Gareth Edwards' GODZILLA proved to be a successful re-introduction to Toho's famous monster, as well as the first installment of Legendary's MonsterVerse franchise which also includes King Kong. Now, the big guy is set to make a return in GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS, which will also feature other giant monsters such as King Ghidorah, Mothra, and Rodan. Entertainment Weekly has a pair of first-look images from the upcoming Michael Dougherty flick, featuring Godzilla unleashing his atomic breath as well as Vera Farmiga (THE CONJURING) and Millie Bobby Brown (Stranger Things) taking a good, long look at…something. Check them out below!
Michael Dougherty has said that five years have passed since the events of the first GODZILLA film, but people around the world still haven't stopped freaking out after learning of Godzilla's existence. "The world is reacting to Godzilla in the same way we would react to any other terrifying incident, in that we are overreacting," Dougherty said. It also turns out that Godzilla hasn't been seen since the finale of Gareth Edwards' film, but Dougherty says that "there’s paranoia and endless speculation about whether he is the only one out there or whether we’re threatened by others like his kind." As I mentioned above, those other giant monsters will include King Ghidorah, Mothra, and Rodan, the latter of which Michael Dougherty has always had a soft spot for. Me too. The director teased that Rodan is actually "more powerful than Godzilla" in a lot of ways. "He’s like this winged A-bomb. I think we’ve done him justice," Dougherty said.
Vera Farmiga plays Dr. Emma Russell in the film, a paleobiologist working for the Monarch organization. Millie Bobby Brown plays her daughter, Madison, and when the pair are kidnapped by "a mysterious organization," Russell's ex-husband (Kyle Chandler) embarks on a rescue mission along with Dr. Ishiro Serizawa (Ken Watanabe) and Dr. Vivienne Graham (Sally Hawkins). It also turns out that the mysterious organization which kidnaps Dr. Russell and her daughter have "their own plans for the creatures," which could have something to do with Dr. Russell's research. Vera Farmiga has previously teased that her character has "figured out a way to communicate with the creatures and potentially control them using their bioacoustics on a sonar level." Interesting. Following GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS, the next film on the MonsterVerse schedule will be GODZILLA VS. KONG in 2020, and Michael Dougherty said that there's definitely some bread crumbs in his film which will tease the big showdown.
The official synopsis for GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS:
The new story follows the heroic efforts of the crypto-zoological agency Monarch as its members face off against a battery of god-sized monsters, including the mighty Godzilla, who collides with Mothra, Rodan, and his ultimate nemesis, the three-headed King Ghidorah. When these ancient super-species—thought to be mere myths—rise again, they all vie for supremacy, leaving humanity’s very existence hanging in the balance.
GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS will hit theaters on May 31, 2019.