Godzilla X Kong Director Returning To Indie Action-Horror Roots With New A24 Movie

Godzilla X Kong director Adam Wingard is set to take a break from mega-budget box office action for the upcoming A24 movie Onslaught. Wingard started his career directing two micro-budget indie horror movies, Home Sick and Pop Skull, before rising to prominence with the 2011 slasher You’re Next. He then transitioned into big-budget filmmaking with an adaptation of Death Note, followed by Godzilla vs. Kong and, most recently, Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire.

Now, according to THR, Wingard will revisit his roots as an indie filmmaker with his newest project, Onslaught. The movie, dubbed a “gonzo action horror thriller,” will re-team Wingard with his long-time collaborator Simon Barrett, with whom he will co-write the screenplay. A24 will produce the project, which is said to “have a scope more in line with [Wingard’s] early movies.” According to sources, the movie will film this fall, before a Godzilla X Kong sequel happens.

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It will be a stark change for Wingard, moving back to low-budget filmmaking after having hundreds of millions of dollars to work with in his most recent movies. However, some of Wingard’s best horror movies have been smaller budget affairs, and this will give the director freedom to work and experiment without the interference that can come with major studio projects. It will be a back-to-basics move that the A Horrible Way To Die director might welcome before he embarks on a potential next Godzilla X Kong sequel.

Of course, there are drawbacks to indie filmmaking; larger-budget movies can often solve problems with more money, a luxury others don’t have. When making low-budget indie films, every penny counts, and this is one of the main factors the Blair Witch director is going to need to get used to once again, making for a challenging but exciting transition.

Wingard will also reboot ThunderCats as a live-action movie, with the director recently calling the script one of his “top priorities.” There is little doubt this would be another big-budget studio blockbuster, in which Wingard could be shackled by expectations and the need to develop a franchise installment that is one cog in a much larger wheel. With this in mind, he could view Onslaught as a great opportunity to make the movie he wants, before potentially having to follow studio directives more closely.

Source: THR

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire

After nearly destroying each other in 2021’s Godzilla vs. Kong, the giant Titans are back to face a new dangerous threat, but this time, they are on the same side. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is the fifth film in Warner Bros.’ growing Monsterverse franchise and will be directed by Adam Wingard.

Director

Adam Wingard

Release Date

March 29, 2024

Studio(s)

Legendary Pictures

Distributor(s)

Warner Bros. Pictures

Writers

Terry Rossio , Simon Barrett , Jeremy Slater

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