'Pacific Rim: Uprising' Trailer Released!

Well the time has come to check out the official first trailer for 'Pacific Rim: Uprising'. Check it out below!

Whoa that tells us a lot about the film we have in store for us. Jaegers fighting Jaeger! Little Kaiju that combine to make a super Kaiju! A horrible rap song!

There sure is a lot to digest so look forward to a full trailer breakdown at some point this weekend!

'Pacific Rim: Uprising' - Plot Synopsis and First Look at New Kaiju!

Well looks like we are gearing up for a great New York Comic Con! Ahead of the official trailer release on friday at the Con, Legendary has started up the viral marketing machine and also given us a great plot synopsis. Check it out!

First up let's talk about the plot breakdown! So it turns out they decided to confirm a returning character and also give us a better idea of John Boyega's character. This is the type of synopsis you would see on imdb page so don't worry about spoilers.

The globe-spanning conflict between otherworldly monsters of mass destruction and the human-piloted super-machines built to vanquish them was only a prelude to the all-out assault on humanity in Pacific Rim Uprising.

John Boyega (Star Wars: The Force Awakens) stars as the rebellious Jake Pentecost, a once-promising Jaeger pilot whose legendary father gave his life to secure humanity’s victory against the monstrous “Kaiju.” Jake has since abandoned his training only to become caught up in a criminal underworld. But when an even more unstoppable threat is unleashed to tear through our cities and bring the world to its knees, he is given one last chance to live up to his father’s legacy by his estranged sister, Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi)—who is leading a brave new generation of pilots that have grown up in the shadow of war. As they seek justice for the fallen, their only hope is to unite together in a global uprising against the forces of extinction.

Jake is joined by gifted rival pilot Lambert (The Fate of the Furious’ Scott Eastwood) and 15-year-old Jaeger hacker Amara (newcomer Cailee Spaeny), as the heroes of the PPDC become the only family he has left. Rising up to become the most powerful defense force to ever walk the earth, they will set course for a spectacular all-new adventure on a towering scale.

Pacific Rim Uprising is directed by Steven S. DeKnight (Netflix’s Daredevil, STARZ’s Spartacus) and also stars Jing Tian, Burn Gorman, Adria Arjona and Charlie Day.

Mako's back!! Also they really seem to be building up the new Kaiju to be huge and "unstoppable." Speaking of Kaiju...

The viral marketing site gojaeger.com updated earlier today with a keypad asking for a passcode. Intrepid investigators on the web figured out that if you type in the numbers 65*789 it will make sounds that line up with the main theme song of the original film. The locked page reveals itself to be a countdown to the release of the trailer on friday but there are three surprises hidden in the countdown if you wait long enough. Brief glitchy pictures of Kaiju come through and oh boy are they cool!

Some sort of Kaiju with manadbles

Perfect Chaos from Sonic Adventure is that you?

Getting some Godzilla-ish vibes from this last one

Also we talked about the posters on the cast but I realized that we never actually posted them for all of you to see (in case you missed them).

What do you guys think about all of this? Look forward to us talking about the new trailer as soon as it available on friday afternoon!

SDCC '17 News Round Up: Godzilla, Kong, and Pacific Rim!

Hello everyone! San Diego Comic-Con 2017 got started yesterday and while we haven't gotten our big Hall H panel which may reveal some Monsterverse goodies (keep an eye on the site on Saturday) we have been given quite a few cool Giant Monster things from the show floor and beyond. This includes several toy/collectible announcements, a "Kong: Skull Island experience", and of course a bunch of Pacific Rim: Uprising details including a short teaser trailer. 

'Pacific Rim: Uprising' Teaser Trailer and Viral Site launched!

It was announced via the director's twitter account a couple days ago that we would not be getting a full trailer for 'Pacific Rim: Uprising' at Comic-Con due to the film not being in a state that it is ready to show off footage but what he didn't say is that we would be getting a lot of new info. First gift we received is a recruitment style video for the Jaeger program that shows off some of the new Jaegers and our first footage of John Boyega as Pentecost's son Jake.

The viral marketing site gojaeger.com was launched alongside the trailer and it includes some intriguing details on all of the new Jaegers. Check each of them out below.

