Following the announcement that Warner Bros would premiere all its 2021 movies on HBO Max the same day they hit theaters, a release strategy first used on Wonder Woman 1984, the studio got into a bit of a kerfuffle with Legendary Pictures, which has Godzilla vs. Kong and Dune coming up this year. While the status of the latter movie is still unclear, Godzilla vs. Kong is heading to both the big screen and streaming later this year as originally planned. Even better, it’s now been revealed that the fourth MonsterVerse flick is coming out two months earlier than expected.
Going into 2021, the plan was for Godzilla vs. Kong to arrive on May 21, but Warner Bros announced today that it will instead arrive on March 26. This isn’t the first time that Godzilla vs. Kong’s release date has been pushed up. Back when the plan was for the movie to be screened in 2020, it was moved from May 22 of that year to March 13. Of course, that was before the pandemic started wreaking havoc on the cinematic calendar.
For those out of the loop, shortly after Warner Bros announced its HBO Max plan, it was reported that Legendary Pictures was considering taking legal action against the studio. The production company reportedly wasn’t give advance notice that Godzilla vs. Kong and Dune would be part of this day and date approach. It was also noted that Legendary funded approximately 75% of both movies’ production budgets, and it was felt that the long term viability of these franchises would be “tarnished” if Godzilla vs. Kong and Dune were made available on streaming the same time they were playing in theaters.
A few weeks later, word came in that Warner Bros and Legendary Pictures were hashing out a new arrangement that would see Godzilla vs. Kong stick with being sent to both theaters and HBO Max, while Dune would get a traditional theatrical release. Then on January 8, it was confirmed that Godzilla vs. Kong was indeed on track to be delivered to the public like most of Warner Bros’ other 2021 movies, although it still hasn’t been confirmed if Dune will be sticking solely to theaters. For now, Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s seminal sci-fi novel is still slated for October 1.
It is worth clarifying that Godzilla vs. Kong, like the other Warner Bros movies heading to HBO Max, will only be available on the platform for 30 days. After the, you’ll either need to see the movie in theaters or wait for its home media release. Still, MonsterVerse fans should be delighted that Godzilla vs. Kong will now come out in March rather than May. Finger crossed this means a trailer will finally arrive soon, as we’ve only glimpsed mere seconds of what this blockbuster has to offer so far.
Along with the two eponymous beasts finally coming to blows for the first time in an American blockbuster, Godzilla vs. Kong will also see the scientific organization Monarch embarking on a journey to uncover clues about the Titans’ origins, and a conspiracy will be uncovered to eliminate these gigantic beasts from the face of the Earth. Godzilla vs. Kong’s cast includes Millie Bobby Brown, Kyle Chandler, Zhang Ziyi, Alexander Skarsgård, Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Shun Oguri, Eiza González, Julian Dennison and Demián Bichir, among others. Adam Wingard directed the picture, and Eric Pearson and Max Borenstein worked on the script.
Stay locked on CinemaBlend for more Godzilla vs. Kong news, and keep track of the other movies that are supposed to come out later this year with our 2021 release schedule.
