King Kong (2005 film)

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King Kong
Kingkong bigfinal1.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Peter Jackson
Screenplay by
Based on
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography Andrew Lesnie
Edited by Jamie Selkirk
Music by James Newton Howard
Production
companies
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release dates
  • December 5, 2005 (2005-12-05)(New York City)
  • December 13, 2005 (2005-12-13)(New Zealand)
  • December 14, 2005 (2005-12-14)(United States)
Running time
188 minutes [1]
Countries
  • New Zealand
  • United States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$207 million [2]
Box office$556.9 million [2]

King Kong is a 2005 epic adventure monster film co-written, produced, and directed by Peter Jackson. It is the eighth entry in the King Kong franchise and the second remake of the 1933 film of the same title, following the 1976 film. The film stars Andy Serkis, Naomi Watts, Jack Black, and Adrien Brody. Set in 1933, it follows the story of an ambitious filmmaker who coerces his cast and hired ship crew to travel to mysterious Skull Island. There they encounter prehistoric creatures and a legendary giant gorilla known as Kong, whom they capture and take to New York City.

Contents

Development began in early 1995, when Universal Pictures approached Jackson to direct the remake of the original 1933 film. The project stalled in early 1997, as several ape and giant monster-related films were under production at the time and Jackson planned to direct The Lord of the Rings film series. As the first two films in the Rings trilogy became commercially successful, Universal went back to Jackson in early 2003, expressing interest in restarting development on the project, to which Jackson eventually agreed. Filming for King Kong took place in New Zealand from September 2004 to March 2005. It is currently one of the most expensive films ever produced as its budget climbed from an initial $150 million to a then record-breaking $207 million.

King Kong premiered at New York City on December 5, 2005, [3] and was theatrically released in Germany and United States on December 14. The film garnered positive reviews, and eventually appeared in several top ten lists for 2005; it was praised for the special effects, performances, sense of spectacle and comparison to the 1933 original, though some criticisms were raised over its 3-hour run time. It was a commercial success, grossing over $556.9 million, and became the fourth-highest-grossing film in Universal Pictures history at that time and the fifth-highest-grossing film of 2005. [2] It also generated $100 million in DVD sales upon its home video release in March 2006. [4] It won three Academy Awards for Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing and Best Visual Effects. A tie-in video game was released alongside the film, which also became a commercial and critical success.

A sequel, Skull Island, entered development in 2013, with Jackson producing and Adam Wingard set to direct. The project was abandoned after Warner Bros. Pictures acquired the franchise rights and ultimately rebooted the series with the 2017 film Kong: Skull Island as part of Legendary Pictures' MonsterVerse. Wingard later directed the 2021 film Godzilla vs. Kong [5] and the 2024 film Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.

Plot

In 1933, during the Great Depression, struggling New York City vaudeville performer Ann Darrow is hired by financially troubled filmmaker Carl Denham to star in a film with actor Bruce Baxter. Ann is hesitant to join the picture until she learns her favorite playwright, Jack Driscoll, is the screenwriter. Filming takes place on the SS Venture, under Captain Englehorn, and under Carl's pretense it will be sailing to Singapore. In truth, Carl intends to film the mysterious Skull Island. Captain Englehorn reconsiders the voyage, prompted by his crew's speculation of trouble ahead. During the voyage, Ann and Jack fall in love.

The Venture receives a radio message informing Englehorn there is a warrant for Carl's arrest due to his defiance of the studio's orders to cease production, and instructing Englehorn to divert to Rangoon, but the ship becomes lost in fog and runs aground on Skull Island. Carl and his film crew, including cameraman Herb, assistant Preston, actor Bruce Baxter, and boom operator Mike, explore the island and are attacked by natives who kill Mike and a crewman. Englehorn rescues the film crew, but as they prepare to leave, a native sneaks onto the ship and abducts Ann. The natives offer Ann as a sacrifice to Kong, a 25-foot-tall (7.6 m) ape. Jack notices Ann's disappearance, and the crew returns to the island, but Kong flees with Ann into the jungle. Carl catches a glimpse of Kong and becomes determined to film him.

