s so dry. She’s such an interesting cat. I know that she’s such a complex girl, but I like her.
I’m still enamored with Michael Bay’s Ambulance, and you and Jake Gyllenhaal reunited in your next Guy Ritchie movie, In The Grey. Did the crew ever reference or play “Sailing” around the two of you?
It is absolutely bonkers that you just asked that. Henry [Cavill], Jake and I were in a car in Tenerife, and [Christopher Cross’] “Sailing” was playing on the radio. And I said to Jake, “How funny is it that this song is playing right now?” And he was like, “That is mental.” And Henry was like, “What are you guys talking about?” And we were like, “Oh, nothing.” (Laughs.) But it totally happened. By the way, it’s not a song that plays too often on the radio, so it was very strange.
I not only reconnected with Henry and Jake on In the Grey, but also with Rosamund Pike, who I’ve been dying to work with again. So being on that set felt like Groundhog Day. I called Rosamund and asked, “Can you please do this movie with me? I really miss you.” And because she’s just so cool, she was like, “I’m down. I have some days off. Should I come?” So I connected her with Guy, and I basically cast Rosamund Pike in In the Grey.
Yeah, I had a feeling you helped recruit Rosamund Pike. The two of you bonded on I Care a Lot, and then she helped convince you to do 3 Body Problem. She and her partner (Robie Uniacke) happened to own the book rights at one point, so they executive produced the series.
That was so random. I actually called her to tell her that I was thinking of doing it, and she was like, “Wait, you’re up for it?” And I was like, “Yes!” And she was like, “That is so crazy.” And I was like, “How do you not know? Aren’t you a producer?” And she was like, “Yeah, but Dan and Dave are being super secretive about who they want. They are so specific about their creative choices.” So it was a surprise for her, too, but all roads lead to Rosamund Pike, I think.
Have you seen Flying Lotus’ Ash [co-starring Aaron Paul] yet?
I have seen Ash, and I’m so excited about it!
Lastly, during Marjorie’s climactic musical performance in Ungentlemanly Warfare, she makes a very dangerous mistake. When you make a mistake at work, how do you typically handle it? Do you beat yourself up over it, or do you just tell yourself that you won’t repeat it the next take or the next day?
It depends. This is the funny part about our industry. Just when you think you’ve conquered certain fears, you haven’t. Something will be sprung on you in the moment, but that’s also the beauty of our craft in that you always have to be open. So I tend to do both, and it just depends on my state of mind and how I’m feeling. I’m quite a perfectionist, and I’m trying to learn how to let that go, but I will think about a mistake for months and months. So I have to let performances exist, and sometimes, personal things or moments in life will feed a performance. It might work or it might not work, but you just have to be kind to yourself, ultimately. I try to be as kind as possible with myself, but I’m also contradicting myself, because I like to take really ballsy jobs. I don’t make safe choices. Funnily enough, you asked about Ash, and that’s definitely not a safe movie. It’s definitely not a safe movie to be the first movie that I basically lead on my own for the most part, but I like to be challenged to such an extent. It’s in my nature. So I like to push myself as hard as possible, and that can sometimes be really dangerous when it comes to mistakes or letting things go. I don’t forgive myself that easily.
***
The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is now playing in movie theaters.
Copyright © 2024 Penske Business Media. All rights reserved.
Chicons comprain about the Netflix production
I agree the book is far better, more intellectual, more thought provoking. The Netflix adaptation has been dumbed down to reach a wider audience, not to mention 8 episodes can't do justice to a complex narrative.
As for the pragmatic business decision to use an international cast to increase viewership, I'm ok with it.
As for the pragmatic business decision to use an international cast to increase viewership, I'm ok with it.
‘3 Body Problem’ Season 2 More Likely After New Report
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Apr 27, 2024,11:14am EDT
three body1
3 Body Problem NETFLIX
Netflix has yet to commit to a season 2 of 3 Body Problem, despite it already being worked on, and despite it putting up solid long-term viewership, as evidenced by a new report.
Nielsen has now revealed that their (pretty delayed) metrics indicate that 3 Body Problem dominated the entire streaming industry at the end of March. It was the #1 series for two weeks straight, even as week 1 was just a few days of its debut. It also leads the newly reported list for the last week of March, and you can see the top 10 ranking below. Keep in mind this is all streaming services, not just Netflix:
3 Body Problem (Netflix), 1.79 billion minutes viewed
The Resident (Hulu/Netflix), 1.48 billion
Testament: The Story of Moses (Netflix), 1 billion
Bluey (Disney+), 963 million
NCIS (Netflix/Paramount+), 912 million
Family Guy (Hulu), 837 million
Road House (2024) (Prime Video), 812 million
Grey’s Anatomy (Hulu/Netflix), 778 million
Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Netflix/Peacock), 714 million
Homicide: New York (Netflix), 680 million
This also includes movies like Road House, as it’s really everything. 3 Body Problem is also at an advantage over some of these, as it has eight long episodes as opposed to others that are 40-45 minutes (or Bluey’s, which are like, six minutes).
