Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire director Adam Wingard has revealed that he has plans for another sequel. MonsterVerse commenced its journey with Godzilla (2014). Gareth Edwards’ approach for the 2014 film was realistic but slow-burn. Plus, he focused more on human characters than the titan protagonist, which did not sit well with the fans. Kong: Skull Island (2017) was more fun and entertaining than Godzilla (2014), but it relied too heavily on the action sequences. Michael Dougherty’s Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) also faced the same issue. In addition, it suffered from an overstuffed plot. These scenarios limited the character development of both Titans and human characters.
Adam Wingard’s Godzilla vs. Kong (2021) received a stronger response from viewers and critics than previous MonsterVerse films. The film was able to mint over $470 million globally despite the COVID-19 regulations, proving that the MonsterVerse franchise has more life in it than some doubters originally thought.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is the fifth entry to the MonsterVerse franchise. Warner Bros has yet to announce any sequel or spin-off to the upcoming Adam Wingard directional. However, Wingard has more stories to offer. He is interested in returning for another sequel. When asked about making his own MonsterVerse trilogy, this is what Wingard replied to Discussing Film:
“The whole idea that if you’ve done two movies, like, maybe you should just go ahead and do a third because, as you said, there’s a trilogy in there. I definitely think there’s more story to this, and I think that I have more story to tell. But it just depends on how [Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire] does and how things kind of shape out. I know that sounds like a bullshit diplomatic answer (laughs). But the truth is, If I’m going to be completely honest with you, I do have more story to tell with these monsters and I know where I’d go with it. I would be very excited to be able to come back on for another one if things worked out!”
Adam Wingard’s comments about making another MonsterVerse project make sense, as a lot depends upon the box office performance of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. Per Deadline, the film is expected to collect $45-50 million in its opening weekend. According to Box Office Pro, the movie may end its domestic box office run with $91-140 million. Its predecessor, Godzilla vs. Kong, managed to earn only $100 million domestically. It means the rest of its collection, $370 million, came from foreign territories. It also means that Wingard’s plans for another MonsterVerse entry depend heavily on the global box office collection of The New Empire.
Trailers of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire have teased that MonsterVerse is bigger than our imaginations. For instance, we have seen a new titan Suko, popular as “Mini Kong”, in the film’s promotional clips. Also, there is the Scar King, a humungous orange simian titan who commands a huge army of apes with his terrifying whiplash – made from the skeletal vertebrae column of a great dead titan. All these creatures tease that Adam Wingard is slowly widening the horizon of the Hollow Earth and ultimately, the MonsterVerse. Stay tuned for more updates.