Legendary Pictures is staying in the monster business. Today in Hall H, the CEO of the company, Thomas Tull, gave us peeks at two previously unannounced – or make that “unconfirmed” – creature features: GODZILLA 2 and SKULL ISLAND.
First up: GODZILLA. It was two years ago almost to the day that a teaser was shown for GODZILLA – before pre-production had even officially commenced. Now that the film is a certified hit, Tull just wanted to thank the fans for making it one of the biggest films of the summer. He then turned it over to director Gareth Edwards, who sent in a video message from San Francisco.
– Edwards started off by a joke about them “rebuilding” the city (of course, Godzilla and his enemies made toast of it) and another crack about taking a break from directing a major franchise. He then confirmed that he’ll be directing GODZILLA 2 after he wraps up the STAR WARS spin-off he’s attached to.
– The sounds of fighter jets flying by prompts the camera to pan over and who should be there but the Big G himself. He lets out his familiar roar as the jets fly near him (they don’t attack him, it should be pointed out). This was new footage and it looked perfect.
– Tull then tells us he’s pried some classified footage away from “Monarch” (the organization that studies Godzilla in the film). A video done in newsreel style plays, showing lots of B&W footage of government types, Godzilla, etc. The words “There is One Secret That Remains Hidden” come up and we see very blurry footage of MOTHRA, RODAN and GHIDORAH (their classified names). So, obviously, Godzilla’s most famous enemies are coming to challenge him in the next installment (or installments).
– Later on, Legendary showed a trailer that, as far as I could tell, not a single person was able to figure out what it was until the title card at the end.
– A voice over playing during the teaser, over aerial shots of murky jungle and ocean: “Its very existence was improbable. Being alone in the wilderness had made him go mad. It looked at you with a vengeful aspect. Penetrated deeper and deeper… into the very heart of darkness.” Then a giant beast, clearly King Kong, bursts out of the jungle, roaring. Title card: SKULL ISLAND. Yep, he’s back!
Here’s a release from Legendary on their take:
Previous works have touched on the island, but staying and exploring this mysterious and dangerous place offers Legendary the opportunity to take audiences deeper inside this rich world with a style and scope that parallels other Legendary productions.”
Just putting this out there: Legendary has new Godzilla and King Kong movies in the works. Are we destined to see them duke it out in the same film at some point?
SKULL ISLAND opens on November 4, 2016. GODZILLA 2 does not yet have a release date.