Tuesday, August 3, 2021

GODZILLA MAKES LANDFALL


WARNING MAJOR SPOILER ALERT!!

From Warner Bros

Like the title character, the story told in the film begins in Japan. “That’s the birthplace of Godzilla, so we thought it would be an appropriate place to begin our story, which takes us half-way around the world, ultimately reaching San Francisco, where the big battle plays out,” Tull says.

The film was shot on location on the Hawaiian island of Oahu; Las Vegas, Nevada; and Vancouver, B.C., in Canada, with additional shooting in San Diego, California, and Tokyo, Japan. Paterson and his art department—led by supervising art director Grant Van Der Slagt, along with art directors Dan Hermansen, Ross Dempster and Kristen Franson, and set decorator Elizabeth Wilcox—designed and created complex, detailed interior and exterior sets on soundstages and backlot space at the Canadian Motion Picture Park (CMPP), in the Vancouver suburb of Burnaby.

One of the first sequences to be shot was at the Vancouver Convention Center, with the cavernous structure transformed into both the Honolulu and Tokyo International Airports.

A number of key Canadian locales became ground zero for some of the film’s most dramatic scenes of devastation. “A giant creature is never going to come and smash up our cities, but probably every human being on this planet has either lived through events that create that kind of destruction or seen their effects on TV,” Edwards notes.

The streets of downtown Vancouver were transformed into San Francisco’s besieged financial district for a number of evocative sequences. Elizabeth Olsen was present for one such scene, which placed her among a flood of refugees fleeing in terror from the monster-sized clash tearing up their city. “One of the coolest experiences for me was being a part of these scenes of people trying to find their way to safety,” Olsen remembers. “I was part of this massive group of people all going in the same direction. I had never been involved in a scene with so many extras before, but there’s something about being a part of a body of people that hits you at a primal level. It felt very real in the context of what’s going on in the scene.”

San Francisco was also pieced together on the backlot at CMPP. On one backlot set, Paterson redesigned an existing cityscape set to portray a small Chinatown street, and also built the entrance to a giant sinkhole beneath Chinatown, which is Ford’s target when he plunges with a HALO [High Altitude - Low Opening] team into the city.

The chaotic sinkhole set itself, which Edwards called the “Dragon’s Den,” was built inside a soundstage, and dressed to overflow with crashed cars, chunks of buildings and other debris. After shooting was completed on this sequence, the set was repurposed to portray the massive cavern beneath the collapsed Philippine mine where scientists Graham and Serizawa gain their first insight that something massive and unknown has been released into the world. “We discover that this cave isn’t really a natural cave—it’s a giant ribcage, with bones that loom 25 feet in the air,” Paterson describes. “It’s a good place to start the story, in a sense. The genie has been let out of the bottle.”

“That set was beyond amazing, just extraordinary,” raves Sally Hawkins. “Even though we were working with some green screen, a lot of the time we didn’t have to imagine anything. It was there. We were inside this giant structure, and the detail was phenomenal. It made it very easy for the cast to have these incredible worlds for you to step onto.”

Edwards observes that shooting both sequences within the same soundstage reflects some of the symmetry woven into the film’s DNA. “What Graham and Serizawa observe within the giant ribcage at the beginning of the film, and what Ford sees in the Dragon’s Den near the end are linked in the story,” he says. “So in a way, it felt like going full circle.”

Another exterior set Paterson built on the CMPP backlot was a 400-foot stretch of the 8,980-foot-long Golden Gate Bridge, where Edwards, aided by veteran second unit director E.J. Foerster, staged some of the film’s exciting climactic moments, with the city’s famous skyline looming in the background.

To achieve this effect, Rygiel dispatched teams to the tops of some of San Francisco’s skyscrapers to shoot high-end panoramas from multiple angles that took in the entire 360 degrees of the skyline, which, using photogrammetry, they were able to merge into a 3D city. “This technique gives you a real city that is accurate down to every piece of mortar in a brick building,” he says. “So, using that, we were able to composite the live action shots with the keyframe-animated monsters destroying digital buildings into a seamless whole.”

Another key site for the production was Finn Slough, a century-old unincorporated Finnish fishing settlement along the Fraser River in Richmond, B.C. Now nearly abandoned, Finn Slough’s few residents live in crumbling wooden shacks, both floating and built on stilts, along the marshy river bank. Edwards used the unique site, as well as pockets of New Westminster dressed to appear reclaimed by nature, to portray the Tokyo quarantine zone Ford ventures into with his father to locate his childhood home.

