HBO Gives Green Light to Game of Thrones

HBO has greenlit production on the pilot for a fantasy drama series, "Game of Thrones," based on a book series by George R.R. Martin. 

Variety says the pilot for the long-gestating project was written by feature screenwriters David Benioff and D.B. Weiss. Former HBO entertainment president Carolyn Strauss will serve as a co-executive producer, along with Guymon Cassidy, Vincent Gerardis and author Martin. 

HBO acquired the TV adaptation rights to Martin's "Songs of Ice and Fire" book series nearly two years ago. The pilot for the HBO show is described as an exploration of "an epic struggle for power set in a vast and violent fantasy kingdom." 

Benioff's recent credits include penning the screenplay for X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Weiss recently sold bounty hunter thriller Kashmir to Relativity Media and is writing a prequel to Will Smith's I Am Legend for Warner Bros.