{"id":59369,"date":"2014-04-19T17:38:12","date_gmt":"2014-04-19T16:38:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/?p=59369"},"modified":"2014-04-23T11:57:41","modified_gmt":"2014-04-23T10:57:41","slug":"godzilla-reboot-worried-me-admits-ken-watanabe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scifinow.co.uk\/news\/godzilla-reboot-worried-me-admits-ken-watanabe\/","title":{"rendered":"Godzilla reboot “worried” me, admits Ken Watanabe"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Ken<\/a>
Ken Watanabe on the set of Godzilla with director Gareth Edwards<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Something of a Legendary Pictures stalwart thanks to his work with Christopher Nolan on Inception<\/strong><\/em> and Batman Begins,<\/strong><\/em> Ken Watanabe nonetheless brings Japanese cinema’s seal of approval for Legendary’s Godzilla<\/strong> <\/em>reboot<\/a>, playing Dr Ichiro Serizawa. But, as the actor exclusively reveals to SciFiNow<\/strong>, he had more than a few reservations about taking the nuclear menace back to Hollywood…<\/p>\n

What does this version of Godzilla<\/em> mean to you?<\/strong><\/p>\n

In Japan, this year is the 60th anniversary of Godzilla<\/em> since the original 1954 film, and we’ve had 28 different Godzilla<\/strong> <\/em>movies since then. But Asian people know that the 60th anniversary is a very special one, because we have 12 animals for a year, and there are five cycles of the 12 for a ‘life’, and so 60 means being reborn.<\/p>\n

So this is like Godzilla<\/strong> <\/em>is being reborn, back to the original, and Gareth [Edwards] knows about that.<\/p>\n

Were you worried about redoing something so quintessentially Japanese?<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you are telling the Godzilla<\/strong> <\/em>story, you cannot separate it from the nuclear element, and the first thing I asked was whether there was going to be the nuclear element, as that now, in Japan, is a really sensitive problem. I was worried about how I could use that and how I could make that okay, but Gareth understood those feelings.<\/p>\n

But with this I was really nervous. I obviously have so many Japanese friends, and all of them were saying, “A Godzilla<\/strong> <\/em>movie? In Hollywood? The last one was…” But I trust Gareth.<\/p>\n

How was working with Gareth? <\/strong><\/p>\n

Before I met Gareth, the producers at Legendary said to me, “He’s the next generation’s Chris Nolan. I said, “Really?” They said yes. And I trust them. After this.<\/p>\n

Are you ever worried about being typecast in Hollywood? <\/strong><\/p>\n

No. I think I play lots of different types of characters. They’re just Japanese.<\/p>\n

Godzilla<\/em> is due in cinemas 16 May 2014. You can buy the 1954 Godzilla<\/em> on DVD for £10.83 at Amazon.co.uk.<\/a><\/strong>
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