Ann wins Kong over with her juggling and dancing skills, and begins to grasp his intelligence and capacity for emotion. Englehorn organizes a rescue party, led by his first mate Hayes and Jack, and accompanied by Carl, Herb, Baxter and Preston. The party gets caught between a herd of Brontosaurus baxteri and a pack of Utahraptor-like Venatosaurus saevidicus hunting them, with Herb and several other men killed in the resulting stampede. Baxter and others return to the ship.

The remaining party members continue through the jungle when Kong attacks, making them fall into a ravine where Carl loses his camera. Kong rescues Ann from three Tyrannosaurus-like Vastatosaurus rex, bringing her to his den in the mountains. The remaining rescue party are attacked by giant insects in the ravine, resulting in the death of Hayes and most of the rescue party, but Preston, Carl, Jack, and Hayes' apprentice Jimmy are rescued by Baxter and Englehorn. Jack searches for Ann alone, while Carl decides to capture Kong. Jack finds Kong's lair and accidentally awakens him, but escapes with Ann. They arrive at the wall with Kong pursuing them. As Ann begs the crew not to harm him, Kong kills several sailors, but is subdued when Carl knocks him out with chloroform.

In New York City that winter, Carl presents "Kong, the Eighth Wonder of the World" on Broadway, starring Baxter and an imprisoned Kong. Ann, who refused to take part in the performance, is played by an anonymous chorus girl. Agitated by the chorus girl not being Ann and flashes from cameras, Kong breaks free from the chains and wrecks the theater, bursting out and through it and rampages through the streets of New York in search of Ann, and chases Jack before encountering her again. The U.S. Army attacks, and Kong tries getting Ann and himself to safety by climbing to the top of the Empire State Building.

Six Navy biplanes arrive, which Kong fights, downing three of them, but is mortally wounded from the planes' gunfire and falls from the building. As Jack reaches the top of the building to comfort and embrace Ann, civilians, policemen, and soldiers gather around the beast's corpse in the street, one bystander commenting the airplanes got him. Carl makes his way through the crowd, takes one last look at Kong and says, "It wasn't the airplanes. It was Beauty killed the Beast", before he walks away.

Cast

In addition, director Jackson appears with makeup artist Rick Baker (who had portrayed Kong and designed makeup for the 1976 version) as the pilot and gunner on the airplane that kills the title character, his children appear as New York children, The Lord of the Rings co-producer Rick Porras and The Shawshank Redemption director Frank Darabont appear as a gunners in the other airplanes, and Bob Burns and his wife appear as New York bystanders. Frequent Jackson collaborator Howard Shore makes a cameo appearance as the conductor of the New York theater from where Kong escapes. Shore was initially set to compose for the film before his exit.

Watts, Black, and Brody were the first choices for their respective roles with no other actors considered. [9] In preparation for her role, Watts met with the original Ann Darrow, Fay Wray. [10] Jackson wanted Wray to make a cameo appearance and say the final line of dialogue, but she died during pre-production at 96 years old. [11] Black was cast as Carl Denham based on his performance in the 2000 film High Fidelity , which had impressed Jackson. [12] For inspiration, Black studied P. T. Barnum [13] and Orson Welles. "I didn't study [Welles] move for move. It was just to capture the spirit. Very reckless guy. I had tapes of him drunk off his ass." [14] The native extras on Skull Island were portrayed by a mix of Asian, African, Maori and Polynesian actors sprayed with dark makeup to achieve a consistent pigmentation. [14]

Production

Model used in the production of the 2005 adaption of the King Kong series KingKongModel.jpg
Model used in the production of the 2005 adaption of the King Kong series

