Kong: Skull Island

For the ride at Islands of Adventure, see Skull Island: Reign of Kong.

Kong: Skull Island
Kong standing right front of the sun, near the hills and soldiers chasing him in the water.
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJordan Vogt-Roberts
Screenplay by
Story byJohn Gatins
Based on
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyLarry Fong
Edited byRichard Pearson
Music byHenry Jackman
Production
companies
Distributed byWarner Bros. Pictures
Release dates
Running time
118 minutes[2]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$185 million[3]
Box office$568.6 million[4]

Kong: Skull Island is a 2017 American monster film directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts. Produced by Legendary Pictures and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, it is a reboot[5][6] of the King Kong franchise and the second film in the Monsterverse, serving as the 11th film in the King Kong franchise. The film stars Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, John Goodman, Brie Larson, Jing Tian, Toby Kebbell, John Ortiz, Corey Hawkins, Jason Mitchell, Shea Whigham, Thomas Mann, Terry Notary, and John C. Reilly. Set in 1973, the film follows a team of scientists and Vietnam War soldiers travelling to the uncharted Skull Island and meeting Kong, a gigantic ape who is the last of his species, closely followed by other terrifying creatures.

The film was announced in July 2014 at San Diego Comic-Con, and Vogt-Roberts was announced as the director in September 2014. The project initially began at Universal Pictures as an origin story but was later moved to Warner Bros. to develop a shared cinematic universe featuring Godzilla and Kong. Principal photography began in October 2015 in Hawaii and various locations around Vietnam and ended in March 2016.[7][8]

Kong: Skull Island was theatrically released on March 10, 2017, to generally positive reviews from critics, with praise for its visual effects, action sequences, and performances, particularly Jackson and Reilly. It was also a box office success, grossing $568 million worldwide, becoming the 2nd highest grossing installment in the Monsterverse and the King Kong franchise to date.[9][10] The film received a Best Visual Effects nomination at the 90th Academy Awards. A sequel, Godzilla vs. Kong, was released on March 31, 2021, while an animated series, Skull Island was released on June 22, 2023.

  1. ^ Gleiberman, Owen (March 2, 2017). "Film Review: 'Kong: Skull Island'". Variety. Archived from the original on June 2, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
  2. ^ "Kong: Skull Island (12A)". British Board of Film Classification. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
  3. ^ "'Kong: Skull Island' Hopes To Leave Huge Footprint at Global B.O. In Face Of 'Logan's Wrath". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on November 16, 2018. Retrieved February 16, 2017.
  4. ^ "Kong: Skull Island". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
  5. ^ Williams, Trey (March 11, 2017). "Kong: Skull Island is Step 1 in Warner Bros. reboot of 1933 classic as monster franchise". Market Watch. Archived from the original on June 16, 2018. Retrieved February 26, 2018.
  6. ^ Rabin, Nathan (March 13, 2017). "The Monkey and the Metaphor: What Every King Kong Movie Is Really About". Vanity Fair. Retrieved February 26, 2018.
  7. ^ "Behind the scenes of Kong: Skull Island with Tom Hiddleston and Samuel L Jackson". Radio Times. March 10, 2017. Archived from the original on September 26, 2021. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  8. ^ Pham, Ashley (September 21, 2019). "Film set made for 'Kong: Skull Island' at Vietnam's world heritage site to be removed". Vietnam Insider. Archived from the original on January 18, 2021. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  9. ^ "King Kong and Batman Lift Time Warner Above Expectations". Fortune. May 3, 2017. Archived from the original on August 14, 2017. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
  10. ^ Barnes, Brooks (July 25, 2017). "Seesawing Fate of Legendary Reflects the Film Industry's Volatility". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 7, 2019. Retrieved February 10, 2019.