The big boy came back to San Diego. Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures brought Gareth Edwards’ GODZILLA to Hall H earlier today, with Edwards, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Olsen and Bryan Cranston in attendance.
First they showed the “mood piece” teaser that they brought last year (I don’t know why they haven’t released it officially yet), and then after some chatter they brought out their latest trailer. It’s probably not the one they’ll ultimately release (after all, they only just finished shooting and the film doesn’t come out until next May), but it had some moments in it that made me drool.
– The trailer’s first half is essentially made up of a lot of military/scientific imagery: army men, people in hazmat suits, soldiers surveying a scene of carnage, a gigantic missile being transported on a locomotive, etc. There is no dialogue, and all of the shots last a few seconds, tops. It actually kind of looks like a big-budget version of Edwards first movie, MONSTERS.
– We glimpse Cranston running down a hallway, David Strathairn looking like a military dude, and a few quick shots of Olsen, Ken Watanabe and Juliet Binoche. You see Taylor-Johnson on a train that looks to be under attack from something.
– There’s no real indication of what this movie is (if you walked in unaware, I mean) until the second half, which shows us a gigantic praying mantis-like monster destroying what looked like an elevated train and then an airport. Hard to describe this creature in detail since it’s all such a blur, but it definitely had an “huge insect’ vibe. It destroys a helicopter, which then crashes into a plane, causing a huge ball of fire. (Looked awesome). Then we see Godzilla’s foot enter the frame. We never get a good look at him, but it’s clear he’s about to square off with this other monster. And he is definitely bigger.
The film is obviously quite serious in tone; Edwards clearly meant what he said when he commented that his version of GODZILLA takes the “what would it be like if this really happened?” approach. Appears to tackle the subject of a monster attack very “believably,” if you can imagine that.
Here are some highlights from the panel:
– Edwards said they just finished shooting literally two days ago. They hopped on a plane in Hawaii and jetted straight to San Diego. (Most of the film’s production took place in Canada, however. Cranston joked that a Canadian Godzilla is really nice and helpful.)
– Edwards said that Warner Bros. and Legendary have been incredibly supportive. The crew told him they’ve never worked on a film like this in terms of the creative freedom he was allowed.
– Olsen said she expected it to be a different experience because of how big it was, but in fact it felt very small and creative. They were always on set “going at it,” so it felt like an independent. She plays a nurse and a mother in the film.
– Taylor-Johnson said Edwards brings an intimacy to the proceedings. He referred to it as a “big budget art film.”
– Cranston said that Godzilla was always his favorite monster when he was young, because he was unapologetic. (Unlike King Kong, who was sort of a tragic figure.) He was hesitant to tackle it because of how huge it was, but a talk with Edwards convinced him it was a good project. (Also seeing MONSTERS helped sway him.) He said GODZILLA is very character-driven.
– As usual, Cranston owned. (He makes every panel approx. 100X better.) When host Chris Hardwick said they “had something to show you,” Cranston stood up and made like he was about to undo his pants. Then he said “That’s what I call it, Godzilla.”
– Edwards said that they were never allowed to reveal the title of the film while shooting, its code-name was “Nautilus.” They even lied to customs about it. Edwards remarked that one customs agent found out who he was and what he was actually shooting and told him he better not f*ck it up.
– Edwards also made it clear that the film is very faithful to the Toho classics. (There were people from Toho in the hall.) He said it was always his intention that it feels like it’s part of the Toho legacy; a “true” Godzilla movie. He said it has “heart and soul.”
That’s about it, kids. Hopefully they release at least ONE of these teasers online soon. In the meantime, be sure to check out our GODZILLA Fan Experience article right HERE.