GODZILLA X KONG Now Slated for Early Theatrical Release
By Movieguide® Contributor
Warner Bros. announced that GODZILLA X KONG: THE NEW EMPIRE will be released two weeks ahead of schedule after the studio decided to delay MICKEY 17.
The fifth installment in the Monsterverse will now hit theaters on March 29 instead of April 12. This change came as Warner Bros. continues to work out its released schedule, which remains unsteady following the monthslong writers’ and actors’ strikes.
THE NEW EMPIRE follows a new era of the Monsterverse after an epic battle between Godzilla and King Kong led to mutual respect between the two behemoths.
“They’re fully fleshed out, realized characters that have all these nonverbal communication moments,” director Adam Wingard told Slashfilm. “I think that’s the thing I’m most proud of.”
According to THE NEW EMPIRE’s description, “the epic new film will delve further into the histories of these Titans, their origins, and the mysteries of Skull Island and beyond, while uncovering the mythic battle that helped forge these extraordinary beings and tied them to humankind forever.”
MICKEY 17, meanwhile, has been delayed indefinitely as Warner Bros. continues production on the movie. Having yet to release a trailer just two months before the movie’s planned release date, it is difficult to guess where production currently lies.
The movie adapts the story of the novel “Mickey 7,” which tells the story of an expendable crew member on a mission to colonize a planet. The crew member is assigned to the most dangerous jobs, but his memories are backed up and restored to a cloned body if he is killed.
Robert Pattinson stars in the upcoming movie along with Steven Yeun, Naomi Ackie, Toni Collette and Mark Ruffalo. The movie adaptation was written and directed by the Academy Award-winner Bong Joon-Ho.
Movieguide® previously reported on the continued impact of the strikes:
2024’s box office is projected to falter without a consistent stream of movies with blockbuster potential due to 2023’s extended writers’ and actors’ strikes.
“We should be nervous about the first half of 2024,” an anonymous studio executive told Deadline. “There’s no way that a labor stoppage as prolonged and chaotic as this wasn’t going to have consequences. Fire comes through and burns a forest and a town, and then the fire is over. But the consequences of the fire aren’t over: There’s mudslides, and there’s damaged infrastructure.”
“The fire is over: Now we’ve gotta rebuild the town,” the executive added.
With only 107 widely released movies – compared to 2023’s 124 – coming out this year and numerous gaps in the release schedule, 2024’s box office total is expected to drop at least $1 billion from last year’s $9 billion total.
