Charles Dance's Godzilla: King of the Monsters character just became infinitely more menacing, thanks to a newly released audio outtake. The film was a direct sequel to 2014's Godzilla and the third installment of Legendary's MonsterVerse franchise, following Kong: Skull Island. Despite its impressive cast and praise for the visual effects, cinematography, and action sequences, the clash of these particular Titans was largely deemed forgettable and failed to land a solid blow at the box office.
Despite rumors that he'd be playing an older version of Tom Hiddleston's James Conrad from Skull Island, Dance played Alan Jonah. As the leader of an eco-terrorist group, the character largely served as the film's main human antagonist. Believing the Titans were necessary to restore balance and heal the Earth, he was instrumental in releasing King Ghidorah and Rodan. He and his forces managed to survive the resulting kaiju devastation - and were last seen in the post-credit scene, purchasing Ghidorah's severed left head in Mexico. What the character intended to do with it was one of the film's many unanswered questions.
Despite Dance's considerable talents, the character of Alan Jonah proved a somewhat thinly constructed antagonist in the eyes of audiences. Posting on Twitter, however, Mike Dougherty has given the character's level of menace a boost via an audio outtake. Dougherty co-wrote the script for King of the Monsters and assumed the role of director after Gareth Edwards stepped away in 2016. The outtake has Dance recite "The Second Coming," a poem by W.B. Yeats that was first published in 1920. Check out the full post and listen to the full reading below:
The actor is no stranger to menacing people on-screen. He most notably put those skills to use in multiple seasons of Game of Thrones, playing the cruel and calculating Lannister patriarch, Tywin. He's also enjoyed roles in everything from The Crown to Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. He has a variety of upcoming projects in various stages of development, including Matthew Vaughn's Kingsman prequel, The King's Man.
The chillingly delivered words of the poem - which is easily on par with Christopher Walken's viral reading of "The Raven" - will no doubt resonate in audiences' minds during a Godzilla rewatch. Equally, it'll add extra levels regarding the character's mindset and motivations. After all, the poem explores such themes as the renewal and healing that can come in from destruction and the collapse of the world's systems. Instead of Christ, however, "The Second Coming" referred to something infinitely more monstrous. Dance's character clearly took this somewhat literally to mean the Titans and pursued that belief to an almost zealot degree, tying firmly into the character's actions in Godzilla: King of the Monsters. As such, it could be interesting to see if that arc is continued in Godzilla vs. Kong or a later MonsterVerse outing.
Source: Mike Dougherty/Twitter