Development

Earlier attempts and 1990s

Peter Jackson was nine years old when he first saw the 1933 film, and was in tears in front of the TV when Kong was shot and fell off the Empire State Building. At age 12, he attempted to recreate the film using his parents' Super 8 mm film camera and a model of Kong made of wire and rubber with his mother's fur coat for the hair, but eventually gave up on the project. [15] King Kong eventually became his favorite film and was the primary inspiration for his decision to become a filmmaker as a teenager. [16] He read books about the making of King Kong and collected memorabilia, as well as articles from Famous Monsters of Filmland . [17] Jackson paid tribute to the 1933 film by including Skull Island as the origin of the zombie plague in his 1992 film Braindead . [11]

During the filming of Jackson's 1996 film The Frighteners , Universal Pictures was impressed with Jackson's dailies and early visual effects footage. The studio was adamant to work with Jackson on his next project [16] and, in late 1995, [17] offered him the chance to direct a remake of the 1954 film Creature from the Black Lagoon . He turned down the offer, but Universal became aware of Jackson's obsession with King Kong and subsequently offered him the opportunity to direct that remake. [16] The studio did not have to worry about lawsuits concerning the film rights from RKO Pictures (the studio behind the 1933 film) because the King Kong character is held in the public domain. [18] Jackson initially turned down the King Kong offer, but he "quickly became disturbed by the fact that someone else would take it over," Jackson continued, "and make it into a terrible film; that haunted me and I eventually said yes to Universal." [15]

At the same time, Jackson was working with Harvey Weinstein and Miramax Films to purchase the film rights of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings , while 20th Century Fox was trying to hire him for the 2001 remake of Planet of the Apes. Jackson turned down Planet of the Apes and because Weinstein was taking longer than expected to buy The Lord of the Rings rights, Jackson decided to move forward on King Kong. Weinstein was furious, and, as a result, Jackson proposed a deal between Universal and Miramax that the two studios would equally finance King Kong with Jackson's production company WingNut Films. Universal would receive distribution rights in the United States, while Miramax would cover foreign territories. Jackson was also warranted the right of final cut privilege, a percentage of the gross profits, [17] as well as artistic control; Universal allowed all filming and visual effects to be handled entirely in New Zealand. [16] The deal was settled in April 1996, and Jackson, along with wife Fran Walsh, began working on the King Kong script. [17] In the original draft, Ann was the daughter of famed English archaeologist Lord Linwood Darrow exploring ancient ruins in Sumatra. They would come into conflict with Denham during his filming, and they would uncover a hidden Kong statue and the map of Skull Island. This would indicate that the island natives were the last remnants of a cult religion that had once thrived on Asia's mainland. Instead of a playwright, Jack was the first mate and an ex-World War I fighter pilot still struggling with the loss of his best friend, who had been killed in battle during a World War I prologue. The camera-man Herb is the only supporting character in the original draft who made it to the final version. The fight between Kong and the three V. rex also changed from the original draft. In the draft, Ann is actually caught in the V. rex's jaws, where she becomes wedged, and slashed by the teeth; after the fight, Kong gets her out but she is suffering from a fever, from which she then recovers. [16]

Universal approved of the script with Robert Zemeckis as executive producer, and pre-production for King Kong commenced. The plan was to begin filming sometime in 1997 for a summer 1998 release date. Weta Digital and Weta Workshop, under the supervision of Richard Taylor and Christian Rivers, began work on early visual effects tests, [16] specifically the complex task of building a CGI version of New York City circa 1933. Jackson and Walsh progressed with a second draft script, sets were being designed and location scouting commenced in Sumatra and New Zealand. [17] In late 1996, Jackson flew to production of the 1997 film Titanic in Mexico to discuss the part of Ann Darrow with Kate Winslet, with whom he previously worked with on his 1994 film Heavenly Creatures . Minnie Driver was also being reportedly considered. [15] Jackson's choices for Jack Driscoll and Carl Denham included George Clooney and Robert De Niro. [11] However, development for King Kong was stalled in January 1997 when Universal became concerned over the upcoming release of the 1998 film Godzilla , as well as other ape-related remakes with the 1998 film Mighty Joe Young [19] and the 2001 film Planet of the Apes. Universal abandoned King Kong in February 1997 [15] after Weta Workshop and Weta Digital had already designed six months' worth of pre-production. [11] Jackson then decided to start work on The Lord of the Rings film series. [15]

