Something big is brewing today as Deadline reports that Legendary’s upcoming Kong: Skull Island has moved from Universal to Warner Bros. According to the outlet, that’s because Legendary is keen on developing a new King Kong vs. Godzilla movie and are making efforts to keep the gargantuan beasts under the same distributor. Skull Island remains on track for a March 10, 2017 with a sequel to Gareth Edwards’ Godzilla planned for June 8, 2018. After that, the Eighth Wonder of the World will take on the King of Monsters in an as-of-yet untitled King Kong vs. Godzilla feature!
Of course, this won’t be the first time that these titans have clashed. 1962’s King Kong vs. Godzilla marked the third Godzilla feature. In that film, the size of both monsters was adjusted to even the odds, however Godzilla is traditionally significantly larger than Kong. May we suggest pulling in Legendary’s other Kaiju-friendly franchise, Pacific Rim, and giving Kong his own mecha-ape Jaeger?
Kong: Skull Island, which is being directed by The Kings of Summer‘s Jordan Vogt-Roberts from a script by John Gatins and Max Borenstein, aims to fully immerse audiences in the mysterious and dangerous home of the king of the apes as a team of explorers ventures deep inside the treacherous, primordial island. Legendary’s story honors the foundations of existing King Kong lore, but places it in an entirely new, distinct timeline. Previously, Simmons revealed a surprise setting for the film, saying it would take place in Detroit in 1971; however, given the title of the movie, it’s a safe bet that the jungles of King Kong’s homeland will be the primary setting.
The Godzilla sequel, meanwhile, is being scripted by Max Borenstein and will feature the return of Edwards as director. It has been hinted that we will see some other famous Kaiju, such as Rodan, Mothra and King Ghidorah, although none have been fully confirmed at this time.
