When we brought you the news last week that Warner Bros. and Legendary were partnering up to bring together King Kong and the King of Monsters himself, many scoffed at the nascent. How could a two-to-three-story ape possibly compete with Godzilla, an ancient radioactive lizard that is essentially a reptilian skyscraper? As one inside source allegedly jokes, the mighty simian would really need to be the size of the actual Empire State building, rather than merely hanging off it.
But nonetheless, there remains an inkling of an idea for a crossover event that may be seeded in 2017”s Kong: Skull Island. That’s according to a expose by The Hollywood Reporter – the same one that effectively sunk Pacific Rim: Maelstrom – which states that the IP’s move back to Warner Bros. will ultimately pave the way for a Godzilla V King Kong showdown.
[zergpaid]It’s no secret that Kong: Skull Island has been simmering in development for some time, and things looked to have taken a turn for the worse when Universal opted to withdraw its offer for co-financing and distribution. What this means is that Warner Bros. will foot a portion of the $120 million bill for Jordan Vogt-Roberts’ much-hyped creature feature, with the latest report hinting of a potential trilogy under this new licensing deal.
With Skull Island acting as the jumping off point, it would appear that Legendary and Warner Bros. will tie the budding franchise closer together in Gareth Edwards’ Godzilla 2, possibly by including Sally Hawkins and Ken Watanabe as recurring characters, before blowing the doors off for that all-important crescendo: Kong V Godzilla.
Details are still scarce on the ground, but this is certainly one to keep an eye on. Kong: Skull Island could be an important cog in a much bigger machine, and it’ll be fascinating to see how this overarching shared universe evolves as Legendary and Warner Bros. iron out the kinks.
