Scheduled for an April 2024 theatrical release, Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire joins the MonsterVerse series as its latest instalment, succeeding 2021’s Godzilla vs. Kong. Adam Wingard (You’re Next, Blair Witch), the director behind the preceding movie, has once again taken the helm for The New Empire— becoming the sole filmmaker to direct more than one project within the Godzilla franchise.
The title reveal teaser for The New Empire, released in April, gave fans the first look at a menacing primate-looking figure on a throne overlooking the skulls of what seemed to be both Godzilla and Kong. Well, Wingard goes deeper into who this “devilish, Kong-type character” is and more about The New Empire in an interview with IGN.
“We wanted to come up with an antagonist that would both be a match for Kong and Godzilla, and that’s really hard to do,” he said. “There’s a lot more to this character and how he’s a threat, and that’s going to be something that’s going to be fun to kind of dole out.”
While fans ponder about the origins of this new villain, Wingard happily reveals that a fan-favourite creature, Titanus Doug, will be getting the screen time he deserves in The New Empire after his one shot in Godzilla vs. Kong went viral. The director also seems to have a soft spot for the creature, affectionately calling him “a little bulldog sort of”.
The New Empire will see the comeback of Rebecca Hall (Iron Man 3, The Night House) as Dr. Ilene Andrews, Brian Tyree Henry (Eternals, Child’s Play) as Bernie Hayes, and Kaylee Hottle (Godzilla vs Kong, Magnum P.I) as Jia in the franchise. However, the return of Alexander Skarsgård (True Blood, Battleship), Millie Bobby Brown (Stranger Things, Enola Holmes), Julian Dennison (Deadpool 2, The Christmas Chronicles 2), or Kyle Chandler (The Wolf of Wall Street, Bloodline) from Godzilla vs. Kong remains unconfirmed.
With a set release date of 12 April 2024, there is no shortage of Godzilla content to tide fans over. In the past year, the MonsterVerse introduced two fresh series: Skull Island on Netflix and Monarch: Legacy of Monsters on Apple TV+. Additionally, Godzilla Minus One was released with resounding success, and a prequel comic titled Godzilla x Kong: The Hunted is slated for release in February, preceding the upcoming movie.
Sasha has been a lover of all things geek since before she could read, having driven her mother up the wall in providing geek material as fast as her daughter could get through them. While Fantasy has been her greatest love, Sasha won’t say no to anything Horror, Action-Packed, or Sci-Fi!
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