Two other significant Vancouver locations were chosen to portray the Janjira Nuclear Power Plant: the abandoned and decayed Catalyst paper mill for the exteriors; and the Annacis Island wastewater treatment facility south of Vancouver for its interiors, augmented by an evocative soundstage set of the nuclear chambers.

Other Vancouver locations included the banks of Lake Alouette in Golden Ears Provincial Park, where Edwards staged a helicopter rescue amidst a landscape of destruction; and the boat docks of Steveston, Vancouver, which became San Francisco’s famed Fisherman’s Wharf.

Once the Canadian portion of production concluded, the company shipped off to the most populous of the Hawaiian Islands, Oahu, to shoot a variety of locations, from Waikiki Beach to a rock quarry that provided the entrance to the collapsed mine.

To capture shots for the film's main title sequence, production traveled to the Windward (or East) side of Oahu to recreate a Pacific Atoll where hydrogen bomb tests were conducted in the early 1950s and, in fact, resulted in a tragic loss of life the same year the original “Godzilla” was released.

The company next touched down on a part of existing World War II history at Pearl Harbor, which serves as both a working naval base and a somber memorial for those lost in the event that precipitated America’s entry into war. Here, Edwards staged three scenes onboard the USS Missouri, with the historic “floating memorial” standing in for the massive USS Saratoga battleship that tracks Godzilla across the Pacific. Moving to the adjacent Hickam Air Force Base, Edwards shot Aaron Taylor-Johnson within an actual C-17 aircraft to depict the moments just prior to his HALO plunge into San Francisco.

James D. Dever, the film’s military technical advisor, had participated in HALO jumps, and worked with HALO Jump stunt coordinator JT Holmes to bring the highest degree of authenticity to the dramatic free fall. “The stunt performers were HALO-trained and did an outstanding job,” Dever says. “In this movie, you’ll see the Air Force moving ICBM missiles, the Navy running an aircraft carrier, and a lot of moving parts from Huey helicopters, destroyers and flying F-35s. My job was to make sure it was all accurately represented.”

In addition to consulting on military arcana, such as chain of command, terminology, gear, weapons, and environments, Dever also liaised with the Department of Defense to help secure the film’s array of military assets, as well as a full complement of U.S. and Canadian servicemen to portray the majority of forces seen in the film. “It turns out that a lot of people in the Department of Defense are massive Godzilla fans too,” Edwards smiles, “and I think they got a kick out of participating in this movie.”
A retired Sergeant Major in the U.S. Marine Corps, Dever also worked with Aaron Taylor-Johnson to ensure his Navy bearing was up to snuff. “I had three days of working in boot camp with him, teaching him how to use his weapon, how to put his gear on, how to move and present himself as an officer in the U.S. Navy,” Dever says. “And Aaron was like a sponge for information because he wanted to get it right, and he did. It was a pleasure working with him.”

The production also took over a stretch of the popular Waikiki Beachfront for two days to complete sequences tied to the arrival of a tsunami that destroys one of the beach’s most recognizable landmarks, the Hilton Rainbow Tower. The production accomplished the near-impossible by closing Waikiki’s most popular commercial shopping strip, Lewers Street, for fifteen hours to capture footage of hundreds of extras fleeing the giant wave.

“Our intentions with this environment and all the scenes of devastation in the film was absolute reality,” says Paterson. “Gareth wanted the sets to feel so real that people would walk out of the cinema after seeing the movie and actually not expect to see buildings still standing.”

“It’s that much more thrilling, intense and ultimately, I think, a more satisfying movie experience if you believe it,” adds Parent. “Godzilla deserves to have his story told within a movie that’s worthy, and Gareth was able to put together a group of people at the top of their game with the skills and artistry to do it in a way that has never been seen before. It’s a good match, and gives you a front row seat for an epic adventure, with the iconic Godzilla at the center of it.”

Says Rogers, “I am so proud to be a part of the talented team responsible for bringing Godzilla back in time for his 60th anniversary, and re-introducing him to all the faithful fans of the franchise, along with all the new audiences that have not yet experienced meeting the ‘King of the Monsters.’”

