Support NeoGAF

[Bobby Roberts]

This is according to Borys Kit of the Hollywood Reporter.

Variety confirms

Thoughts?

I'm not sweating this too much. It's not as if he was the ideal Godzilla director, and it's not like what he did with the movie (and I like that movie, more than a lot of people here on GAF) couldn't be improved upon.

 

[Demoncarnotaur]

I can't help but wonder if it also has something to do with creating a Cinematic Universe with Kong. From my understanding, that reshaped Kong Skull Island quite a bit during pre-production.

It'll be interesting to see what projects he pursues, and who they bring on for this.

 

[Penguin]

Could just be a timing thing with them pushing the movie back 9 months recently.

 

[gamz]

That sucks!

 

[Biggest-Geek-Ever]

I was always a little surprised they stuck with him this long considering Godzilla had almost historically bad legs.

 

[adj_noun]

I can't help but wonder if it also has something to do with creating a Cinematic Universe with Kong. From my understanding, that reshaped Kong Skull Island quite a bit during pre-production.

I do wonder how they're scaling Kong up to fight Godzilla; like, is he starting out that big a la King Kong vs Godzilla or are they zapping him with a big-o-beam after the credits. or something.

 

[gamz]

Might be just because he wants some time off after Godzilla and Rogue.

Edit:

Some say Edwards wants a break from back-to-back big budget tentpoles while other sources tell THR that the filmmaker was feeling rushed to meet a timeline.

 

[Bobby Roberts]

I do wonder how they're scaling Kong up to fight Godzilla; like, is he starting out that big a la King Kong vs Godzilla or are they zapping him with a big-o-beam after the credits. or something.

Apparently Kong will not be super-huge in Skull Island, but will maybe wind up that way via the events of the movie.

I'm really curious as to how/when the fuckin' Jaegers show up, and whether that'll lead to a mecha-Godzilla getting created.

 

[Tansut]

Apparently Kong will not be super-huge in Skull Island, but will maybe wind up that way via the events of the movie.

I'm really curious as to how/when the fuckin' Jaegers show up, and whether that'll lead to a mecha-Godzilla getting created.

That's an odd way to spell Jet Jaguar.

 

[Demoncarnotaur]

Could just be a timing thing with them pushing the movie back 9 months recently.

According to Deadline he had departed before the delay/new release date was set.

I do wonder how they're scaling Kong up to fight Godzilla; like, is he starting out that big a la King Kong vs Godzilla or are they zapping him with a big-o-beam after the credits. or something.

Kong is a lot bigger this time around, but still nothing compared to Godzilla. If I had to guess, they're gonna go all Shadow of the Colossus with that thing.

 

[Anth1888]

Thought I read somewhere he was locked into a deal. Maybe Legendary want him to do another film for them.

 

[Bobby Roberts]

That's an odd way to spell Jet Jaguar.

I'd love Jaguar showing up, but I think Legendary wants to cross over Pacific Rim as well at some point, which makes Jaguar redundant.

 

[Sojgat]

I'm not sure it's a big loss. He created some stunning visuals and one truly memorable moment, but he also made the most boring Godzilla movie ever.

 

[RoboPlato]

Edwards is out?

Extremely disappointing. I thought he was perfect for the franchise and was hoping for another great Godzilla movie before King Kong gets thrown into the mix.

 

[MuddyDonut]

I liked the last movie and thought it looked great. Not sure how I feel about him leaving, but as long as the next movie has better writers and a just as competent director we should be fine. The sense of scale he brought was also pretty great.

 

[Demoncarnotaur]

I'd love Jaguar showing up, but I think Legendary wants to cross over Pacific Rim as well at some point, which makes Jaguar redundant.

AFAIK, Pacific Rim 2 is now with Legendary and Universal, and no longer with WB.. who have Godzilla and Kong.

 

[Tal Shiar Agent]

Well that sucks, Edwards was an actual fan of Godzilla and he made the perfect Showa film with 2014. Hopefully whoever does Godzilla II shows the same admiration for the source material. Especially with Mothra, Rodan, and King Ghidorah.

 

[Snaku]

So they waited all this fucking time for Edwards to finish Star Wars, and now he's out? What the helm was the point of that? It will be five years since the first film when the sequel is now scheduled to come out. Will anybody even care?

 

[BigBeauford]

Will Cranston be in the 2nd one? That's the only way I would watch it.

