Following the global success of 2014’s ‘Godzilla’ and this year’s ‘Kong: Skull Island,’ comes the next chapter in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Legendary Pictures’ cinematic MonsterVerse: an epic action adventure that pits Godzilla against some of the most popular monsters in pop culture history.
The film, which begins principal photography this week, is being directed by Michael Dougherty (‘Krampus,’ ‘Trick ‘r Treat’), and stars Vera Farmiga (‘Up in the Air,’ ‘The Conjuring’), Kyle Chandler (‘The Wolf of Wall Street,’ ‘Manchester by the Sea’), Millie Bobby Brown (‘Stranger Things’), Bradley Whitford (‘Get Out’); Thomas Middleditch (‘Silicon Valley’), Charles Dance (‘Game of Thrones’), O’Shea Jackson Jr. (‘Straight Outta Compton’), Aisha Hinds (‘Star Trek Into Darkness’), and Zhang Ziyi (‘Memoirs of a Geisha,’ ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’). Ken Watanabe (‘The Last Samurai’) and Sally Hawkins (‘Blue Jasmine’) also star, both reprising their roles from ‘Godzilla.’
The new story follows the heroic efforts of the crypto-zoological agency Monarch as its members face off against a battery of god-sized monsters, including the mighty Godzilla, who collides with Mothra, Rodan, and his ultimate nemesis, the three-headed King Ghidorah. When these ancient super-species—thought to be mere myths—rise again, they all vie for supremacy, leaving humanity’s very existence hanging in the balance.
Dougherty directs from a script he wrote with Zach Shields. Producers include Mary Parent, Alex Garcia, Brian Rogers and Thomas Tull, with Barry H. Waldman, Zach Shields, Yoshimitsu Banno and Kenji Okuhira serving as executive producers and Alexandra Mendes co-producing for Legendary.
Filming is taking place mainly in Atlanta, Georgia. The film will be released in March 2019, and will be distributed in 3D, 2D and IMAX.