“Observing scenes being shot on set or watching dailies doesn’t really compare to watching considered, cut sequences that absolutely verify that your filmmaker has achieved a certain tone, scale and quality,” Jashni observes. “I remember sitting in the editing room and watching Gareth show us a sampler of four or five sequences early on and realizing he had ‘done it’—he had somehow made this movie his own. I felt excited for him and for us, as he was clearly well on his way to achieving what we'd all aspired to.”
“Those of us that grew up on Godzilla feel so much affection and nostalgia for this character that we can’t wait to see him stomping across cinema screens again,” says Tull. “The first movie came out 60 years ago. That’s a long time for a fan base to continue to grow, and now there’s a whole new generation that hasn’t really had its Godzilla. So, our hope is that we give existing fans and this new generation the movie they’ve been waiting for.”

With the culmination of his own epic journey to deliver on that promise, Edwards likens the experience to the moment when the film’s central character, Ford, finally locks eyes on the legendary dinosaur.

“Before I started, there was this ominous and intimidating threat hanging over me,” he reflects. “But then, towards the end of the process of making the movie, I started to realize that Godzilla has become my savior. I had the benefit of a lot of incredibly talented people that worked all hours to deliver this thing and make it look flawless, and they did it. I’m so proud to have directed this film. If I were going to be known for a genre, I’d happily be trapped in the world of monsters, and there’s no better monster in the world than Godzilla.”

Monday, August 2, 2021

GODZILLA - BREATHING NEW LIFE INTO A 60-YEAR-OLD LEGEND


MAJOR SPOILER WARNING!


From Warner Bros

For the filmmakers overseeing such a complex operation, there was perhaps nothing more challenging or exhilarating than the creation of its main event. “Toho had given us their blessing to re-envision the character, but it was equally important to us as well as Toho that Godzilla look like Godzilla,” Tull says. “We wanted to bring him into contemporary reality while not steering too far from the classic silhouette that so many of us grew up with, and Gareth and the entire team walked that line with passion and inspiration.”

The effort to make Godzilla live onscreen with as much detail and realism as possible engendered a broad coalition of creative minds, incorporating the talents of lead creature and concept designer Matt Allsopp, and Weta Workshop, Ltd.’s creature designers Andrew Baker, Christian Pearce and Greg Broadmore, as well as storyboard illustrators, keyframe animation and texture artists at Moving Picture Company (MPC), and specialists in sound, movement and performance, all unified through Edwards’ vision for the character.

“Everybody chipped in,” the director remembers. “What we were trying to find was what Godzilla would look like if you actually saw him in the real world. One of the conversations we’d have quite often was asking, ‘If this was a person, who would it be?’

And after thinking about it for a while, what we came up with was the idea that he was like the last Samurai—a lone, ancient warrior that would prefer to not be part of the world if he could, but events force him to resurface. We did lots of illustrations and concepts, and it took us over a year to really get it right.”

Standing 355-feet-tall—the largest of any big screen incarnation—Godzilla was conceived from the start as an entirely digital creation that would maintain the character’s classic form and identity. A bipedal, amphibious, radioactive leviathan with armored dorsal fins spiking menacingly all the way down to his long, sweeping tail, Godzilla belongs to the imagined species Godzillasaurus, which paleontologists have jokingly linked with the Tyrannosaurus Rex or Ceratosaurus families, only much larger.

The filmmakers’ efforts to capture the essence of Godzilla ultimately took them back to 1954—to the iconic latex suit designed by Toho’s Teizo Toshimitsu, which he built with Eizo Kaimai, Kanju Yagi and Yasue Yagi. Worn to great effect by actor Haruo Nakajima, the inspired costume was transformed through Ishiro Honda’s lens into a nuclear disaster made flesh, breathing a visible atomic blast upon a decimated Tokyo. Though these early effects were groundbreaking for their time, the filmmakers knew that 60 years later they had the tools to make Godzilla truly live.

“It was incredibly exciting to take inspiration from those early movies, but Gareth’s edict from the beginning was that everything we were creating had to look absolutely real,” confirms visual effects supervisor Jim Rygiel. “You want to believe that there’s this 355-foot beast crashing through the streets of San Francisco.”

Early in production, Rygiel screened for the filmmakers the first complete tests of the creature in motion. “You heard this gasp go through the room,” Tull recalls. “Gareth and the visual effects team did an amazing job giving the character a level of detail and natural movement that wasn’t possible even five years ago. It felt almost like you were seeing Godzilla in the flesh for the first time.”

