Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures are gearing up to launch a new “Godzilla” picture, but everything’s been quiet in regards to development, despite a 2012 release date already planned. Quiet no more! Gareth Edwards, the talented helmer of “Monsters” is now the new man for the job, entrusted with bringing the Toho titan back to the big screen.
Edwards, gaining end-of-year praise for his canny low budget “Monsters,” is expected to punch up the script from David Callaham, which is encouraging, considering Callaham’s contributions to cinema (“The Expendables” and “Doom” cowriter) have been negligible at best. This will be the first American Godzilla picture in twelve years when it is released, with Roland Emmerich‘s embarrassing 1998 version ranking one of the biggest franchise flops of all-time. While Toho was so upset with that incarnation of the character that they had him annihilated onscreen in “Godzilla: Final Wars,” they have kept to their word regarding that film being Godzilla’s swan song in his native tongue.
Edwards, a special effects wizard, is likely being picked for his notable skills in several arenas, as he showcased an intimate character drama in “Monsters” while still creating memorable creature effects that dazzled when compared to their $100 million counterparts (while Edwards disputes the budgetary numbers being thrown around, “Monsters” did indeed come in at under a cool million). Whether this gives us any insight into what kind of movie this will be remains a mystery, as studios have become much more possessive about their potential franchises, but Edwards remains a fine choice (if a bit obvious – he made a movie called “Monsters”). This sidelines his planned collaboration with Timur Bekmambetov, described as “an epic human story, set in a futuristic world without humanity,” but we’re with Edwards here: you just don’t say no to Godzilla. [Variety]