3 Body Problem
Netflix
Still, it’s been over a month since 3 Body Problem’s debut and there is still no official word on season 2, despite lots of prep for it, and interviews talking about how much better the series will get from here (and season 1 was received pretty well).
I’ve talked about these barriers before, and they’re still in place, which may speak to the hold-up or even the ultimate decision not to renew it.
The show has reportedly the highest per-episode cost of any first season of a Netflix series. And it’s one of the most expensive overall behind only things like Stranger Things’ later seasons.
There is “good viewership” and “incredible viewership” and if cheaper shows might get renewed for the former, a show like this probably needs the latter.
A second season would likely cost more as the book material gets more and more wild and would require even more blockbuster-level effects to render it.
Given the source material, if you commit to adapting two books, you are probably committing to adapting all three, as leaving viewers hanging with two out of three books adapted would be untenable. But the showrunners say they may need four seasons to do all three books.
We’ll see, but we should be hearing something one way or the other pretty soon.
Pick up my sci-fi novels the Herokiller series and The Earthborn Trilogy.
Follow
Apr 27, 2024,11:14am EDT
three body1
3 Body Problem NETFLIX
Netflix has yet to commit to a season 2 of 3 Body Problem, despite it already being worked on, and despite it putting up solid long-term viewership, as evidenced by a new report.
Nielsen has now revealed that their (pretty delayed) metrics indicate that 3 Body Problem dominated the entire streaming industry at the end of March. It was the #1 series for two weeks straight, even as week 1 was just a few days of its debut. It also leads the newly reported list for the last week of March, and you can see the top 10 ranking below. Keep in mind this is all streaming services, not just Netflix:
3 Body Problem (Netflix), 1.79 billion minutes viewed
The Resident (Hulu/Netflix), 1.48 billion
Testament: The Story of Moses (Netflix), 1 billion
Bluey (Disney+), 963 million
NCIS (Netflix/Paramount+), 912 million
Family Guy (Hulu), 837 million
Road House (2024) (Prime Video), 812 million
Grey’s Anatomy (Hulu/Netflix), 778 million
Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Netflix/Peacock), 714 million
Homicide: New York (Netflix), 680 million
This also includes movies like Road House, as it’s really everything. 3 Body Problem is also at an advantage over some of these, as it has eight long episodes as opposed to others that are 40-45 minutes (or Bluey’s, which are like, six minutes).
3 Body Problem
Netflix
Still, it’s been over a month since 3 Body Problem’s debut and there is still no official word on season 2, despite lots of prep for it, and interviews talking about how much better the series will get from here (and season 1 was received pretty well).
I’ve talked about these barriers before, and they’re still in place, which may speak to the hold-up or even the ultimate decision not to renew it.
The show has reportedly the highest per-episode cost of any first season of a Netflix series. And it’s one of the most expensive overall behind only things like Stranger Things’ later seasons.
There is “good viewership” and “incredible viewership” and if cheaper shows might get renewed for the former, a show like this probably needs the latter.
A second season would likely cost more as the book material gets more and more wild and would require even more blockbuster-level effects to render it.
Given the source material, if you commit to adapting two books, you are probably committing to adapting all three, as leaving viewers hanging with two out of three books adapted would be untenable. But the showrunners say they may need four seasons to do all three books.
We’ll see, but we should be hearing something one way or the other pretty soon.
Pick up my sci-fi novels the Herokiller series and The Earthborn Trilogy.
The real story behind Netflix's 3 Body Problem series involved a murder, censorship and China's darkest past
Posted 5h ago5 hours ago
For Netflix and its global audiences, the 3 Body Problem tells an extraordinary story of humankind preparing for a 400-year war against aliens that are far more sophisticated and technologically advanced.
But for people in China — one of the five countries where Netflix is not available — the television show adapted from the country's bestselling sci-fi series reminded them of a traumatic period of history that Beijing wants its people to forget.
As it opens, viewers see physicist Ye Zhetai being questioned on stage in front of a frenetic crowd.
He is forced to bend down by two young Red Guards — a student-led paramilitary unit endorsed by Chairman Mao Zedong in the 1960s — with a blood stain on his forehead.
On social media, the scene of Cultural Revolution in Netflix's latest sci-fi series 3 Body Problem has sparked divided discussion in China and among Chinese diasporas. (Supplied: Netflix)
The professor is asked why he taught Albert Einstein's theory of relativity in a physics class at Tsinghua University, whose alumni created China's first nuclear weapons.
