Chinese Man Executed For Murdering Gaming Billionaire Behind Netflix's '3 Body Problem'

Chinese authorities have executed Xu Yao, the former executive convicted of murdering billionaire gaming entrepreneur Lin Qi in a poisoning case linked to the hit science-fiction franchise '3 Body Problem'. The execution was carried out on May 21, nearly four years after Lin's death shocked China's gaming and entertainment industries, BBC reported. The case stemmed from an internal fallout at Shanghai-based Yoozoo Games, the company founded by Lin Qi, which held the screen adaptation rights to Liu Cixin's acclaimed Remembrance of Earth's Past trilogy- the basis for Netflix's 3 Body Problem series.

Lin, who founded Yoozoo Games and built it into one of China's major gaming companies, had appointed Xu Yao in 2018 to head Three-Body Universe, a subsidiary responsible for managing the franchise's projects and licensing deals. Xu later helped secure a major adaptation agreement with Netflix.

However, relations between the two deteriorated in 2020 after Lin reportedly removed Xu from key business operations and handed control to other executives.

According to Chinese media and court findings, Xu planned an elaborate revenge attack after feeling sidelined. Investigators said Xu disguised toxic substances, including pufferfish neurotoxin and mercury compounds, as probiotic health supplements and gave them to Lin. In December 2020, Lin was hospitalised after suddenly falling ill and died nine days later at the age of 39.

Authorities later revealed that several other Yoozoo employees were also poisoned in a wider scheme. Among them were executive producer Zhao Jilong and his wife, who survived but reportedly suffered long-term health complications.

Police arrested Xu days after Lin was admitted to the hospital. In 2024, a Chinese court convicted him of murder, describing the crime as extremely despicable, and sentenced him to death. The sentence was later approved by China's Supreme People's Court.

Yoozoo Games confirmed the execution on Tuesday and thanked the courts in a public statement, saying justice had ultimately been served. "We deeply mourn Mr Lin and extend our heartfelt condolences to his family. As colleagues who fought alongside him, all members of the company are grateful for the impartiality of the judicial process," Yoozoo said in a statement.

At the time of his death, Lin's estimated net worth stood at around 6.8 billion yuan (about $941 million). He was widely known for building Yoozoo Games into a global gaming company behind titles such as Game of Thrones: Winter Is Coming.

Despite his death, Lin was posthumously credited as an executive producer on Netflix's 3 Body Problem, which premiered in 2024 and became one of the platform's most-watched shows worldwide.