But beneath the skin, what has always set Godzilla apart is his unique persona and presence. “He has an amazing effect on people in that you’re both terrified and drawn to him, which is part of the reason the character has endured for so long,” says Mary Parent. “Godzilla is clearly a badass, but there’s also an innocence and an integrity to him. On a primal level, you never quite know what he’s going to do. At the same time, he’s also got very heroic elements, and that dichotomy is what makes him so interesting and compelling.”

Like his human co-stars, Godzilla’s soul is etched in his face. While the new incarnation hews closely to the dimensions of his short, steep skull, broad snout and carnivore’s mouth, to imbue it with a full range of expression in battle, the filmmakers studied the faces of dogs and bears, while also incorporating the nobility of an eagle.

To direct the character on the subtleties of performance, Edwards had a powerful assist from Rygiel’s “The Lord of the Rings” collaborator, performance capture pioneer Andy Serkis, who has brought his unique art form to digital characters like Gollum, Caesar and King Kong, and helped shape the title character’s emotional arc.

“At the start of the process, I felt that in some way we could decide and control who Godzilla was,” Edwards reflects, “but, as we went along, we started to realize that Godzilla was going to tell us who he was, just like actors who have their own take on their characters. We couldn’t totally dictate what it was going to be; it was more about just trying different ideas and permutations. And, slowly, he revealed himself to us."

The final element in the alchemy of Godzilla is not his look but his sound. Akira Ifukube, who composed the haunting score that accompanied Godzilla’s 1954 introduction to movie screens, had an idea to create the famous roar by taking a resin-covered leather glove and dragging it along the loosened strings of a double bass instrument, with the final effect being achieved by sound and musical effects designer Ichiro Minawa, using playback speed to personalize each utterance.

“Godzilla’s roar is not something you can fake or shortchange,” says Tull. “There is only one sound, and it is nearly impossible to recreate, no matter what you try.”

Long before production had even commenced, the filmmakers enlisted Oscar®-winning sound designers Erik Aadahl and Ethan Van der Ryn (“Transformers”) to experiment with different techniques with the ultimate goal of recreating Godzilla’s chilling, heartrending roar, as well as a whole universe of sounds that would give the action a visceral, theatre-shaking feel. "If you imagined that Godzilla was real, then what we hear in the 1954 film is just what it sounds like on 1950s tapedecks,” Edwards describes. “We wanted to capture that live sound in its full power with all the fidelity we’re capable of today.”

The sound designers employed a variety of different techniques, even trying out a pine tar-coated leather glove on a double bass, to achieve the seemingly impossible. “That roar is probably the most famous sound effect in film history and we wanted to pay homage to it while creating something new," Aadahl says. “We wound up recording hundreds of different sounds that had the same qualities and timbres as the original and finally stumbled upon the combination that gave us all goose bumps. Ultimately, we wanted for it to convey all of the power and ferocity of Godzilla as a force nature, for people to close their eyes, hear it and instantly know, 'That’s Godzilla!'”

Breaking the original sound into three parts—a metallic shriek, followed by an earth-shattering wail and a bellowing finish—the sound designers conducted extensive experiments with a wide variety of sounds until they achieved a combination with all the texture and earth-shattering drama of Godzilla's original roar. Tull offers, “What they produced will send chills up your spine. It was the huge, awe-inspiring roar that Godzilla has always deserved.”

The film's plethora of otherworldly sound effects were recorded at a high resolution 192-kilohertz 192 kHz sample rate—beyond the range of human hearing—which they then slowed down to a range that's audible to the human ear. The "Godzilla" soundscape also encompassed realistic environments in which the story unfolds, and Aadahl and Van der Ryn traveled on location to record within tunnels and on aircraft carriers. "Gareth is a visionary and a perfectionist, and always pushed us to experiment and go farther," Van der Ryn remarks. "Working on ‘Godzilla’ was a truly special adventure that we all took together, and one of the best experiences of our career."

One of their goals was to bring Godzilla's roar into the real world, so the sound designers set up a 12-foot-high, boulevard-wide sound system on a street on the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank. Blasting the roar through 100,000-watt speakers lined in an array, they recorded the reverberations from a number of angles, such as inside cars, behind store windows, in alleyways. It not only rattled pipes and rooftops but could be heard up to three miles away.

