Game of Thrones creators join Star Wars universe

WHAT a day to be a nerd. Two of the universe’s most popular franchises are set to collide with the Game of Thrones creators recruited by the Star Wars lords.

CALL it nerd nirvana — the creators of Game of Thrones, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, are set to write and produce a new Star Wars trilogy, Lucasfilm announced today.

The pair will develop a trilogy separate to the current “Skywalker” series, the prequel series which included Rogue One, and the previously announced trilogy written by Rian Johnson, who also directed The Last Jedi.

For those of you playing at home, that’s 12 Star Wars movies that have either been released or announced since the franchise was revved back up by Disney in 2015 with The Force Awakens.

The three new Star Wars films that have been released have netted a combined $US4.35 billion ($A5.5 billion) at the global box office. The next instalment, a stand-alone prequel, Solo: A Star Wars Story, will be released in May.

Given the franchises’ profitability, it’s hardly surprising its corporate parent is looking to capitalise on its popularity. Movie studios are increasingly relying on expanding existing intellectual property to build their coffers.

Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy said in a statement: “David and Dan are some of the best storytellers working today. Their command of complex characters, depth of story and richness of mythology will break new ground and boldly push Star Wars in ways I find incredibly exciting.”

Disney money is so much better than HBO money. Picture: Phil McCarten/Invision/AP

Benioff and Weiss are busy wrapping up their commitment on Game of Thrones, which is currently filming its final six episodes, slated to air in April 2019. The HBO fantasy series has become one of the most influential series in the peak TV era with its global popularity, critical acclaim and deeply obsessed fandom.

However, Benioff and Weiss’s involvement in the Star Wars universe will be a roadblock to their next TV project, Confederate , a dystopian slave drama.

HBO announced Confederate last July but was met with a chorus of dissent from social media and critics who argued that a series set in a present day alternate universe in which the Confederacy won the US Civil War and slavery was legal was wildly tone-deaf in the current political climate.

In the months since Confederate was announced, there hasn’t been a peep about the series, leading many to suggest the show had been quietly shelved.

The overwhelming backlash to Confederate coupled with Benioff and Weiss’s Star Wars commitment means the HBO series is unlikely to be going ahead, at least not for several years.

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