Revival of the project

With the financial and critical success of the 2001 film The Fellowship of the Ring and the 2002 film The Two Towers , Universal approached Jackson in early 2003, during the post-production of The Return of the King , concerning his interest in restarting development on King Kong. [19] [9] In March 2003, Universal set a target December 2005 release date and Jackson and Walsh brought The Lord of the Rings co-writer Philippa Boyens on to help rewrite their 1996 script. Jackson offered New Line Cinema the opportunity to co-finance with Universal, but they declined. [9] Universal and Jackson originally projected a $150 million budget, which eventually rose to $175 million. [20] [21] Jackson made a deal with Universal whereby he would be paid a $20 million salary against 20% of the box office gross for directing, producing and co-writing. He shared that fee with co-writers Walsh (which also covered her producing credit) and Boyens. [22] However, if King Kong were to go over its $175 million budget, the penalties would be covered by Jackson. [23]

Immediately after the completion of The Return of the King, Weta Workshop and Weta Digital, supervised by Taylor, Rivers, and Joe Letteri, started pre-production on King Kong. [11] Jackson brought back most of the crew he had on The Lord of the Rings series, including cinematographer Andrew Lesnie, production designer Grant Major, art directors Simon Bright and Dan Hennah, conceptual designer Alan Lee, and editor Jamie Selkirk. [16] Jackson, Walsh and Boyens began to write a new script in late October 2003. [19] Jackson acknowledged that he was highly unsatisfied with the original 1996 script. [9] "That was actually just Fran and Peter very hurriedly getting something down on paper", Boyens explained. "It was more one of many possible ways the story could go." [11] The writers chose to base the new screenplay on the 1933 film rather than the 1996 script. [11] They also included scenes from James Ashmore Creelman's screenplay that were either abandoned or omitted during production of the original film. [16] In the scene where Kong shakes the surviving sailors pursuing Ann and himself from a log into the ravine, for example, directors Merian Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack originally intended to depict giant spiders emerging from the rock to devour their bodies. This was cut from the original release print, and remains known to Kong fans only via a rare still that appeared in Famous Monsters of Filmland. Jackson included this scene and elaborated upon it. [11] Jackson, Walsh and Boyens also cited Delos W. Lovelace's 1932 novelisation of King Kong as inspiration, which included the character Lumpy (Andy Serkis). [17] [9] To make the relationship between Ann Darrow and Kong plausible, the writers studied hours of gorilla footage. [24] Jackson also optioned Early Havoc, a memoir written by vaudeville performer June Havoc to help Walsh and Boyens flesh out Ann Darrow's characterisation. [9] [14] Carl Denham was intentionally modeled after and inspired by Orson Welles. [9] Their new draft was finished in February 2004. [11]

Filming

Principal photography started on September 6, 2004, at Camperdown Studios in Miramar, New Zealand. Camperdown housed the native village and the Great Wall, while the streets of New York City were constructed on its backlot and at Gracefield in Lower Hutt, New Zealand. The majority of the SS Venture scenes were shot aboard a full-scale deck constructed in the parking lot at Camperdown Studio and then were backed with a green screen, with the ocean digitally added in post. Scenes set in the Broadway theater from which King Kong makes his escape were filmed in Wellington's Opera House and at the Auckland Civic Theatre. [16] Filming also took place at Stone Street Studios, where a new sound stage was constructed to accommodate one of the sets. [25] Over the course of filming the budget went from $175 million to $207 million over additional visual effects work needed, and Jackson extending the film's running time by thirty minutes. Jackson covered most of the $32 million surplus himself and finished filming in March 2005. [23] [16]

