The “MonsterVerse” continues to expand: filming begins on the sequel to “Godzilla vs. Kong”

The public's favorite monsters will return to Australia to continue the saga: the Prime Minister of the State of Queensland, Annastacia Palaszczuk, announced the filming of the film that will continue Godzilla vs. Kong, the blockbuster of 2021 (USD 468 million worldwide, even with rooms affected by the COVID-19 pandemic) starred by Alexander Skarsgård and Millie Bobby Brown . It is now available on HBO Max.

For the government of this Australian region, where Kong: Skull Island (Kong Skull Island, 2017) was also filmed, it is economic news: the production budget will inject $58.6 million into the region. For fans, however, the novelty implies an extension of the MonsterVerse started with Godzilla in 2014 and continued in 2017, 2019 (Godzilla: King of Monsters) and 2021.

Although the fifth film in the saga (or Godzilla's 37th and King Kong's 13th) is untitled at the moment, there is speculation that it could be called Son of Kong, like the 1933 classic, as The Hollywood Reporter risked shortly after the release of the fourth. At that time, the director of Godzilla vs. Kong, Adam Wingard, told Deadline that he would be “delighted to continue” with the franchise.

Wingard referred to the “clear starting point we prepared [in Godzilla vs. Kong], the exploration of the Hollow Earth”, and evaluated: “I think there is a lot to be done there. It is a prehistory of planet Earth, where all the titans come from. In this film we leave some mystery installed, things that I would like to see solved, that I want to explore and take to the next level”.

The filming announced by Palaszczuk will begin in the coming months on the Costa Dorada and the southeast of the Australian region. The production will be led by Legendary/Warner Bros, and one of the team leaders, Eric McLeod, commented on why the venue was re-chosen: “Highly trained technical staff, first-class facilities and unique locations make filming in Australia a great experience.”

Since 2015 Queensland has had a stimulus program for film and television productions, with which it attracted productions such as NBC's Young Rock and Joe vs. Carole, from Peacock, and films such as Thirteen Lives, Elvis, Escape from Spiderhead and the romantic comedy Ticket to Paradise, starring Julia Roberts and George Clooney. Nautilus, from Disney+, and the second season of the series Upright are currently on filming.

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