Following the huge box-office success of Jordan Vogt-Roberts’ Kong: Skull Island, the king of the apes is in high demand right now and he’s finding his way to TV.
Deadline reports that a King Kong Skull Island TV series, which is not related to the Warner Bros/Legendary monsterverse, is in development with MarVista Entertainment and IM Global Television. It doesn’t have a network yet, but it’s being written by Jonathan Penner and Stacy Title, the duo behind this year’s horror The Bye Bye Man.
King Kong Skull Island will be the first live action Kong TV series, and the duo are using Merian C. Cooper’s classic King Kong and DeVito ArtWorks’ Skull Island as their inspiration. There’s not much in the way of details here, but it will be “a serialised, contemporary continuation of the classic with a female-led, multicultural ensemble that delves into the wonders and horrors of Skull Island and its origins.”
MarVista CEO Fernando Szew said “Jonathan and Stacy have taken a world that has enraptured audiences in all its many forms over the years and given it a contemporary, female-focused spin.” “There’s clearly a deep and abiding interest in this timeless story,” added IM Global TV president Mark Stern. “We love Stacy and Jonathan’s approach to this adaptation and look forward to partnering with MarVista as we bring this gripping tale of survival and adventure to life for a new generation of Kong fans.”
Kong won’t be seen on the big screen again until 2020’s Godzilla Vs Kong (unless he pops up in Godzilla 2, of course). Skull Island is currently over $550 million worldwide from a huge $185 million budget. The film set up the expanded universe with its post-credits scene, hinting at what the Monarch organisation really knows. It will be interesting to see if this show attempts a similar level of worldbuilding or keeps its focus on Skull Island.
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