 

[JdFoX187]

Kind of surprising and disappointing, since the reason Godzilla 2 was pushed back so far to begin with was because Edwards was moving straight ahead into Rogue One. I absolutely loved Godzilla (2014) and am definitely looking forward to Skull Island, but I wonder how much it's going to resonate.

 

[What did he mean by this?]

There was rumors floating around that Christopher McQuarrie "saved" Rogue One.

I think Edwards is just burned out. This thing of big studios plucking little indie guys to do big productions doesnt always work.

 

[Tansut]

I'd love Jaguar showing up, but I think Legendary wants to cross over Pacific Rim as well at some point, which makes Jaguar redundant.

How would that work though? Would the Godzilla and King Kong films be prequels to Pacific Rim?

I will never give up the Jet Jaguar dream.

Will Cranston be in the 2nd one? That's the only way I would watch it.

notsureifserious.jpg

 

[DeathoftheEndless]

There were some good ideas in the 2014 movie, but the characters were boring and I thought the horror elements clashed with Godzilla's portrayal. I'd like to see more of a thriller this time around.

 

[Bobby Roberts]

AFAIK, Pacific Rim 2 is now with Legendary and Universal, and no longer with WB.. who have Godzilla and Kong.

I thought Legendary had rights to all three? Which would/could make a co-production/partnership regarding Pacific Rim easier to work out.

So far as Edwards walking, keep in mind, this is his career to this point:

Monsters (smaller-scale calling-card movie) (also a fucking terrible movie)
Godzilla (fucking supermassive film)
Rogue One (fucking supermassive film)

He hasn't even gotten to his fourth film and he's basically been running full-speed, non-stop in the realm of action tentpole spectacle.

I can see the guy wanting to call timeout for a minute.

 

[Scorpion Soldier]

So they waited all this fucking time for Edwards to finish Star Wars, and now he's out? What the helm was the point of that? It will be five years since the first film when the sequel is now scheduled to come out. Will anybody even care?

He left before the delay. Godzilla will remain relevant, but wether they want to market it as a full-on sequel is debateable. If they make it stand on its own it may do better.

 

[gamz]

There was rumors floating around that Christopher McQuarrie "saved" Rogue One.

I think Edwards is just burned out. This thing of big studios plucking little indie guys to do big productions doesnt always work.

I'm not sure about saved, but didn't he just punched up the script? Which has nothing to do with Edwards.

 

[CloudyTuba]

That'd be a shame if Edwards didn't come back because I think he clearly showed an appreciation of the source material, but I'd be more worried if this was an entire reboot with a new direction. Since Edwards already laid the tracks and someone else would be following them, I imagine it would be a little tougher to derail.

It's not like the plot needs to be anything intricate. Just come up with whatever awesome excuse you need to have more monsters exist, and let them fight.

Still hope Edwards finds a way to return with his Destroy All Monsters sequel idea.

AFAIK, Pacific Rim 2 is now with Legendary and Universal, and no longer with WB.. who have Godzilla and Kong.

I heard that as well but if I live in a universe where Sony is making deals with Marvel then anything can happen.

I need Mechagodzilla. Just set the crossover in 2040 so that it doesn't need to tie into any modern-day movies. They can exist in the same universe without necessarily intersecting.

How would that work though? Would the Godzilla and King Kong films be prequels to Pacific Rim?

I will never give up the Jet Jaguar dream.

notsureifserious.jpg

They could just play it like Fox plays Xmen. Stop giving a shit out past-movie continuity and just do whatever they want going forward.

I will not sweat the details if it means a movie with Jet Jaguar and Mechagodzilla.

 

[mgarnica89]

Who's Warner Bros gonna have step up to the plate?

Dan Trachtenberg perhaps? Or maybe the Guy who filmed San Andreas ( i don't know his name). An Unknown.

 

[JdFoX187]

How would that work though? Would the Godzilla and King Kong films be prequels to Pacific Rim?

I will never give up the Jet Jaguar dream.

notsureifserious.jpg

The Precursors use their technology to bridge the world of Pacific Rim and the world of King Kong/Godzilla. Godzilla shows up, Kong follows, Jaegers are called in and absolutely fucking destroyed because Godzilla is a hell of a lot more powerful than Slattern, which nearly single-handedly destroyed the PPDC itself.

 

[gamz]

Who's Warner Bros gonna have step up to the plate?

Dan Trachtenberg perhaps? Or maybe the Guy who filmed San Andreas ( i don't know his name). An Unknown.

GDT?

