There was another unexpected twist in the tale of Godzilla vs. Kong yesterday when it was announced that the latest chapter in the MonsterVerse would be arriving ahead of schedule, with Warner Bros. moving the epic monster mash forward by two months. Adam Wingard’s blockbuster is now scheduled to hit theaters and HBO Max on March 26th, having already been shuffled around the calendar multiple times.
While this is good news for fans, it’s also seen the calls to release the first trailer grow even louder. The studio recently held a six-hour panel at the virtual CCXP convention, but all we saw from Godzilla vs. Kong was a GIF, leading to widespread disappointment among those who were fully expecting the first footage to be unveiled.
Now, we’re less than twelve weeks away from the movie arriving and there’s still no promo, which is a very unusual approach for a high profile sequel that’s rumored to have cost WB and Legendary at least $160 million to produce. And as you can see from the reactions below, while people are happy that they’ll get Godzilla vs. Kong earlier than expected, the lack of any sort of promotional material is causing widespread confusion.
Can we see some FOOTAGE? https://t.co/8RhN0b17dE
— vash (@versusKyle) January 16, 2021
https://twitter.com/cam_junge/status/1350087241532547072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1350087241532547072%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcomicbook.com%2Fanime%2Fnews%2Fgodzilla-vs-kong-fans-wondering-where-trailer%2F
Okaaay.. where tf is the trailer https://t.co/iT4aP2LDil
— Certified Print Watcher. (@analchanteuse) January 16, 2021
I need that Godzilla vs. Kong trailer NOW pic.twitter.com/5uYMNP07B7
— Devin (@DevinScott64) January 16, 2021
@RealClownfishTV , okay now to they have no excuse to delaying the trailer. https://t.co/LPhyYOsh5m
— Kris(Dalia1784) 🐴🌙🏳️🌈 (@dalia1784) January 16, 2021
Warner Bros: “GOOD NEWS PEEPS! We bumped up the release date for Godzilla VS Kong!”
The fanbase: “nice… how about,, a trailer??…”
Warner Bros: pic.twitter.com/AM7qLoAKOQ
— the cool worm on your timeline maybe (@DealDewott) January 16, 2021
How I feel waiting for that Godzilla Vs Kong trailer to drop. pic.twitter.com/zKGMrU0fL7
— Rob's Media Vault (@Robsmediavault) January 13, 2021
How tf is Godzilla vs Kong coming out in March when there hasn’t been a single trailer???
— Kid Michael (@itskidmichael) January 16, 2021
https://twitter.com/lamarjackson2/status/1350242100391120898?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1350242100391120898%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcomicbook.com%2Fanime%2Fnews%2Fgodzilla-vs-kong-fans-wondering-where-trailer%2F
what if we just… don't get a trailer for Godzilla vs. Kong?
I know trailers are vital for marketing to people who may not know about the movie (more people than you would think) but what if, for the first time in ages, you saw a blockbuster knowing absolutely nothing beforehand— Matt Brown (@CallMeMatt88) January 16, 2021
For a while, it looked like Godzilla vs. Kong might end up being delayed even further after Legendary threatened WarnerMedia with legal action when they were blocked from selling the distribution rights to Netflix for $200 million, only for the project to wind up getting sent to HBO Max anyway. These differences have clearly been resolved, but the continued slump of the theatrical industry and a complete lack of a marketing campaign may have already signalled that the box office numbers aren’t going to be great.