Godzilla vs. Kong is still making waves, breaking more box-office records and cementing itself as the biggest movie of the year so far in terms of dollars and the hype surrounding it. Godzilla vs. Kong delivered exactly what fans were hoping for, great fight scenes between its two giant stars and a platform for fans to stan their favorite and question whether it’s more a Godzilla or Kong movie. A lot of work went into these two entities colliding in the same movie, and there is one detail about King Kong that was changed for the benefit of the film.
In Godzilla Vs. Kong, King Kong has a special connection with a little girl. They understand each other, and the girl serves as Kong’s connection to the humans in the movie. The VFX supervisor explains that Kong’s eyes were changed so they would be able to convey the emotions he had and the connection he shared with the smallest creature in the movie. In an interview with ScreenRant, VFX supervisor Bryan Hirota explains the importance of the change:
You had to sell that he had a connection with this little girl... Additionally, we dev'd out a very lifelike and high quality eye model for Kong. That's the thing that you look at to tell what somebody is thinking; the eyes do a lot of heavy lifting for any kind of creature.
Even though Godzilla vs. Kong is a movie where no one cares about its human characters, Kong's special connection with Jia, played by Kaylee Hottle, is definitely visible through the eyes of the giant ape. The VFX team took special care to make sure Kong’s eyes had some depth and conveyed everything he was going through while communicating with Jia. Like any great performer, Kong had to be able to use his gaze effectively.
It’s no surprise that so much work and consideration went into Godzilla vs. Kong. Its stars are the showcase and not delivering a believable conflict for Kong could have relegated the film to just average instead of the massive event it turned out to be. You still can't help but marvel at the incredible detail that VFX artists add to these characters. The characters may be giant monsters, but there still need to be nuanced aspects of their characterizations.
Because Godzilla vs. Kong has roared past box-office expectations, it has effectively altered what was thought to be possible during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. It has renewed interest and excitement about the potential of the Legendary's MonsterVerse and will hopefully ensure that we'll see more giant kaiju battles in the future, hopefully with as much consideration that went into the spectacle that is Godzilla vs. Kong.
Godzilla vs. Kong is currently playing in theaters and streaming on HBO Max.