GIPSY AVENGER

Gipsy Avenger honors the heroic legacy of her namesake as the flagship leader of the Mark VI fleet. More than just a Jaeger, she is a symbol of hope to millions.

BRACER PHOENIX

A Mark V brute that can still run with the VI’s, Bracer Phoenix shoots from the chest, with a centrifugal vortex cannon that is as spectacular as it is deadly.

SABER ATHENA

The sleekest and most elegant Jaeger ever created, Saber Athena is the fastest in the fleet, wielding twin blades in hyper-acrobatic combat.

TITAN REDEEMER

Built for brute force and armed with a seismic morningstar, Titan Redeemer is the walking wrecking ball of the new fleet.

GUARDIAN BRAVO

Designed for combat at range, Guardian Bravo wields the Elec-16 Arc Whip: a proto-metallic successor to the chainsword, and brings a new sophistication to the chainsword’s whiplash move.

'Kong: Skull Island' Experience

There is a really interesting walk through experience happening with Kong at the convention as well. Now there aren't many details about this as of yet but it does seem like it is similar to the Godzilla experience back at 2013's Comic-Con (maybe not on the same scale but still). No footage of this exists as of yet but it looks like Legendary has hidden Monarch crates and stuff within the experience and if enough photos get uploaded a "classified" photo will be released to the public. Now this photo could be anything from hints to Godzilla 2 or just some nifty Skull Island goodies but it is definitely worth keeping an eye on.

'Godzilla Vs Kong' Director Talks!

Fan Poster

Adam Wingard, the director of Godzilla Vs Kong, gave a few details about the upcoming film in a couple of recent interviews for Death Note. IGN and Birth Movies Death have the scoops, but here are some notable quotes:

"It's been a pleasure already in the first stages of it, having an excuse to go back and watch 30 Godzilla movies and justifying it to yourself. For me, it's about taking the series to the next level."

When asked about the similarities in the way both the monster films as well as Death Note deal in shades of grey, Wingard continued, "I think they're very similar in a lot of ways. It's easy to demonize Godzilla on one hand, but I have a lot of emotional attachment to both monsters." In regards to the size difference between the two beasts, Wingard added, "They gave us a good out in Kong when they mentioned that Kong is still growing, but that'll be a challenge we have to deal with, and we're very aware of that issue." - IGN

“It’s funny—the day I had my first meeting scheduled with Terry Rossio, the writer on Godzilla vs. Kong, was the day it was announced that Lord and Miller got fired, so that was kind of an eye-opening moment,” Wingard says. “I mean, you hear—especially within the industry—a lot of rumors about directors who have silently been replaced, or the movies have been reshot by other directors because the producers were unhappy with them, and things like that. But firing them was a completely different situation.

“Ultimately, I don’t think it affects me that much,” he continues. “The most important thing when you’re making this type of film is that it’s not about pushing against authority; it’s about everybody getting on the same page. When you’re doing anything that involves a lot of money, it should not be an ‘us vs. them’ kind of thing, and as soon as you start treating it that way, it becomes that way. But as long as you’re open to ideas when they come—and sometimes they’re good and sometimes you have to push back—it’s just about being able to communicate.”

On Death Note, which had many producers and a lot of oversight on it, I felt like I was 100 percent able to make the movie I wanted to make,” he states. “The reason for that was because I was able to communicate with everybody involved, and we were all making the same film, you know? That’s the most important factor.”
 

He also sheds some light on the Godzilla vs. Kong scripting process, which involved a “writers’ room” consisting of Patrick McKay, J.D. Payne, Lindsey Beer, Cat Vasko, T.S. Nowlin, Jack Paglen and J. Michael Straczynski. “Terry ran the writers’ room,” Wingard explains, “so he’s the personification of it, and everything we’re working on is first and foremost based on the outline they created there. We’re going in very great detail through all the characters, the arcs they have, how they relate to one another, and most importantly how they relate to the monsters, and how the monsters relate to them or reflect them. We’re also going beat by beat on the outline, because I have things that I want to add.

“So once again, it’s a discussion, and about feeling out how to make it as strong as possible, so that when Terry goes to write the screenplay, he has a definitive breakdown of what to include. He’s not the type of guy who wants to be handed a bunch of problems to solve, you know? He wants to be able to have a good creative flow based on an outline that works.” - BirthMoviesDeath

New Company Providing Godzilla and Kong Collectibles!