The film's budget climbed from an initial US$150 million to a then-record-breaking $207 million and received a subsidy of $34 million from New Zealand, making it at one point the most expensive film yet made. [26] [27] Universal only agreed to such an outlay after seeing a screening of the unfinished film, to which executives responded enthusiastically. Marketing and promotion costs were an estimated $60 million. The film's length also grew; originally set to be 135 minutes, it soon grew to 200, prompting Universal executives to fly to New Zealand to view a rough cut, but they liked it so their concerns were addressed. [28]

Other difficulties included Peter Jackson's decision to change composers from Howard Shore to James Newton Howard seven weeks before the film opened. [29]

Visual effects

Andy Serkis in his Kong bodysuit Andy Serkis - King Kong.jpg
Andy Serkis in his Kong bodysuit

Jackson saw King Kong as opportunity for technical innovations in motion capture, commissioning Christian Rivers of Weta Digital to supervise all aspects of Kong's performance. [30] Jackson decided early on that he did not want Kong to behave like a human, and so he and his team studied hours of gorilla footage. [31] Serkis was cast in the title role in April 2003 [9] and prepared himself by working with gorillas at the London Zoo. He then traveled to Rwanda, observing the actions and behaviors of gorillas in the wild. [10] Rivers explained that the detailed facial performance capture with Serkis was accomplished because of the similarities between human and gorilla faces. "Gorillas have such a similar looking set of eyes and brows, you can look at those expressions and transpose your own interpretation onto them." [30] Photos of silverback gorillas were also superimposed on Kong's image in the early stages of animation. [32] Serkis had to go through two hours of motion capture makeup every day, having 135 small markers attached to different spots on his face. [30] Following principal photography, Serkis had to spend an additional two months on a motion capture stage, miming Kong's movements for the film's digital animators. [33]

Apart from Kong, Skull Island is inhabited by dinosaurs and other large fauna. Inspired by Dougal Dixon's works, the designers imagined what 65 million years or more of isolated evolution might have done to dinosaurs and the other creatures. [34]

Music

The original score was initially set to be composed by Howard Shore, who had written several cues for the film. [35] Due to creative differences with Jackson, Shore opted out of the project in October 2005 and subsequently James Newton Howard replaced him. [36] [37] With scoring beginning by late-October 2005, Howard had only five weeks to work on the film, as a result, he found the film "hardest to compose". [38] Recording sessions took place at the Sony Scoring Stage, California and Todd-AO, Los Angeles, consisting of 108-piece orchestra and 40-member choir, and a varied range of instruments used. [38]

The film's soundtrack includes Al Jolson's recording of "I'm Sitting on Top of the World", Peggy Lee's "Bye Bye Blackbird", and some themes from Max Steiner's soundtrack for the original 1933 film. The score was released on December 7, 2005, by Decca Records to positive response. Howard's score was later nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score. [39]

Marketing

The marketing campaign started in full swing on June 27, 2005, when the teaser trailer made its debut, first online at the official Volkswagen website at 8:45 p.m. EDT, then 8:55 p.m. EDT across media outlets owned by NBCUniversal (the parent of Universal Studios), including NBC, Bravo!, CNBC, and MSNBC. That trailer appeared in theatres attached to War of the Worlds , which opened on June 29. [6]

Jackson also regularly published a series of 'Production Diaries', which chronicled the film's production. The diaries started shortly after the DVD release of The Return of the King as a way to give Jackson's The Lord of the Rings fans a glimpse of his next project. These diaries are edited into broadband-friendly installments of three or four minutes each. They consist of features that would normally be seen in a making-of documentary: a tour of the set, a roving camera introducing key players behind the scene, a peek inside the sound booth during last-minute dubbing, or Andy Serkis doing his ape movements in a motion capture studio. [40]

A novelisation of the film and a prequel novel entitled King Kong: The Island of the Skull were also written. A multi-platform video game, entitled Peter Jackson's King Kong , was released, which featured an alternate ending. There was also a hardback book entitled The World of Kong: A Natural History of Skull Island , featuring artwork from Weta Workshop to describe the film's fictional wildlife.

