The Godzilla franchise has had a long history in theaters, dating all the way back to 1954. The behemoth title character has continued to be a pop culture icon in the decades since its debut, and the franchise returns to theaters shortly. Godzilla: King of the Monsters marks the whopping 35th installment in the property, and the blossoming MonsterVerse will presumably only continue to grow in the next few years.
Krampus director Michael Dougherty is helming King of the Monsters, which will pick up on a narrative that started with 2014's Godzilla. Dougherty had to balance a ton of god-sized titans in his upcoming Godzilla movie, as the title character dukes it out with a ton of franchise favorites. And the director's already got some ideas for another addition to the franchise: a prequel. Dougherty recently opened up about this concept, saying:
I like the idea of going back in time and telling creatures' stories from different eras. Skull Island was set in the '70s, but personally I'd like to do Godzilla B.C., go back to ancient times and really see the Ray Harryhausen-esque world where primitive humans had to try to survive with these creatures. Maybe we'd get to see the first time mankind truly encountered Godzilla, and get to see how that relationship was christened.
Well, this is an awesome idea. The Godzilla franchise may be going strong for decades, but there are still plenty of narrative possibilities for the MonserVerse to mine. And that includes an origin story for the beast in ancient times.
Michael Dougherty's comments to SFX Magazine (via JoBlo) are sure to excite the generations of Godzilla fans out there. The big green guy has battled a ton of foes throughout his time on the big screen, but we've never seen Godzilla in such early stages of mankind. It would add a unique dynamic to the dynamic between humans and the monster, and break new ground for the property as a whole.
When one thinks of Godzilla, typically moviegoers picture the title character laying waste to a city, and probably fighting another iconic kaiju. But it would be a new twist to see him back in ancient times, without any skyscrapers to destroy. Instead, Godzilla would be be given the space for his behemoth body-- one that only continues to grow in the MonsterVerse.
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It would also be fun to see how primitive humans would interact with such a creature. Rather than involving the military or the Monarch Organization, man would be left to their wits when trying to survive the kaiju's wrath. It's a new direction for the franchise to go, although it's unclear whether or not Michael Dougherty's prequel idea will ever come to fruition.
Godzilla: King of the Monsters will arrive in theaters on May 31st. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