Chronicle collectibles has gotten the license to produce high quality statues of the Monsterverse! This company does really good work but their items are a little pricey. Check out the T-rex and Indominus Rex they are releasing!

Look how cool they look! I expect great things from their Monsterverse line when they reveal them!

This is a crazy time for us giant monster fans and I hope to see a lot more goodies on Saturday during the Warner Bros./Legendary Hall H presentation!

Kaiju News Bits - 'Rampage' plot, 'Pacific Rim: Uprising' Jaeger, and 'Shin Godzilla' release!?

Well these last few weeks have had an interesting peppering of giant monster news and we here at Tokyo Lives have been very busy recently, thus unable to cover these stories as they occurred (Sorry about that!). I know we'll be talking about most of these during our next episode of the podcast that will be releasing towards the end of the week but I thought why not release an article as well. Let's dig in! 

First up we got some juicy plot details for the 'Rampage' film from Dwayne Johnson's instagram account. Take a look:

Goin' primal. 🦍 Good to finally have boots on the ground here in Georgia for production of #RAMPAGE. I head up an anti poaching unit out of Rwanda. My best friend is a rare albino gorilla named, George. Very bad people infect George, an alligator and a wolf with a serum. All three animals grow at an unprecedented rate. Their size, speed, agility and violent aggression is off the charts. They go on a deadly rampage and want to destroy the world. George not happy. Me not happy. When animals like you, they lick you. When they don't like you, they kill you. I will hunt down the bad people who did this to my best friend. And when I find them, I will not lick them. We have the best VFX monster making team (WETA) on the planet. Our actors and crew have been working very hard to raise the monster genre bar. As always, let's have some fun. Let's shoot. 🤙🏾 #PrimalDNA #George #Lizzy #Ralph

There was also a nice plot breakdown that might be a little spoiler heavy so I will just link you to it here.  Overall there aren't too many surprises within these first plot details since they basically describe the plot of the games. Well technically in the later Rampage titles the creatures are actually humans that have been mutated into the monsters so I guess this does point out that they are basing the film on the first game. Interestingly enough, I feel like the humans into monsters angle may have been a bit more compelling for a film adaptation (maybe some horrifying transformations).  But anyways lets move on to the next news bit!

'Pacific Rim: Uprising' has finished filming and is currently deep into post production now which is great for us fans because now we will start getting gems like the above image. This schematic was spotted at a toy convention in Japan and it gives us the best look at a new Jaeger we have had so far. It looks like Gypsy Avenger (Gyspy Danger's replacement) will have a similar arsenal to the original Jaeger. This includes the return of the Elbow Rocket, Chain Sword, and the Plasma Caster. It seems like the turbine in it's chest has been upgraded to a "Dual Vortex Turbine" which kind of hints that maybe Gyspy Avenger is still a analog Jaeger. Cool stuff all around.

Last but certainly not least, it looks like we have a tentative release window for the american 'Shin Godzilla' Blu-Ray/DVD.  According to Blu-raydisc.de Germany is getting their 'Shin Godzilla' home release on August 8th. Now you may be saying "Kyle that's the GERMAN release not the American release" and you would be right in questioning this. But hear me out! One thing to note is that the English Dub is being put onto this version of the film. Also the time frame fits from all of the other live action Funimation releases that they have done (like Attack on Titan). So due to these pieces of evidence, I am predicting that we are looking at a July-September release for the film in the states.

Do these news bits excite you? Let us know in the comment section below! 

Pushin’ ‘em for Summer Slam: Legendary Reveals The New Jaegers of 'Pacific Rim Uprising'!

Well ladies and gentleman, I’ve stopped squealing long enough to tell you all some wonderful news: Legendary has seen fit to finally show us the real stars of the upcoming Pacific Rim: Uprising.

Three of them even! I thought for sure we’d only get one as a little teaser once we got closer to the release date, but luckily I’m always wrong! Even though it's only one picture of what looks like concept art, they all look like extras from Super Robot Wars and I, for one, am thrilled. Let’s get to speculatin’!

This one is clearly a direct upgrade of Gypsy Danger, the main hero mech of the first movie. She’s a little sleeker, a little less top heavy, and I think a little less cartoony than Gypsy 1 (anime-looking, sure, but not as cartoony).

