Lance Reddick, who barely had any screen-time in Godzilla vs. Kong, was originally intended to have a bigger role in the MonsterVerse movie. Despite getting eighth billing and having his name in the opening credits, the John Wick actor received less than a handful of lines in Godzilla vs. Kong. Plus, the identity and purpose of his character were never really explained.
Reddick’s presence in Godzilla vs. Kong was limited to the scenes with Kyle Chandler’s Mark Russell. Even though Mark was the human protagonist of Godzilla: King of the Monsters, he didn’t get to become a part of the movie’s Team Godzilla or Team Kong stories in the latest MonsterVerse installment. Instead, he remained largely on the sidelines, helping to coordinate Monarch’s efforts during the battles between Godzilla, Kong, and Mechagodzilla toward the end of the movie. Spotted alongside him was Lance Reddick’s unnamed character. His character’s only contribution to the story was ordering the evacuation of Hong Kong, before being seen observing Mechagodzilla’s emergence.
Comments from Godzilla vs. Kong director Adam Wingard explain why his role was so small. According to Wingard, Reddick’s character is actually the director of Monarch. He was originally in a “big board room” scene that set up Monarch’s mission in the movie. But due to unspecified plot details being changed, the scene was deemed to be no longer relevant. As a result, it was cut from the film. As for why Reddick is still billed so highly, Wingard attributes that to the terms of Reddick’s contract.
The Godzilla vs. Kong novelization sheds light on who his character is and what he was supposed to do. Referred to as “Director Guillerman”, he was appointed to take the betrayed Ishiro Serizawa’s place as the head of Monarch after his death in King of the Monsters. It was he who led Monarch’s efforts to clean up the Titan mess left by Emma and Jonah’s eco-terrorist group. Prior to the Mechagodzilla reveal, Guillerman discussed past dealings with APEX and Monarch, and expressed support for Simmons’ plans, despite not knowing exactly what he was up to. But he did know all about the planned expedition into the Hollow Earth entry point and the search for the energy source. Upon hearing about it, Mark immediately voiced his doubts about helping APEX.
A connection between Monarch and APEX could be related to why Reddick’s role was diminished since it wasn’t discussed in the movie. It’s possible that their relationship was one of the things that was changed. Regardless, Reddick’s Director Guillerman wasn’t the only character affected by all the alterations. Jessica Henwick and Zhang Ziyi (who played Dr. Chen in King of the Monsters) were both removed from the story as well. While many have expressed interest in seeing a complete version of the movie, Wingard has maintained that the theatrical cut is best because it has fewer human characters. That makes sense, considering that Godzilla vs. Kong is ultimately about monsters – not people.