 

[Camjo-Z]

I don't really care who does the sequel as long as we get more monsters and less boring underdeveloped humans on the screen.

edit: and maybe don't kill off the only interesting character 30 minutes into the movie this time

 

[Akahige]

I'm okay with this. I hope they gwt a new writer/s as well.

Who's Warner Bros gonna have step up to the plate?

Dan Trachtenberg perhaps? Or maybe the Guy who filmed San Andreas ( i don't know his name). An Unknown.

Isn't the San Andreas director doing Rampage with Rock?

 

[Tambini]

I just wanna see Mothra fuck shit up

 

[TM94]

first one was dogshit

 

[DontBeThatGuy]

I liked Godzilla, so Gareth Edwards coming back wouldn't have bothered me in the slightest. Oh well.

 

[Tansut]

The Precursors use their technology to bridge the world of Pacific Rim and the world of King Kong/Godzilla. Godzilla shows up, Kong follows, Jaegers are called in and absolutely fucking destroyed because Godzilla is a hell of a lot more powerful than Slattern, which nearly single-handedly destroyed the PPDC itself.

Avatar quote, but yeah I'd be down for this.

 

[SomeRandomWeirdGuy]

I don't want it to be a reboot. I loved the movie and enjoyed its take on why giant monsters exist. I was quite looking forward to how it would explain Mothra and Ghidora

If they changed Godzilla's design too I'd be pretty pissed. Legendary Godzilla is at the top of the heap with Godzilla 2000 for me

 

[- J - D -]

I don't really know what to feel about Edwards not being attached. Reading up on Godzilla 2014's development, it's difficult to really attribute the choice of tone and direction to a particular person, and I'm not sure if it was Edwards who decided on the general idea that, "hey, American Godzilla shouldn't be a fucking joke." and opted for the more serious, grim tone of the original Japanese film. Was it Legendary CEO Thomas Tull? Toho president Takai? writers David Callahan or David fucking Goyer? Guillermo Del Toro?

I dunno. What I do know is that the more I think about Godzilla 2014, the less I like it. If Gareth was largely responsible for making the idea of a Hollywood Godzilla actually respectable, then he deserves a ton of respect, but I don't like the movie he ended up making.

 

[sphinx]

I live under a rock: confirmed

I thought this was a sequel to that one old-ass movie with Matthew Broderick....

 

[HStallion]

Let Gareth Evans direct it now. Imagine the insanity of the giant monster battles with him in charge. Iko Uwais can play Jet Jaguar and kick the ever loving shit out of the Big G with some Silat.

 

[Amalthea]

The actual second Godzilla movie in 1955 was made in about 5 months. And it sucked.

 

[Daingurse]

That's dissapointing. Godzilla 2014 had flaws, but I was looking forward to seeing Edwards' improvements to the second film. He definitely had a passion for Godzilla.

 

[BuckRobotron]

I quite liked what he did with Godzilla 2014. This sounds like it is him downshifting and wanting to keep himself sane between major projects more than anything else.

 

[Prince of Space]

Godzilla 2014 was great, warts and all. This sucks to read, Edwards really had an eye for filming some great monster action sequences.

 

[Toxi]

That's dissapointing. Godzilla 2014 had flaws, but I was looking forward to seeing Edwards' improvements to the second film. He definitely had a passion for Godzilla.

For what it's worth, Godzilla 2014 was a massive improvement over his previous movie Monsters.

 

[NastyBook]

Will Cranston be in the 2nd one? That's the only way I would watch it.

Weekends at Bernies inside of a Godzilla film could work.

 

[torre_avenue]

I figure Edwards must have gotten a better offer from somewhere. Considering how long he was attached to the movie and even debuted concept footage of the film, I don't know what could have changed to cause Edwards to drop out.

 

[gamz]

For what it's worth, Godzilla 2014 was a massive improvement over his previous movie Monsters.

I adore.monsters and it had similar themes.

 

[HStallion]

Weekends at Bernies inside of a Godzilla film could work.

Weekend at Godzillas. The Big G dies after snorting the entire contents of a shipping container he thought was full of cocaine but turned out to be heroin and OD'ed. The other monsters don't want those annoying humans to focus all their tanks and jets and gun ships on them so they continue to prop up Godzilla in more and more elaborate methods to convince humanity that he is still stomping around destroying cities and breathing nuclear fire.

 

[CheeseConey]

Sad to hear he's not going to be directing Godzilla 2, I loved 2014. Just hope it does not get pushed back even further, same with the King Kong film.