This skinny jim looks to be the quick striker of the group. I’m hoping that fin on the back means some kind of booster for Gundam-esque darting around. Big Red seems to be an analogue of Striker Eureka, the scrappy little Australian mech with the chest missiles and knuckle blades, and my second favorite mech in the movie.

This one’s my favorite. Let’s call her Zarya. She looks like a big slugger in the same vein as Cherno Alpha, Russia’s hulking, concrete garbage can. What’s really intriguing is what looks like a second cockpit in her abdomen. I have no idea what exactly that could mean, but a four person Jaeger sounds rad. As much as I love a good punch, a grappling mech would be a fun change of pace. And Rob and I would have a field day with Wrestlemania references.

So there they are. After seeing the pictures of John Boyega on set I was excited, but with these three I’ve officially crossed over into Fully Hyped. I can’t wait to gush about new pictures and promos until Uprising smashes into theaters on February 28 next year.

Love ‘em? Hate ‘em? Don’t feel anything? I’m sorry to hear that, let’s talk about it in the comments.

New 'Godzilla 2' and 'Pacific Rim: Maelstrom' Titles Revealed!

In a shocking turn of events, Legendary Pictures revealed the new titles for the hotly anticipated sequels to 'Godzilla' and 'Pacific Rim' in a hirinmg announcement press release. This is definitely an unorthodox way of making an announcement and could mean these new titles are simply working titles but this is still exciting.

Here is the press release in full:

Legendary today announced the hiring of three veteran production executives to its feature film operations including Herbert W. Gains, who has been named EVP of Physical Production, Valerie Flueger Veras who has been named SVP of Post- Production and Sara Flamm who will take on the SVP Physical Production role. The new additions were announced by Mary Parent, Legendary’s Vice Chairman of Worldwide Production.

“Herb comes to us with a tremendous body of experience working alongside some of the most prolific filmmakers in our industry,” said Parent. “His strong business acumen and commitment to supporting the vision of storytellers with preeminent production resources makes him an excellent complement to our team here at Legendary.” Gains will report directly to Parent, effective immediately.

Best known for his work as Executive Producer on such films as Warner Bros’ The Judge and Watchmen, as well as the recently released Jack Reacher: Never Go Back from Paramount, Gains’ responsibilities will include overseeing production of Legendary’s feature film slate including such highly anticipated projects as Pacific Rim: Uprising, Pokemon’s Detective Pikachu and Godzilla: King of Monsters. Gains will also work closely with the post-production team insuring that the filmmaker’s vision remains intact through production to final distribution.

“I’m extremely gratified to be entrusted with this unique opportunity,” said Gains. “Legendary’s evolution over the past decade has been nothing short of remarkable. I am proud to take a key role in the company’s continued growth in feature film production and excited by the potential of its established franchises and the diverse slate of films currently in development.”

Reporting to Gains at Legendary, is Valerie Flueger Veras, who will assume the role of SVP of Post-Production. “I have had the good fortune of working closely with Valerie on multiple films over the last few years,” said Parent. “She brings experience from all aspects of filmmaking to the post-production process and really understands how to support filmmakers whether they are making an intimate character drama or a big VFX driven tentpole.”

Flueger Veras is a seasoned executive who has lead the post-production efforts on some of the most critically-acclaimed films of the last decade including Oscar-nominated feature films, The Revenant, Selma and Nebraska. As SVP of Post-Production, Flueger Veras will immediately begin overseeing post on the upcoming Spring action film, Kong: Skull Island.

“I’m thrilled to be joining Legendary,” said Flueger Veras. “In addition to having an opportunity to re-team with Mary Parent who I have long respected, I am extremely excited to be working alongside such an imaginative and highly respected team of professionals and can’t wait to dive in on this truly iconic slate of films.”

Rounding out Legendary’s production team is Sara Flamm, who will step into the SVP of Physical Production role and will also report to Gains. “Sara brings with her a wealth of experience working on the types of genre films that Legendary is best known for,” said Parent. “We’re excited to be adding her expertise to this skilled new team.”

