Godzilla x Kong Director Adam Wingard Is Not Returning for Sequel
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire director Adam Wingard will not direct the MonsterVerse sequel!
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire director Adam Wingard will not be returning to Legendary's MonsterVerse and won't be directing a sequel according to a new report! Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire has quickly become one of the most popular releases in Legendary's MonsterVerse thus far, so it was no surprise to find out that work has already begun on a follow up. With Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings writer Dave Callaham already signed on to pen the script for the next film, it seems like Wingard won't be returning for the sequel, however.
Adam Wingard, who was behind the director's chair for both Godzilla vs. Kong and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, will not be returning for the sequel as reported by The Hollywood Reporter. The parting of the director is being described as "amicable and stemming from timing issues" with the door open for Wingard to potentially return to the MonsterVerse in the future according to the report. While Wingard teased his ideas about where the MonsterVerse could go in the future, Legendary will be starting fresh from here.
What's Next for the MonsterVerse?
Wingard was previously noting that he wanting to focus on a new original project, Onslaught, before returning to direct a new MonsterVerse film, but Legendary had expected the director to return for the next project. It seems that due to timing on this as Legendary is already moving forward with a Godzilla x Kong sequel (which makes sense given just how gangbusters the film has done in the box office since its launch earlier this Spring), Wingard and Legendary have made their parting ways official.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire has been the most commercially successful film in the MonsterVerse to date, and the end of the film set up for a more clear path in the future. Both Godzilla and Kong are basically given a clean slate for the future, and there are plenty of more Hollow Earth mysteries to explore. If you wanted to check out the film for yourself, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is now available on digital and the 4K, Blu-ray and DVD will be hitting shelves on June 11th. Legendary Entertainment teases what to expect from the film as such:
"This latest entry in the Monsterverse franchise follows up the explosive showdown of Godzilla vs. Kong with an all-new cinematic adventure, pitting the almighty Kong and the fearsome Godzilla against a colossal undiscovered threat hidden within our world, challenging their very existence – and our own. 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."