Godzilla x Kong sequel taps Shang-Chi’s Dave Callaham to pen the script

The Monsterverse will continue! THR reports that Dave Callaham (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) has been tapped to pen the sequel to Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire has proven to be a big success. The film is still in theaters, but it’s already grossed $548 million worldwide, making it one of the more profitable movies in the Monsterverse franchise, as it reportedly had a budget of just $135 million. Dave Callaham is no stranger to the Monsterverse, as he wrote the early drafts of the film that started the franchise: Godzilla.

Although the studio would like Godzilla x Kong director Adam Wingard to return for the sequel, there is no deal for him to do so. Wingard is set to direct Onslaught later this fall, which is said to be in the same vein as his previous cult classic movies, The Guest and You’re Next. Wingard seems open to returning, previously saying, “There’s always the seduction of making a trilogy out of it, and I think that there’s some untapped areas to go into. There’s also ways to continue to innovate the stylized approach to the MonsterVerse, and what’s great about the MonsterVerse is that it’s allowed so many different directors to approach it with their unique style and color palette.“

“This latest entry 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,” reads the official Godzilla x Kong synopsis. “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.“

Although Godzilla x Kong has received mixed reviews, it sounds like it’s a lot of pure fun bursting with monster mayhem. However, our own Chris Bumbray did have one complaint. “While the trailers made it look like it’s a non-stop brofest between Godzilla and Kong, the two are kept apart for close to ninety minutes, and this movie is just under two hours,” Bumbray wrote. “All of the scenes you’ve seen of them doing their thing together are from the last chunk of the film. While that’s a bummer, I must admit that I found myself surprisingly engaged by the build-up.” You can check out the rest of Bumbray’s review right here.

What do you hope to see from the Godzilla x Kong sequel?