Most recently Flamm worked alongside Gains as Unit Production Manager on on Jack Reacher: Never Go Back and the upcoming film Geostorm. She has also worked as Production Supervisor on numerous hit films including The Judge as well as comic adaptations, Green Lantern and Legendary’s own Watchmen. In Flamm’s new role she has already begun work on the production of Pacific Rim: Uprising, currently shooting in Australia.

“Having worked with Legendary in the past, I’ve long admired their focus on delivering a truly elevated cinematic experience to their audiences,” said Flamm. They’ve had an incredible history of blockbuster films, and I’m looking forward to being a part of this team’s continued success.”

Did you catch them in that wall of text? If not it appears that 'Pacifc Rim: Uprising' is our new title instead of Maelstrom and the temporary title of 'Godzilla 2'  has been replaced by the much cooler sounding 'Godzilla: King of Monsters'.

I'm not a big fan of the new Pacific Rim title since Maelstrom was such a unique name but I guess I'll just have to get used to it.  'Godzilla: King of Monsters' on the other hand is awesome! It's a nice call back to the americanization of the orginal 'Gojira' and I think it will be a very buzz worthy name that will get alot of attention. As I said above it is quite possible that these are both still working titles so take them with a grain of salt until we see them on some official marketing materials.

What do you think of the new titles?

'Pacific Rim 2' Release Date Announced, Scott Eastwood Possibly Attached

Ever since Legendary was bought by the Chinese mega-company Dailan Wanda Group, 'Pacific Rim 2' has had a breath of fresh air blown into it's sails. China loved the first film, and was a substantial chunk of its three-hundred million dollar international take. Recently, we saw proof of its resurrection in both the hiring of Stephen S. DeKnight and Derek Connolly to get a script together with DeKnight directing. Not long after it was announced that 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' star John Boyega would jump on board as one of the film's leads, playing Pentecost's son in the sequel. These are not the signs of a film in development, but in full-on pre-production. Now, we have another star potentially about to sign on and a studio-announced release date. Check out both below.

Legendary has finally revealed a release date for 'Pacific Rim 2,' slating it for February 23, 2018. This is surprising for a few reasons; one of them being that the December 25, 2017 mystery film announced by Legendary everyone thought was going to end up being 'PR 2' is actually a completely unknown movie yet to be revealed. It also shocked fans that the sequel to 'Pacific Rim' is officially moving forward at all. A release date shows that the studio is committed to the film and will most likely see it produced in the near future.

Cologne model and actor Scott Eastwood is also apparently in talks to star alongside John Boyega in 'Pacific Rim 2.' Whether he plays an original role or the child of one of the previous film's protagonists is yet to be released. This is after news of Eastwood potentially starring in 'Fast 8' as well, so he's definitely on the rise when it comes to tentpole blockbuster sequels. He previously served alongside Brad Pitt and Shia Labeuf in the critically and commercially successful 'Fury' back in 2014.

This is all great news to fans waiting patiently for the sequel and hoping that in a different director's hands, the franchise will reconcile some of the missteps of the first film. Time will tell if DeKnight and Connolly will take the amazing concept and swing for the fences like del Toro did, but either way I'm incredibly excited to sit down in a dark theater and see what happens next in this incredibly unique universe. 

'Star Wars' Actor John Boyega Drifts Into Lead Role For 'Pacific Rim 2'

I think this news has made me more excited for 'Pacific Rim 2' than anything else announced concerning the proposed sequel yet. Following our recent speculation on what might happen in the gargantuan follow-up, we at least now know who will be leading the fight. Deadline is reporting that John Boyega of 'Attack The Block' and 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' fame has been announced as taking the lead role in Stephen S. DeKnight's sequel to 2013's 'Pacific Rim.' Boyega joins Guillermo del Toro as a producer and is said to be playing the son of Idris Elba's iconic character Stacker Pentecost from the first film. See what del Toro had to say about Boyega's casting and our thoughts on why this is great news for the sequel below.

Guillermo del Toro was quoted by Deadline as saying this about Boyega:

“I am very proud and happy to welcome John into a fantastic sandbox. The 'Pacific Rim' universe will be reinforced with him as a leading man as it continues to be a multicultural, multi-layered world. ‘The world saving the world’ was our goal and I couldn’t think of a better man for the job.”

The fact that they've landed such a hot young actor as John Boyega means that Legendary is not fooling around with the sequel. Boyega's calendar exploded after 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens' opened to critical and financial success, and the majority of audiences fell in love with Boyega's depiction of a conflicted Stormtrooper who joins the Resistance.

