They've had unparalleled success with Game of Thrones, and now the men who brought George R.R. Martin's fantasy series to the screen so successfully are turning their attention to the Star Wars universe.

David Benioff and D.B. Weiss are set to write and produce a new series of Star Wars films, according to a statement released by Disney and Lucasfilm yesterday. They will, however, be separate from Rian Johnson's forthcoming trilogy and the Skywalker series.

With Game of Thrones coming to an end after the next series, the pair will start work on Star Wars immediately afterwards. "In the summer of 1977 we traveled to a galaxy far, far away, and we’ve been dreaming of it ever since,” they said. "We are honored by the opportunity, a little terrified by the responsibility, and so excited to get started as soon as the final season of Game of Thrones is complete.”

Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy said: "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.”

However, as THR pointed out, it does throw up some confusion about the fate of Confederate, the controversial HBO series that Benioff and Weiss were set to write and serve as showrunners on following Game of Thrones. The announcement of the show last year - which is set in an alternate future, where the Southern states seceded from the Union following the American Civil War, and slavery is still in force in modern times - led to a #NoConfederate campaign being launched.

HBO has not yet commented on the fate of the show, which has already been cast and was set to launch either this year or next.