In the animal kingdom, a roar can express a spectrum of emotions, but is perhaps most effectively used as an assertion of dominance when the Alpha Predator is threatened, “which definitely happens in our film,” Edwards hints. “In our story, Godzilla isn’t the one trying to destroy the world. He is completely unaware of our presence; we’re just like ants to him. But we do share a home, and our actions play a role in manifesting this enormous threat to the planet and to Godzilla himself. We wanted to build the ultimate nemesis for Godzilla, and hopefully in the process, we’ve created something brand new for the audience.”

Saturday, July 31, 2021

Godzilla Kingdom Of Monsters #6 Variant Cover B August 2011 IDW Publications Grade NM

Limited 1 for 5 Cover B by Jeff Zornow. Eric Powell & Tracy Marsh (w) o Victor Dos Santos (a) o Eric Powell, Jeff Zornow (c)

$6.99 - On Sale!

Monsters continue their relentless rampage around the world, demolishing cities and shrugging off military resistance. When drastic defense measures backfire, humanity's struggle to survive takes an ugly turn. Can anything be done to stop the monster mayhem? And seriously-how many of these things can there possibly be?! Sorry, mankind... in Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters #6, the hits keep coming.

1st printing.
This comic book is in new condition. Comic is complete with cover and all pages attached. This comic has very few flaws that warrant a NM grade.
Comic Book will be shipped bagged and boarded!
 

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Promise Broken: "Godzilla" Blu-ray Is Sans Akira Takarada

by Armand Vaquer




Godzilla is now out in home video. But, Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros. reneged on their promise to include Akira Takarada's cut scene from the Blu-ray edition of Godzilla.

Frankly, I don't find this surprising, but fans were told when word came out about Takarada's scene being cut that the scene would be included in the Blu-ray edition. Well, it's not there! (I have not purchased it yet, so I am relying on reliable sources.)


Above, the cut scene featuring Akira Takarada. Photo: Legendary Pictures/Warner Bros.

One fan wrote in Facebook:
Nearly Everyone involved promised Takarada-san's scene would be on the Blu-Ray. I have seen it in writing and I have it in writing myself. So I am waiting. Picture quality is not the issue for me. No Takarada scene is a deal breaker for me. I hope for a directors/extended cut later. Who knows. It will not be the first time the studio was somewhat less than respectful to the fans.
The Blu-ray and DVD discs of Godzilla has been met with mixed reviews. Some say the movie plays too dark and has noise, while others say it plays just fine. I suppose it depends upon the player and television monitor one is using.

It is my understanding that there's a special edition of the Blu-ray at Target department stores featuring a 30-minute featurette titled, "Rebirth of an Icon." In order to get it, one must buy the disc with the view of Godzilla's backside (or spines) on the box art (I've read).

Still, is it disappointing that Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros. broke their word pertaining to Akira Takarada's scene.

Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Godzilla's Legal Defenders

by Armand Vaquer

Above, former Toho-L.A. General Manager Masaharu Ina and Armand at the Godzilla statue in Hibiya in February. The good working relationship between fan groups and Toho began under Ina's tenure as general manager. 

Here's a story that fans of Godzilla are familiar with. Or should be.

The article from the Japan Times is on the team of lawyers that Toho Co., Ltd. enlists to protect the Godzilla (and related creatures) trademark against bootleggers and companies who try to use Godzilla's image in advertising and other unauthorized ventures.

The article begins with:
He spews radioactive fire, razes cities and pummels creatures from Earth and beyond, but even Godzilla needs a good lawyer sometimes. After all, you don’t survive 60 years in the movie business without taking some fights to court. 
For decades, attorneys acting on behalf of Godzilla’s owners, Tokyo-based Toho Co., have amassed a string of victories, fighting counterfeiters and business titans such as Comcast and Honda along the way. The opponents have come from all corners of pop culture: TV commercials, video games, rap music and even the liquor industry. 
The litigation has kept Godzilla’s brand thriving and helped pave the way for commercial and merchandising tie-ins that will accompany the monster’s return to the big screen on Friday after a 10-year hiatus. Godzilla’s image is for sale, but permission is needed.
Back in the days when I was associated with G-FAN magazine, I made it a point to consult with Toho's Los Angeles office to make sure that what we did on different things didn't infringe on their trademarks. This was started while Masaharu Ina was Toho's Los Angeles General Manager. In this way, no toes were stepped on and Toho appreciated the the gesture. If they a problem with a certain aspect, they would suggest changes. We had an excellent working relationship, even though, officially, Toho has a policy of not sanctioning fan activities. But they were helpful whenever they could. Prior to this, there existed some friction between Toho and various fan leaders (some of whom seemed to want to pick fights with Toho). Cooperating with Toho had paid off many times.

