Godzilla vs. Kong may get delayed from its March release date to later in 2020. The upcoming MonsterVerse crossover event was actually originally supposed to release on May 22, 2020, but was moved up to March 13,presumably to avoid competition with Fast & Furious 9.
Godzilla vs. Kong serves as a sequel to Godzilla: King of the Monsters and Kong: Skull Island. Not too much has been revealed about the story, but a plot synopsis was released. Also, Godzilla: King of the Monsters director and Godzilla vs. Kong writer Michael Dougherty compared the upcoming battle to Rocky's fight with Ivan Drago in Rocky IV. A teaser poster was also seen at the Licensing Expo. Fans have been anticipating this crossover between titans, but the wait for it may now be a bit longer.
Warner Bros. studio chairman Toby Emmerich recently commented on Godzilla vs. Kong (via Deadline). According to Emmerich, the film "will deliver for fans in the way they were looking for" with Godzilla: King of the Monsters. Emmerich continues, "It might come out later in the year, so we can deliver an A+ movie." It sounds like there's a good chance Godzilla vs. Kong won't be released until late 2020. Although a delay isn't yet confirmed for Godzilla vs. Kong, fans should prepare for one. After being pushed up to March, the film was originally likely not going to be delayed, but this is coming after Godzilla: King of the Monsters' bad critical reviews and disappointing box office performance. It's the lowest-rated MonsterVerse film on Rotten Tomatoes, and has the worst box office opening from the films as well. Delays are always disappointing, but many would agree that a delay is worth it to make a film better. At the same time, many are likely wondering if this means Godzilla vs. Kong, as it is right now, may be changed from its original vision after criticism of Godzilla: King of the Monsters. Warner Bros. may be reevaluating Godzilla vs. Kong to predict if it will repeat the previous film's disappointing performance.
Interestingly, the gap between critic and fan response appears to be big for Godzilla: King of the Monsters. A majority of fans enjoyed the film. While that's a good thing, Warner Bros. wants to see good critic responses for Godzilla vs. Kong, which will probably lead to more tickets sold than if just fans enjoy it. Many critics agree that the human element in Godzilla: King of the Monsters is weak. It's true that a monster film needs to focus a good amount on spectacle, but it still must have a good script. While the monster action was praised, a common criticism was that the battles took place at night or during stormy weather. Godzilla vs. Kong can be better received if it has a good script, and satisfying monster battles in the daytime. Hopefully we'll get a confirmation onGodzilla vs. Kong's delay soon.