Soon, his daughter Ye Wenjie — a key character throughout the series — watches her tormented father take his last breath after being beaten by a young girl with a belt.
What the scene illustrated was China's Cultural Revolution, a decade-long political and ideological campaign launched by Chairman Mao in 1966.
The Communist Party leader feared losing his power and promised to inject new life into socialist causes, but instead brought untold turmoil and bloodshed.
Today, there is still no official number of deaths during this period.
The scene sparked a furious debate among Chinese viewers — who watched the series either through virtual private networks or piracy — on Netflix's illustration of one of the Chinese Communist Party's darkest chapters.
Some argued Netflix had been faithful to the original books, while others blamed the streaming service for "defaming China".
And the debate eventually activated China's censorship system.
Less than a month after the Netflix series was launched, China's most famous film critic website Douban suspended its review and comment functions for the series, while wiping out all previous comments from viewers.
The saga about Netflix's 3 Body Problem — which now has more than 3.2 million views on the streaming platform and is ranked top five in Australia for the fifth week — is just one chapter of the Chinese sci-fi series' challenging journey to the West.
Besides Netflix's $460 million investment, the series seems to be the story of China that Beijing is hesitant to tell to the world — especially when it also involves a murder.
The death of a Chinese billionaire
In 2006, writer and engineer Liu Cixin began serialising The Three-Body Problem on Science Fiction World, a 45-year-old sci-fi literary magazine in China that targets a niche group of readers.Liu Cixin is the author of 3 Body Problem, which has recently been serialised by Netflix. (VCG via Getty Images)
With the rise of the internet and social media as well as Liu's creative imagination, the series received praise beyond the sci-fi reader group.
In 2008, the first two books of the trilogy were published, with the final instalment released in 2010.
In 2014, the series was translated into English and one year later, it won the Oscar of sci-fi fiction, the Hugo Award, for best novel.
Liu Cixin was the first Asian author to win the prize.
In the same year, a young Chinese businessman was plotting a bigger plan for the trilogy.
Born in 1981 in Wenzhou — a southern city known for rapid growth of private capital since China's market reform — Lin Qi turned his teenage passion for gaming into a $430 million listed game production company, Yoozoo.
In 2014 — the same year that The Three-Body Problem started gaining international buzz — Mr Lin established Yoozoo Pictures, making his own way to Hollywood amid the growth of Chinese investment in the sector.
On the top of his agenda was to acquire the exclusive right to adapt The Three-Body Problem trilogy, as he envisioned turning the literary series into movies, TV dramas, animation and even games.
In 2018, Mr Lin even established a new company, The Three-Body Universe, to manage the copyrights related to the series, while he reached out to Netflix for adaptation.
Lin Qi was the founder and chairman of Yoozoo Interactive and chairman of Yoozoo Pictures.(Zhang Zhi/Red Star News/VCG via Getty Image)
The two struck a deal in September 2020, one year after Netflix purchased another Chinese sci-fi blockbuster, The Wandering Earth, which was also adapted from Liu's work.
The company recruited some of the best from Hollywood, including David Benioff and DB Weiss from Game of Thrones, Rian Johnson and Ram Bergman from Star Wars, and Alexander Woo from True Blood.
Then a murder happened.
The tragedy traces back to 2017, when Mr Lin decided to hire a new executive to support his ambitious dreams for The Three-Body Problem.
He chose Xu Yao, an experienced corporate lawyer with a PhD in law from the University of Michigan, and appointed him as Yoozoo's chief risk officer.
One year later, Xu became the chief executive of The Three-Body Universe. But as time passed, Mr Lin and Xu began to disagree over how to run the business.
Court statements from China detail how on December 14 and 15, 2020, Xu mixed Mr Lin's food with poisons, which led to him being sent to hospital.
Mr Lin died one week later.
The court also found that three months prior to the fatal poisoning, Xu had been adding poison to drinks at the office, which made four other people sick.
In March, just as 3 Body Problem — a slightly altered title from the original — was aired to the world on Netflix, Xu was given a death sentence in Shanghai.
Mr Lin's name was credited as executive producer for the series.
Selling the 'unadaptable' China story to the world
Before Netflix, Mr Lin's company had already made several attempts at adapting The Three-Body Problem trilogy into movies, animation and a TV series.Yet many fans of the original books have mixed reviews of these adaptations.
Due to its complicated storylines and context of China's political history, The Three-Body Problem novel is often described as "the most unadaptable" Chinese science fiction.(Supplied: Netflix)
One common complaint is the adaptations fail to capture the books' compelling multiple storylines, characters and wide range of themes — which touch on ethics, world politics and history — on the big screen.
And the adaptation can get even more complicated when it comes to whether certain Chinese elements should be included or not.