Jackson has expressed his desire to remaster the film in 3-D at some point in the future. [41] Jackson was also seen shooting with a 3-D camera at times during the shoot of King Kong. [42]

Reception

Box office

The billboard at the Odeon Leicester Square premiere KingKongOdeonpremiere.jpg
The billboard at the Odeon Leicester Square premiere

In North America, King Kong grossed $9.8 million during its Wednesday opening and $50.1 million over its first weekend for a five-day total of $66.2 million from around 7,500 screens at 3,568 theaters. [43] Some analysts considered these initial numbers disappointing, saying that studio executives had been expecting more. [44] [45] The film went on to gross $218.1 million in the North American market and ended up in the top five highest-grossing films of the year there. [46] The film grossed an additional $338.8 million at the box office in other regions for a worldwide total of $556.9 million, which not only ranked it in the top five highest-grossing films of 2005 worldwide, [47] but also helped the film bring back more than two-and-a-half times its production budget.

During its home video release, King Kong sold over $100 million worth of DVDs in the largest six-day performance in Universal Studios history. [48] King Kong sold more than 7.6 million DVDs, accumulating nearly $194 million worth of sales numbers in the North American market alone. [49] As of June 25, 2006, King Kong has generated almost $38 million from DVD rental gross. [50] In February 2006, TNT/TBS and ABC paid Universal Studios $26.5 million for the television rights to the film. [51]

Critical response

King Kong received acclaim from critics. On aggregate review site Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 84% based on 268 reviews, with an average rating of 7.68/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Featuring state-of-the-art special effects, terrific performances, and a majestic sense of spectacle, Peter Jackson's remake of King Kong is a potent epic that's faithful to the spirit of the 1933 original." [52] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 81 out of 100, based on 39 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". [53] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale. [54]

It was placed on the 'top ten' lists of several critics, [55] with Roger Ebert giving it four stars, and listed it as 2005's eighth-best film. [56] The film received four Academy Award nominations, for Visual Effects, Sound Mixing (Christopher Boyes, Michael Semanick, Michael Hedges, Hammond Peek), Sound Editing, and Production Design, winning all but the last. [57] [58] Entertainment Weekly called the depiction of Kong the most convincing computer-generated character in film in 2005. [59] Some criticised the film for retaining racist stereotypes that had been present in the 1933 film, though it was not suggested that Jackson had done this intentionally. [60] King Kong ranks 450th on Empire magazine's 2008 list of the 500 Greatest Movies of All Time. [61] The Guardian reviewer Peter Bradshaw said that it "certainly equals, and even exceeds, anything Jackson did in Lord of the Rings." [62] However, Charlie Brooker, also of The Guardian, gave a negative review in which he describes the film as "sixteen times more overblown and histrionic than necessary". [63]

