Had it not been for an impressive box office haul overseas – to the tune of $309 million in 2013 – a sequel to Pacific Rim may never have existed. Guillermo del Toro’s gargantuan creature feature carved out a niche audience despite winning over few critics and now, after cancelling an apocalypse in the most epic fashion imaginable, Legendary is gearing up for another CG-laden blockbuster. Only according to a new rumor presented by Latino Review, the follow-up – known as Pacific Rim: Maelstrom – has been hit with an unforeseen delay, calling its tentative 2017 release date into question.
Back in July, it was reported that the monstorous sequel would enter production this fall – November, to be specific – in Toronto, though the outlet states sources close to the nascent project have revealed that production has now been pushed into 2016. Naturally, given the VFX-heavy nature of Pacific Rim: Maelstrom, such a change of plan would result in Legendary altering the release date, perhaps postponing the film into 2018.
What we do know is that Pacific Rim 2 will act as del Toro’s next project following the release of anticipated gothic horror Crimson Peak. His return to helm the follow-up was meet with cheers of joy from the film’s devotees, and based on its reputation with the Comic-Con audience, it’s clear that Pacific Rim enjoys the status of a cult hit.
In terms of Maelstrom‘s plot, early reports indicated that the sequel would take place a few years after the events of the original film, where humanity was finally beginning to rebuild after the category 5 Kaiju that threatened to spill out from the breach. Could del Toro’s follow-up explore a different breed of Kaiju beyond the Serizawa Scale? Time will tell.
Pacific Rim: Maelstrom has been tentatively slated for a release on August 4, 2017, though we’ll keep you updated should we learn of a change of schedule.