Shared cinematic universes are all the rage in Hollywood these days, and every studio is looking for a way to combine their lucrative properties and maximize profits. Legendary Pictures hopes to get in on the craze with their newly-dubbed MonsterVerse, which combines the King of Monsters (Godzilla) and King Kong. The franchise started back in 2014 with Gareth Edwards' Godzilla reboot and truly launches this March when Kong: Skull Island is released in theaters. Though the film is not entirely an origin story, it looks to introduce audiences to a new cinematic version of the Eighth Wonder of the World and has some noteworthy connections to Godzilla.
Legendary and Warner Bros. have done a good job marketing the picture, leaning heavily on Skull Island's Vietnam War influences (i.e. Apocalypse Now) with a collection of posters that place the giant ape front and center. A blockbuster like this, which features a famous movie monster like King Kong, is tailor-made for the biggest of screens. That's why Skull Island will be screening in IMAX, and now a new one-sheet places the emphasis on the premium format.
This latest poster is similar to the others unveiled during the campaign, featuring King Kong against a sunset as six helicopters approach him. It's safe to say that not all is going to go well for the people in those choppers. You can check out the poster below:
Though Kong is the main draw of this new movie, he has an impressive cast of human co-stars supporting him. Among the ensemble are Samuel L. Jackson, Tom Hiddleston, Brie Larson, John Goodman, and John C. Reilly. That collection of talent should help Skull Island stand out when it premieres, as the roster reads as a who's who of the A-list. Since the film is looking to blend drama with some humor and lightness, this group of actors should be able to pull that off easily. Based on the trailers, Reilly is going to be responsible for a bulk of the levity, but everyone here is a well-rounded performer capable of handling both tones. It will be interesting to see how the characterizations are handled, since there's potential for Skull Island to be an atypical creature feature given the level of of actors involved. A criticism of Godzilla was that it didn't have the most compelling human element, so hopefully that's fixed here.
Skull Island director Jordan Vogt-Roberts is inexperienced when it comes to helming big-budget genre films, but he seems to have made the jump from indies to blockbusters nicely. The footage unveiled so far promises a visually-stunning treat that almost demands to be seen in IMAX to fully appreciate. If WB wants the MonsterVerse to go on for the next handful of years, they need Skull Island to be a hit, and all things are pointing to that being the case. It's been a while since Kong graced the multiplex (Peter Jackson's remake came out in 2005), so this definitely feels like a special occasion.
NEXT - Kong: Skull Island Character Descriptions
Source: Legendary Pictures