To read the full story, go here.

Sunday, May 11, 2014

"Godzilla" and The Critics

by Armand Vaquer

Above, "the King's" statue in Hibiya. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Comic Book Movie.com has snips of the "first wave" of reviews of the Legendary Pictures/Warner Bros. Godzilla.

For the most part, the critic reviews are generally favorable to the movie with the biggest kudos going to the cinematography, the monsters and the movie's ending. Most are saying that Godzilla put back the "awe" in "awesome" and that the film will satisfy the monster fans.

In a nutshell: "It delivers!"

On the negative side, the consensus among critics are that the characters aren't "fleshed out" as well as they could be or that they are superficial. Well, who goes to monster movies for fully fleshed-out characters? The Godzilla movie with the best-developed characters of all has to be the 1954 original.

Still, this Godzilla is a "marked improvement" over the 1998 Sony/TriStar Godzilla.

What hurt some of Toho's "Millennium" series of movies was that the characters they came up with had "personal issues" that were more annoying than moving forward the plot. The two that stand out as suffering the most from this were the Mechagodzilla movies, Godzilla x Mechagodzilla (2002) and Godzilla x Mothra x Mechagodzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. (2003) (the second one being the worst).

I will quote one critic whose comments are in the article (chosen at random):

DEN OF GEEK: "Most Creative & Striking Summer Blockbuster We’ve Seen In Years"
"This new Godzilla lacks the sense of despair present in Ishiro Honda’s 1954 original. But in its place is something relatively fresh in films such as this: an absence of cynicism. There’s an underlying theme in here about parents protecting children, and of people simply trying to do the right thing in the face of disaster. In Edwards’ reading of Godzilla, there isn’t necessarily any such thing as good or evil. There’s merely humanity and nature, with the former standing awe-struck in the destructive presence of the latter. Most importantly, Godzilla himself emerges just as he should: a bellowing, powerful force; a true king of the monsters." - Ryan Lambie
If you are interested in seeing what the other critics are saying, go to the link at the beginning of this blog post.

Tuesday, April 29, 2014

2nd "Godzilla" International Trailer Released

Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros. have released the second international trailer to Godzilla. It is action-packed with some flying footage of Godzilla's foe, MUTO.

 
"LEGENDARY PICTURES TO DEVELOP AND PRODUCE MAJOR MOTION PICTURE BASED ON TOHO COMPANY’S ICONIC MONSTER, GODZILLA

Burbank, CA – March 29, 2010 – Legendary Pictures announced today that they will develop and produce a new film based on Toho Company’s famed GODZILLA character. Through the terms of the agreement, Legendary Pictures has acquired the rights to produce a movie inspired by Toho’s Godzilla, a franchise the Japanese company created and has nurtured for over fifty years.

Toho’s GODZILLA franchise boasts one of the most widely recognized film creatures worldwide, resulting in a series of books, television programs, video games and more than 25 films worldwide. Legendary intends to approach the film and its characters in the most authentic manner possible. The company will, in the near future, announce a filmmaker to helm the film for an intended 2012 release. The film will fall under the company’s co-production and co-financing deal with Warner Bros. Toho will distribute the film in Japan."

"Godzilla" is coming back -- this time, with Legendary Pictures taking the lead, co-producing and co-financing with Warner Bros. for release in 2012.

Legendary announced Monday it had obtained rights to the iconic monster character from Japan's Toho Co., which has overseen more than 25 "Godzilla" films. Toho will release the pic in Japan.

Legendary said it's planning to announce a director shortly.

In addition to Legendary, producers on the new film will be Dan Lin, Roy Lee and Brian Rogers. Yoshimitsu Banno, Kenji Okuhira and Doug Davison will exec produce.

"Godzilla is one of the world's most powerful pop culture icons, and we at Legendary are thrilled to be able to create a modern epic based on this long-loved Toho franchise," said Thomas Tull, Chairman and CEO of Legendary. "Our plans are to produce the Godzilla that we, as fans, would want to see. We intend to do justice to those essential elements that have allowed this character to remain as pop-culturally relevant for as long as it has."

Legendary noted the film will fall under its co-production and co-financing deal with Warner Bros. Legendary's productions with Warners have included "The Dark Knight," "300" and "The Hangover."

Speculation about a new "Godzilla" has been active since last summer. The Bloody Disgusting web site reported in August that the project was in development.