Godzilla 2014 Director Gareth Edwards

 It was reported in January, 2011, that Legendary Pictures signed Gareth Edwards to helm their Godzilla 2014 project. You may not recognize his name yet, but you will probably get used to hearing it in the future. Edwards, a British independent filmmaker got big attention in Hollywood after releasing his smash hit 'Monsters' in October, 2010. 'Monsters' is a very smart sci-fi film about the aftermath of alien invaders.


As Edwards said, his movie starts where most alien invasion movies leave off. The story takes place some six years after giant tentacled aliens invaded Mexico. The creatures have been quarantined in a large "infected zone" by the US and Mexican governments. Scoot Mcnairy plays a cynical journalist who agrees to escort his boss's daughter, played by Whitney Able through the infected zone and safely to the US border. Along their journey, we see the destruction left by the aliens as the two characters start to become closer. The visual effects are good and used sparingly, with only glimpses of the aliens through most of the film.


Even more impressive than the movie itself, was how it was made. It was filmed on a shoe string budget of about $15,000. Edwards wrote, directed and shot the movie and designed the aliens himself. He had a crew of five including the only two actors in the film. Everyone else you see in the movie was just regular people they met along the way. Unbelievably, the movie was shot in Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Costa Rica, and Texas over a period of three weeks. All the visual effects were done on a PC. All that being said, the movie looks fantastic and feels like it was done on a major motion picture budget. Edwards really knows how to use effects to tell the story and his background is in visual effects. He also said how sound was particularly important and focused a lot on good sound quality. What sets the movie apart from others in the genre and the key to its success is that the movie focuses squarely on the two human characters. We really get to like them and care what happens to them. The movie won Edwards three independent film awards, including best director, best achievement in production and best technical achievement.


Legendary gained the rights to Godzilla in March 2010 and is co-producing with Warner Bros., the same kind of partnership behind The Dark Knight, 300, and Inception. Legendary was keen on signing this fresh, young talent. Edwards seems like a very resourceful director who knows how to get the job done. He will work with a yet to be hired writer on the script after David Callahan was dropped. Thomas Tull and Jon Jashni from Legendary are producing along with Dan Lin, Roy Lee, and Brian Rogers.

Godzilla fans are generally excited about this choice and feel Edwards will follow Legendary's commitment to honor the spirit of the original Godzilla. Personally, I'm optimistic about the choice, but wonder if Edwards is a Godzilla fan himself. It remains to be seen if this indie director can handle a multi-million dollar Hollywood picture and breathe new life into one of the world's most famous and beloved icons. Will the king regain his crown?
For the Original Hollywood Reporter article, go here