Accolades

AwardSubjectNomineeResult
Academy Awards Best Art Direction Grant Major, Dan Hennah, and Simon Bright Nominated
Best Sound Editing Mike Hopkins and Ethan Van der Ryn Won
Best Sound Mixing Christopher Boyes, Michael Semanick, Michael Hedges, and Hammond Peek Won
Best Visual Effects Joe Letteri, Brian Van't Hul, Christian Rivers, and Richard Taylor Won
American Film Institute Top Ten Films King KongWon
American Society of Cinematographers Award Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Theatrical Releases Andrew Lesnie Nominated
ASCAP Film and Television Music Awards Top Box Office Films James Newton Howard Won
Art Directors Guild Excellence in Production Design for a Fantasy Film Grant Major, Dan Hennah, Joe Bleakley, Simon Bright, Simon Harper, David A. Cook, and Jacqui AllenNominated
British Academy Film Awards Best Special Visual Effects Joe Letteri, Brian Van't Hul, Christian Rivers, and Richard TaylorWon
Best Production Design Grant MajorNominated
Best Sound Hammond Peek, Christopher Boyes, Mike Hopkins, and Ethan Van der RynNominated
Critics Choice Awards Best Picture King KongNominated
Best Director Peter JacksonNominated
Chicago Film Critics Association Awards Best Director Peter JacksonNominated
Best Actress Naomi WattsNominated
Best Cinematography Andrew LesnieNominated
Best Original Score James Newton HowardNominated
Cinema Audio Society Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Motion Picture Christopher Boyes, Michael Semanick, Michael Hedges, Hammond PeekNominated
Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Best Picture King KongNominated
Best Director Peter JacksonNominated
Empire Awards Best Sci-Fi/Superhero King KongNominated
Best Director Peter JacksonNominated
Best Actor Andy SerkisNominated
Best Actress Naomi WattsNominated
Best Film King KongWon
Georges Award Best Blockbuster MovieNominated
Golden Globe Awards Best Director Peter Jackson Nominated
Best Original Score James Newton Howard Nominated
Golden Reel Awards Best Sound Editing in Feature Film - Foreign Ethan Van der Ryn, Mike Hopkins, Brent Burge, David Farmer, Dave Whitehead, John Simpson, Hayden Collow, Melanie Graham, Matthew Lambourn, Justin Webster, Katy Wood, Peter Mills, Craig Tomlinson, Ray Beentjes, Jason Canovas, Martin Kwok, Polly McKinnon, Chris Ward, Jenny T. Ward, Robyn McFarlane, and Carolyn McLaughlinNominated
Matt StutterNominated
Best Sound Editing in Feature Film - Music Jim Weidman and Peter MylesNominated
Golden Schmoes Awards Best DVD/Blu-Ray of the Year'Deluxe Edition'Nominated
Favorite Movie of the YearKing KongNominated
Best Director of the YearPeter JacksonNominated
Most Overrated Movie of the YearKing KongNominated
Best Special Effects of the YearWon
Best Actress of the YearNaomi WattsNominated
Coolest Character of the Year'Kong'Nominated
Best Music in a MovieKing KongNominated
Best Trailer of the YearNominated
Best Action Sequence of the Year'Kong vs. T-Rexes'Won
Most Memorable Scene in a MovieNominated
'Kong on top of the Empire State Building'Nominated
Hollywood Professional Association Outstanding Color Grading Feature Film in a DI Process David ColeNominated
Outstanding Compositing - Feature Film Erik Winquist, Charles Tait, Johan Åberg, and G.G. Heitmann DemersNominated
International Cinephile Society Best ActressNaomi WattsNominated
Best Production DesignGrant Major2nd place
International Film Music Critics Association Film Score of the YearJames Newton HowardNominated
Best Original Score for an Action/Adventure FilmNominated
Jupiter Awards Best International DirectorPeter JacksonWon
Best International ActressNaomi WattsNominated
Las Vegas Film Critics Society Best CinematographyAndrew LesnieWon
Best EditingJamie SelkirkWon
Best Costume DesignTerry RyanWon
Best Art DirectionSimon Bright and Dan HennahWon