In 2014, Liu Cixin authorised award-winning Chinese-American sci-fi writer Ken Liu to translate the first book of The Three-Body Problem.
But Ken Liu didn't just translate the novel. In his version, he restructured the timeline of the book by moving the questioning of the physicist — which is the beginning scene in the Netflix series — to the first chapter.
In an interview with the New York Times Magazine in 2019, Ken Liu explained the reshuffle was to make it easier for English-speaking readers to follow the history of the Cultural Revolution.
Liu Cixin endorsed the changes and revealed he had always wanted to make the Cultural Revolution scene the novel's opening, since the history was key to understanding the plot.
However, his publisher had rejected the idea, worrying it could cause censorship and political pressure due to the sensitivity of the history in China.
While Netflix followed through on Liu's original vision, the streaming service has drawn criticism from some Chinese viewers for distancing the story from its roots.
They point to how the nationalities of major characters have been rewritten, while the setting of the story has been moved from China to Europe.
Netflix's approach of introducing the Oxford Five — a group of scientists with diverse backgrounds — rather than keeping the characters as Chinese nationals has drawn criticism in China. (Supplied: Netflix)
Some argue the changes make the series focus on the novel's broader theme of humanity while reducing cultural barriers for English-speaking viewers.
But critics, including staff writing for Chinese state media, say the changes highlighted the West's attempts to defame China, while showcasing "American cultural hegemony".
The opinion piece, however, did not mention the Cultural Revolution scenes.
The criticism of Netflix's decision to shift the story focus from China was also reported in Chinese state media Global Times and Xinhua's English website.
But the authors of both pieces acknowledged the negative feedback reflected the challenges of telling China's stories abroad, with quotes stating the adaptation was "a good first step".
The ABC has reached out to The Three-Body Universe and Netflix for comment.
Can Chinese sci-fi escape from politics?
In an interview with The Guardian after the launch of the Netflix series, Liu Cixin revealed the question he was often asked when travelling to the US and Europe: "There's science fiction in China?"But in recent years, Chinese sci-fi has received growing attention outside the country's borders.
According to the latest industry report, released this week, the number of media reports about Chinese sci-fi abroad last year was 180 times more than in 2018.
Copies of The Three-Body Problem on display at a bookstore in Beijing.(AP: Andy Wong )
The report also states that in 2023, China's sci-fi sector gained $24 billion in revenue, almost a one-third increase compared to 2022.
Dr Mia Chen Ma, a Chinese literature researcher at the University of Strathclyde, says the growing interest in Chinese sci-fi is in line with the broadening recognition of global literature by readers in Western countries.
Many Chinese sci-fi writers actively participate in international events and public talks, which also help promote Chinese science fiction, according to Dr Ma.
"Also, there are many institutions and organisations in the UK and other countries as well that are eager to introduce more emerging Chinese authors to a global audience," she said.
It's not only well-known male writers like Liu Cixin who are getting exposed to international readers.
A growing number of new, young female authors such as Gu Shi are making a name for themselves within the international science fiction community.
Dr Ma says for Chinese sci-fi authors, crafting a compelling story is essential to attracting international readers.
"At its heart, the universal appeal of a good story captivates us — when a story resonates, people connect with it in their unique ways," she said.
And high-quality storytelling seems to also be a reason why Chinese sci-fi series, such as The Three-Body Problem, attract big investments from Hollywood, according to Dr Yuxing Zhou, a Chinese cinema researcher at the University of Melbourne.
He compared Netflix's 3 Body Problem to Mulan, a Chinese folktale that was adapted into animation by Disney in 1998 and a $200 million live-action remake in 2020.
"A gripping story, the story itself, is the main thing [the Hollywood investors] look for," Dr Zhou said.
He said with China being one of the world's top box office markets, many Western film investors and producers may want to seek collaboration with Chinese creators to secure higher profits.
But for audiences, the quality of stories — regardless of where they are from — is the key to attracting audiences.
"And that's the problem with [the] Chinese government's push for enhancing its soft power through storytelling, because eventually, you can't just force this to happen," he said.
"It's the kind of values or messages behind the stories that would attract audiences."
Netflix's 3 Body Problem (pictured) is similar to Mulan, with both having a gripping story, Chinese cinema researcher Dr Yuxing Zhou said.(Supplied: Netflix)
But can science fiction — a genre known for its boundless imagination and creativity — escape from the reality of geopolitics?
Just one month before Netflix's 3 Body Problem was launched, the prestigious Hugo Awards was reported to have deliberately excluded authors they believed would be "sensitive" to China.
Those left off the list include Neil Gaiman and RF Kuang, author of the bestseller Yellowface.
"Reality brands each of us with its indelible mark," Liu wrote, in the afterword of The Three-Body Problem.