What he brings to 'Pacific Rim 2' is a legitimacy that, honestly, the first film didn't have with a broader audience. I also believe that he can act the hell out of any role he's given, and the fact that he's playing Pentecost's son in the new film is incredibly exciting. I wonder if his father's dour seriousness has passed on to his son, or if they casted Boyega to lighten up a film that uses the word "apocalypse" more regularly than most summer blockbusters? Either way, I can't wait to see this film develop more and am looking forward to a new take on the franchise.

'Pacific Rim 2' goes into production later this year and is slated for release on December 31, 2018.

'Pacific Rim 2' - Can The Apocalypse Be Uncanceled?

Ah, you've gotta love 2013's 'Pacific Rim.' Guillermo del Toro created a wonderful new kaiju universe to play around in as a love letter to giant monster fans everywhere, and the film was generally well received by them around the world. Now that we officially can squint and see a sequel on the horizon, I thought it might be fun to do some speculating on the plot of Steven S. DeKnight's follow-up and also dive into some additions that I would like to see in the future film. Keep in mind that some of these speculations are based on rumors floating around when the sequel was known as 'Pacific Rim: Maelstrom,' and was still going to be directed by del Toro. Also keep in mind that this article will contain SPOILERS for 'Pacific rim.' 
 

THE PLOT: WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THE DUST SETTLES?

In an interview with the website Collider way back in 2014, Guillermo del Toro stated that the sequel would not be a direct follow-up and would take place several years after the end of the the first film. The rift is no longer spitting out Kaiju, and every single usable Jaeger has been destroyed. How would the world rebuild after this war of attrition finished? Would the government even restart the Jaeger program completely?  These questions definitely seem like they would at the core of the opening info dump to explain what has happened in the last few years (narrated by Charlie Hunnam again).  I think it would be really cool if the governments of the world went back to their normal petty squabbles and started creating more and more deadly Jaegers to keep each other at bay. The world would not be united (or prepared for the second onslaught of Kaiju) and we could see some pretty cool Jaeger v.s. Jaeger battles in the opening section of the film leading up to the title crawl.

Having the countries not be a united front whenever the new rift(s?) start popping out Kaiju would really help all the pilots start from square one, as well as, give some interesting opportunities for character interaction and development. Yes, you did read that right, I said that I would like multiple rifts to appear in this film. I want to see a full on invasion of Kaiju from the aliens this time around. In the last film, most of the monsters shown were just scouts, and when Gypsy Danger entered the alien world you could see millions of Kaiju waiting to be sent through the Rift. Now, I'm not saying that I want to see that many, but I think you get the general idea. The world must be forced to reunite and stand together against the insurmountable horde of Kaiju that would be able to appear.
 

THE CHARACTERS: OUT WITH THE OLD, IN WITH THE NEW

Obviously, I would like to see most of the surviving members of the cast from the original 'Pacific Rim' return in some form or another, but that does not mean the main characters, Raleigh Becket (Charlie Hunnam) and Mako Mori (Rinko Kikuchi), should be the protagonists of this film. I would love to see a new set of Jaeger pilots that look up to Raleigh and Mako as legendary heroes and who would unite behind a rebuilt Gypsy Danger in the third act. Give me a new group that all have personal motivations and interesting dynamics that make me care when some of them eventually bite the dust. The biggest failing of the first film is that you barely get any time devoted to the other Jaeger teams, and thus, in the big battle with the Kaiju Otachi and Leatherback, most viewers have a hard time caring when two of the four last remaining Jaegers are destroyed in an instant.

I definitely think that the two scientists, Geiszler (Charile Day) and Gottlieb (Burn Gorman), should be given as much screen time as possible. The interplay between these two characters were some of the best parts of the original film and it would be great to see their friendship grow. There was a rumor for 'Pacific Rim: Maelstrom' that a half Jaeger/half Kaiju was going to appear, and I believe that these two characters would be a great team to pilot the monstrosity. We know they are drift compatible, and I can already imagine the jokes passing between the two, as they attempt to fight a Kaiju.
 

THE KAIJU: ALL THE REFERENCES!

