Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire promises to take Kaiju fans on a wild ride through the MonsterVerse, and Legendary fully embracing the absurdity of these Titans in recent years has proven to be far from a bad thing.
The first trailer for the Godzilla vs. Kong sequel embraced the craziness by giving the latter a robotic boxing glove and the King of the Monsters a startling new look which saw him take on a brightly coloured pink form. There's some precedent for this in the franchise's past, but it's an approach to Godzilla that has still split opinions.
Taking to X (via SFFGazette.com), Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire Creature Designer Jared Krichevsky confirmed Legendary had to seek Toho's approval for Godzilla's redesign. This largely dismisses the arguments that Legendary is taking too many liberties with the property with this latest big-screen team-up.
Some believe "Pink Godzilla" is there to shift merchandise; others, meanwhile, have accused Legendary of ripping off Dragon Ball! However, it's important to note that this fuschia form originally debuted in Godzilla 2000 (and later Godzilla vs. Megaguirus), a sign filmmaker Adam Wingard is just expanding on one of his favourite concepts from the franchise's past.
You can see Krichevsky's comments on Toho in the X post below.
The epic battle continues! Legendary Pictures' cinematic Monsterverse follows up the explosive showdown of 'Godzilla vs. Kong' with an all-new adventure that pits the almighty Kong and the fearsome Godzilla against a colossal undiscovered threat hidden within our world, challenging their very existence—and our own. 'Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire' delves further into the histories of these Titans and their origins, as well as the mysteries of Skull Island and beyond, while uncovering the mythic battle that helped forge these extraordinary beings and tied them to humankind forever.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire stars returning Godzilla vs. Kong actors Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, and Kaylee Hottle alongside Dan Stevens (Legion), Alex Ferns (The Batman), and Fala Chen (Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings).
The screenplay is by Terry Rossio (Godzilla vs. Kong) and Simon Barrett (You’re Next) and Jeremy Slater (Moon Knight), from a story by Rossio & Wingard & Barrett, based on the character "Godzilla" owned and created by TOHO Co., Ltd.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire rampages into theaters on April 12.