With the passenger list for Kong: Skull Island ever-changing, Samuel L. Jackson (The Hateful Eight), John C. Reilly (Guardians of the Galaxy), and Tom Wilkinson (Batman Begins) are in talks to join Universal’s prequel, according to Deadline.
Specifically, Jackson is in talks to take the role that J.K. Simmons (Whiplash) had to leave due to scheduling conflicts. Michael Keaton (Birdman) left the project for similar reasons and his old role will reportedly be offered to Reilly first. Universal has also offered lead role to Wilkinson. If they all join the project, they will join an impressive cast that includes Brie Larson (Trainwreck), Tom Hiddleston (I Saw the Light), and Corey Hawkins (Straight Outta Compton).
Directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts (The Kings of Summer), Skull Island follows crew of explorers who make their way to the hidden island long before Carl Denham, Ann Darrow, and John Driscoll sought out to make a movie about Kong. The movie isn’t a direct prequel to any one of the three versions of the story, be it the 1933, 1976, or 2005 version, but rather a prequel to the general story that audiences are familiar with. It’s reported to be Universal’s hope that this will be the first film in a monster franchise. Legendary Pictures is the main production company behind this and with their monster pedigree – which includes Godzilla, Pacific Rim, and Jurassic World – there is reason to believe this will be start of something big.
Kong: Skull Island is currently in pre-production and is set to hit theaters on March 10, 2017. We’ll have more on casting and other developments as they happen.
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