 Most of the Kaiju in the original film use design elements from popular movie monsters of the past (Knifehead looks straight out of a Gamera film). I would hope that they keep this trend going in the sequel and even create a few Kaiju that are even closer to their heritage in design and abilities. Wouldn't it be mind-blowing if we ran into two "Category 5" Kaiju that look kind of similar to Godzilla and Gamera? Speaking of the category system from the first film, I would like to see an escalation of powerful Kaiju that eventually leads to a, previously unheard of, "Category 6" Kaiju that is basically a planet destroyer. When the aliens realize that they cannot take over the planet, they simply send a "Category 6" Kaiju to destroy it (if we cannot have it, then no one can). This could be brought into the plot naturally through Geiszler and Gottlieb drifting with the Kaiju-Jaeger hybrid to help destroy it alongside the newly rebuilt Gypsy Danger. A modern 'Destroy All Monsters,' if you will.
 

THE JAEGERS: ADAPTING TO THE NEW WORLD

Continuing my original idea that the Jaegers are now being built as deterrents instead of used to fight Kaiju, I would like to see it reflected in the design elements of the new Jaegers. Bring back Gypsy Danger, but give it some new abilities like a larger sword and/or some sort of propulsion system to make it able to move faster. Also, I feel like a four-legged artillery Jaeger could lead to some pretty intense sequences where Jaegers are defending a coastline against more and more incoming enemies. I think, just like the Kaiju, you should simply look at the history of giant robots for a lot of the design elements. Del Toro pulled design elements from things like 'Mobile Suit Gundam' and 'Evangelion' for the Jaeger designs in the first film, and those two series alone have so many details they could borrow for revamped mechs. Maybe a Metal Gear Rex like design with a huge rail gun? Just my personal wishful thinking.
 

FINAL THOUGHTS: DIRECTION AND STYLE ARE KEY

Steven S. DeKnight has not really worked on anything of this scale in his career as of yet, and it would be nice to see him make a name for himself with this movie. Obviously, he has a hard road ahead of him, since he is taking over the reigns from one of the most visionary filmmakers of our time and it will be tough to match Del Toro's unique style. I think DeKnight really should try to add his own flair to the film visually, and definitely set a different tone for the film from what's already been done. I'm not saying they should get rid of the campiness (since that is basically what sets this series apart from Legendary's Godzillaverse), but maybe tone it down a bit for the sequel and try to keep everything fresh. Interesting characters also need to step into the spotlight and we need to care about them this time around. All of them.

Overall, I think a sequel in the Pacific Rim universe has plenty to pull from, since Del Toro really created a unique and interesting world with the first film. Do not shy away from what made the original a fun time, but definitely try avoiding some issues the first film had (again, weak characters and lengthy exposition dumps).

Are you excited to see the apocalypse happen again? What do you want to see in the new film? 

'Pacific Rim 2' Drifts With 'Jurassic World' And 'Kong: Skull Island' Screenwriter Derek Connolly

After the departure of Guillermo del Toro as director and the hiring of Stephen DeKnight to take his place, fans have been hanging on every new piece of news regarding the upcoming sequel to 2013's cult favorite monster mash. Now, The Hollywood Reporter is exclusively announcing that 'Pacific Rim 2' has found a new screenwriter.

Derek Connolly has been hired to take over the reigns from previous draft's writers del Toro himself, Zak Penn, and John Spaihts. He is mostly known for his work as a co-writer on 'Jurassic World' along with director Colin Treverrow and has apparently impressed Legendary with his work on 'Kong: Skull Island' as well. He got his break in the industry co-writing Treverrow's first film 'Safety Not Guarenteed,' and has recently worked on 'Jurassic World 2' and a sci-fi drama for Dreamworks titled 'Intelligent Life.'

Plot details for the 'Pacific Rim' follow-up are scarce, but rumor is that it will take place years after the original with the giant pilot-controlled mechs called Jaegers being much more commonplace. Similar to the flashback scenes in the first film when they first started successfully pushing back the Kaiju threat. It is unclear whether this newly hired scribe is being brought in for revisions or a page one rewrite.

Connolly is definitely making a name for himself in the giant monster genre, and I'm personally looking forward to pretty much every film he's been a part of at this point. Hopefully the studio's confidence in him is proof that he's knocking it out of the park.