The Kaiju Score: Brightburn writers take on giant monster comic book movie

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Eleven months ago, Sony Pictures acquired the movie rights to the AfterShock Comics series The Kaiju Score – and that was three months before the first issue of the comic even reached store shelves. Now the movie project, which is being developed by AfterShock and Escape Artists, has found its writers: Brian Gunn and Mark Gunn, a writing duo whose previous credits include the TV show 2gether, Bring It On: Again, Journey 2: The Mysterious Island, and the horror film Brightburn (watch it HERE), which was basically a dark take on the Superman story. I didn't like that movie, but it has developed a cult following.

Brian Gunn is the brother of filmmaker James Gunn, and Mark Gunn is their cousin.

Created by writer James Patrick and artist Rem Broo, The Kaiju Score has been described as "a Quentin Tarantino film taking place in some corner of a Godzilla movie". The comic book's story centers on 

four criminals attempting the perfect heist in the middle of a giant monster attack on the city.

Tony Shaw is producing the film with Escape Artists' Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal, and Steve Tisch, as well as AfterShock Media's Lee Kramer and Jon Kramer. Jiao Chen is overseeing the project for Sony.

I haven't read any issues of The Kaiju Score myself, but I do like the idea of a Tarantino-esque heist movie colliding with giant monster mayhem. As the comic's writer described it, 

You have this giant canvas of a kaiju attack occurring, and as it happens there’s this more personal story going on. And after that setup, it explores how these four characters, who are in just the worst situation in their lives, believe the only way out is to do this impossible thing. This crazy crime. It’s about that desperation. It started with Donald Westlake books like the Parker series. I wanted to do something contemporary like those. But when Rem [Broo, co-creator and artist] came aboard, I knew it felt more Oceans 11 and I adjusted. And Elmore Leonard stories when it came to the characters, and Tarantino when it came to the dialogue. I didn’t say ‘I’m going to write this dialogue like Tarantino and ape him’ — I just mean that in a more organic sense [of] I love all of those people and their work, and my own work probably echoes them.”

Now it's the Gunns' turn to write their version of this mash-up.