For those of you who were looking forward to Godzilla and King Kong finally clashing in the MonsterVerse next spring, you’ll have to cool your heels. Word has come in that Godzilla vs. Kong, the fourth entry in this creature-filled franchise, has been delayed to next November.
Godzilla vs. Kong had previously been scheduled as a May 2020 release, first taking the May 29 slot and then being moved to May 22. Then the highly-anticipated crossover was shifted to March 13, 2020, meaning it would drop less than a year after Godzilla: King of the Monsters. Now Warner Bros and Legendary Pictures have announced (via The Hollywood Reporter) that Godzilla vs. Kong has been moved to November 20, 2020.
Warner Bros film chief Toby Emmerich acknowledged back in June that Godzilla vs. Kong being pushed back was a possibility in order to ensure it came out “an A+ movie.” Sure enough, that’s what happened, and now Godzilla vs. Kong finds itself as the biggest release that opening weekend, competing against the Kristen Stewart and Mackenzie Davis-led Happiest Season, Sylvester Stallone’s superhero movie Samaritan, and an untitled Amblin project.
No specific reason was provided for the Godzilla vs. Kong delay, though considering how Godzilla: King of the Monsters’ performance at the box office, one couldn’t fault Warner Bros for allowing extra time to smooth out any wrinkles in the next MonsterVerse entry. King of the Monsters only made $385.9 million globally off a budget in the $170-$200 million range, and was met with mixed reviews.
There’s a lot riding on Godzilla vs. Kong avoiding a similar fate, though obviously we have no read on its quality yet since a trailer has yet to drop. Nevertheless, with this movie serving as the first time Godzilla and King Kong are crossing paths in an American production, the future of the MonsterVerse will be dependent on how well it does.
If Godzilla vs. Kong successful, or at least performs better than Godzilla: King of the Monsters did, that presumably bodes well for the MonsterVerse and pave the way for more Titan-filled tales. If it bombs, that could spell the end for the MonsterVerse. At least on the weekend before the Thanksgiving holiday, Godzilla vs. Kong has the privilege of being the biggest movie opening.
Along with the eponymous monsters being set on a collision course, Godzilla vs. Kong , which wrapped filming in April, will also see the scientific organization Monarch embarking on a dangerous mission into uncharted terrain to uncover the origins of the Titans, and a conspiracy being uncovered that threatens to eradicate this gigantic creatures.
Millie Bobby Brown, Kyle Chandler and Zhang Ziyi will reprise Madison Russell, Mark Russell and the Chen twins, respectively, and the Godzilla vs. Kong cast includes Alexander Skarsgård, Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Eiza González, Shun Oguri, Jessica Henwick, Julian Dennison, Demián Bichir and Lance Reddick. Death Note’s Adam Wingard directed and Pirates of the Caribbean’s Terry Rossio wrote the script.
Keep checking back with CinemaBlend for more updates on how Godzilla vs. Kong is coming along, but in the meantime, find out what else is hitting the silver screen next year in our 2020 release schedule.
