When Gareth Edwards exited “Godzilla 2” earlier this year, the word on his departure was that he wanted to focus on his own smaller-scale movies once he wrapped “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.” Little did we know that a couple of months later, the internet would explode with rumors about the “Star Wars” spinoff, with hired guns coming in assist (or take over) the extensive reshoots ordered by Disney and Lucasfilm. At any rate, there is no blockbuster in Edwards’ future at the moment, but “Godzilla 2” apparently now has a director.
According to ScreenCrush, “Trick ‘r Treat” and “Krampus” helmer Michael Dougherty, will make the tentpole leap and get behind the camera for the “Godzilla” sequel. Dougherty and “Krampus” co-writer Zach Shields were recently hired to write the script for the movie, so it seems his responsibilities will extend beyond the screenplay. Dougherty is no stranger to special effects, though “Godzilla 2” represents a much larger scale, but clearly Legendary Entertainment have confidence in the director, particularly after they saw “Krampus” (which they also were behind) earn $61 million worldwide on a modest $15 million budget.
“Godzilla 2” isn’t slated to arrive until March 22, 2019 but considering it will set up “Godzilla vs. Kong” in 2020, there’s a lot of work to be done.
