MonsterVerse Now Looking For New Director as Godzilla x Kong’s Adam Wingard Walks Away

Summary

Adam Wingard steps down from MonsterVerse.
Onslaught
, an original feature by Wingard with writer Simon Barrett, likely to be the filmmaker’s next project.
Success of
Godzilla x Kong
paves way for next MonsterVerse sequel, with Dave Callaham writing script for the new installment.

The MonsterVerse is now looking for a new director to take the reins, as Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire filmmaker Adam Wingard steps down from the franchise. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Wingard, who directed both this year’s Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire and its predecessor Godzilla vs. Kong, will not return to helm the next sequel, which has already been given the greenlight.

According to insiders, the “parting of ways” between Wingard and Warner Bros. Pictures is “described as amicable and stemming from timing issues.” And, while Wingard will not direct the next installment in the MonsterVerse, these same insiders were quick to point out that the “door remains open for a future return” for the filmmaker.

Instead of bringing another clash of the titans to the big screen, Wingard will direct an original feature, Onslaught, which was recently scooped up by renowned studio A24. Details of the plot are being kept under wraps for now, but Onslaught will see Wingard reunite with writer Simon Barrett, who has worked with the filmmaker on Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire and the cult hits You’re Next and The Guest.

Suko, Godzilla and King Kong from Godzilla x Kong

5 Ways Godzilla x Kong Sets up a Son of Kong Sequel

The success of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire likely means the continuation of the MonsterVerse, potentially with a Son of Kong movie.

Released back in March, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire finds Kong encountering more of his species in the Hollow Earth, reuniting with Godzilla to stop their tyrannical leader from waging war on the surface. Much like Godzilla vs. Kong, Godzilla x Kongsaw huge success at the box office, grossing over $563 million worldwide and becoming the second-highest-grossing movie of 2024.

A further installment in the MonsterVerse is now a go, with Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings scribe Dave Callaham on board to pen the script.

Adam Wingard Has Several Major Projects in Development, Including a Live-Action Thundercats Movie

Alongside his original feature, Onslaught, and the possible return to the MonsterVerse in future, Adam Wingard has several major projects in the pipeline. One such project is the long-awaited live-action iteration of the beloved 1980s cartoon, ThunderCats. The director recently revealed that his plan for the ThunderCats movie is to “stay as true to the source material as possible.”

“Well, I think you have to have a little bit of both. You gotta take it seriously. In the cartoon, even though it was definitely for kids, the characters were in a fair amount of danger. I’m definitely still scarred from that one episode where Lion-O’s getting wrapped up in the mummy, the rope, and he’s in the temple. That really messed me up as a kid. But yeah, I think any good adaptation these days is you’ve got to stay as true to the source material as possible. That’s what people really want, and that’s sort of our goal. I mean, if you’re doing something that’s beyond being a kid’s cartoon, obviously you have to raise the stakes. So, yeah, it’s got a little bit of both of that.”

Wingard is also working on a sequel to the 1997 action hit, Face/Off, which will reportedly see both Nicolas Cage and John Travolta return.