Posted in: Godzilla, Legendary, Movies, Warner Bros | Tagged: adam wingard, Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire, MonsterVerse

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire – When The Series Comes Into Its Own

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire director Adam Wingard compared the film to Fast and Furious 5 and says this is where the series is "coming into its own."

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, in some ways, feels like it is the tipping point for the Monsterverse. While the first two movies did very well both critically and commercially, the third did not, and the fourth got caught up in COVID, hybrid releases, and a lot of pirating. So, it feels like this film has to do well for this cinematic universe to continue. The movie also has more pressure on it now because Godzilla Minus One, a movie with a tenth of the budget of this film, just walked away with Best Visual Effects at the Oscars. If this film doesn't hit and doesn't look well in the special effects department, those could be the two final nails in the coffin. It seems that director Adam Wingard is also aware, at least on some level, that this is a tipping point for the franchise. He recently spoke to SFX Magazine and compared it to one of the biggest franchises ever; it probably isn't the one you're thinking of. Wingard explained, "This is our Fast & Furious 5 moment, where the series is coming into its own of being able to say definitively, 'This is what the MonsterVerse is.'"

In many ways, Fast and Furious 5 was the tipping point for that franchise and was almost a soft reboot in many ways. The movies started getting bigger and dumber [not in a bad way], and it felt like they were settling into themselves. Wingard seems to think that Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is the Monsterverse finally settling into itself, five movies in. Well, the Fast and Furious fumbled the ball on their third film, too, and managed to come back from it. It was just a strange comparison of all the cinematic universes; this is the one Wingard compared this to. Even more so when he went on to talk about wanting to do character studies, and those are not words you would attribute to the Fast Saga.

"In a world of anything's possible, you can type words into your computer now and the AI will churn up a bunch of images that are completely mindblowing for you to see. Well, what is it that the AI can't do?" Wingard explained. "I'm sure it could show you what it looks like if Godzilla and Kong are having a birthday party in the tropics, complete with 300ft tall birthday cakes. You can see anything, but you can't create things that make you feel something. That's where my interest lies. I want to do a 300ft scale character study."

If Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire does well this month, Warner Bros. Discovery and Legendary will pat themselves on the back so hard there will be bruises. However, maybe that means they won't be shelving any more completed movies for tax breaks.

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire: Summary, Cast List, Release Date

The epic battle continues! Legendary Pictures' cinematic Monsterverse follows up the explosive showdown of Godzilla vs. Kong with an all-new adventure that pits the almighty Kong and the fearsome Godzilla against a colossal undiscovered threat hidden within our world, challenging their very existence—and our own. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire delves further into the histories of these Titans and their origins, as well as the mysteries of Skull Island and beyond while uncovering the mythic battle that helped forge these extraordinary beings and tied them to humankind forever.

Once again at the helm is director Adam Wingard. The film stars Rebecca Hall (Godzilla vs. Kong, The Night House), Brian Tyree Henry (Godzilla vs. Kong, Bullet Train), Dan Stevens (Gaslit, Legion, Beauty and the Beast), Kaylee Hottle (Godzilla vs. Kong), Alex Ferns (The Batman, Wrath of Man, Chernobyl) and Fala Chen (Irma Vep, Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings).

The screenplay is by Terry Rossio (Godzilla vs. Kong the Pirates of the Caribbean series) and, Simon Barrett (You're Next), and Jeremy Slater (Moon Knight), from a story by Rossio & Wingard & Barrett, based on the character "Godzilla" owned and created by TOHO Co., Ltd. The film is produced by Mary Parent, Alex Garcia, Eric Mcleod, Thomas Tull, Jon Jashni and Brian Rogers. The executive producers are Wingard, Jen Conroy, Jay Ashenfelter, Yoshimitsu Banno, Kenji Okuhira.

Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures Present a Legendary Pictures Production, A Film By Adam Wingard, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. It is slated for release nationwide only in theaters and IMAX on March 29, 2024, and beginning 10 April 2024 internationally, distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures except in Japan, where the film will be distributed by Toho Co., Ltd and in mainland China, where it will be distributed by Legendary East.

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire director Adam Wingard compared the film to Fast and Furious 5 and said this is where the series is "coming into its own."

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