Best Visual EffectsKing KongWon
Best Picture3rd place
London Critics Circle Film Awards Film of the year Nominated
Actress of the Year Naomi WattsWon
Director of the Year Peter JacksonWon
MTV Russia Movie Awards Best Foreign MovieKing KongNominated
MTV Movie & TV Awards Best Movie Nominated
Best Fight Kong vs the planesNominated
National Board of Review Special Achievement AwardWon
Online Film Critics Society Awards Best Director Peter JacksonNominated
Best Actress Naomi WattsNominated
Best Original Score James Newton HowardNominated
Online Film & Television Association Best ActressNaomi WattsNominated
Best Music, Original ScoreJames Newton HowardNominated
Best CinematographyAndrew LesnieNominated
Best Production DesignGrant Major, Joe Bleakley, Simon Bright, and Dan HennahWon
Best Costume DesignTerry RyanNominated
Best Makeup and HairstylingGino Acevedo, Rick Findlater, Peter Swords King, Richard Taylor, Dominie TillNominated
Best Sound MixingChristopher Boyes, Michael Semanick, Michael Hedges, and Hammond PeekWon
Best Sound Effects EditingMike Hopkins and Ethan Van der RynWon
Best Visual EffectsJoe Letteri, Brian Van't Hul, Christian Rivers, and Richard TaylorWon
Best Titles SequenceKing KongNominated
Best Cinematic MomentT-Rex FightNominated
Best Official Film WebsiteKing KongNominated
Phoenix Film Critics Society Best Production DesignGrant MajorWon
Best Visual EffectsKing KongWon
Huabiao Award Outstanding Translated Foreign FilmNominated
Rondo Award Best FilmWon
San Diego Film Critics Society Awards Best Picture Won
Saturn Award Best DVD Special Edition Release "Deluxe Extended Edition" release.Nominated
Best Fantasy Film King KongNominated
Best Director Peter JacksonWon
Best Writing Philippa Boyens, Fran Walsh, and Peter JacksonNominated
Best Actress Naomi Watts Won
Best Costume Terry RyanNominated
Best Make-Up Richard Taylor, Gino Acevedo, Dominie Till, and Peter King Nominated
Best Special Effects Joe Letteri, Brian Van't Hul, Christian Rivers, and Richard TaylorWon
Scream Awards Best RemakeKing KongWon
Scream QueenNaomi WattsNominated
Best Fantasy mMvieKing KongNominated
Best F/XKing KongNominated
Southeastern Film Critics Association Best PictureKing Kong9th place
Stinkers Bad Movie Awards Most Intrusive Musical ScoreJames Newton HowardNominated
Most Overrated FilmKing KongNominated
St. Louis Film Critics Association Best Director Peter JacksonNominated
Best Cinematography or Visual/Special EffectsJoe Letteri, Brian Van't Hul, Christian Rivers, and Richard TaylorWon
Teen Choice Awards Choice Action AdventureKing KongNominated
Choice RumbleKing Kong vs. T-RexNominated
Choice Sleazebag Jack Black Nominated
Choice Hissy FitKing KongNominated
Toronto Film Critics Association Special CitationAndy SerkisWon
Visual Effects Society Outstanding Visual Effects in an
Effects Driven Motion Picture
Joe Letteri, Eileen Moran, Christian Rivers, and Eric Saindon Won
Outstanding Performance by an Animated
Character in a Live Action Motion Picture
Andy Serkis, Christian Rivers, Atsushi Sato, and Guy Williams Won
Outstanding Created Environment in a
Live Action Motion Picture
Dan Lemmon, R. Christopher White, Matt Aitken, and Charles TaitWon
Outstanding Compositing in a Motion Picture Erik Winquist, Michaell Pangrazio, Steve Cronin, and Suzanne JanduNominated
World Soundtrack Awards Soundtrack Composer of the Year James Newton HowardNominated
Best Original Soundtrack of the Year Nominated
Vancouver Film Critics Circle Best Actress Naomi WattsNominated

Cinematic and literary allusions

References to original 1933 King Kong

Home media

King Kong was released on DVD on March 28, 2006, in the United States and Canada. The three versions that came out are a single-disc fullscreen, a single-disc widescreen, and a two-disc 'Widescreen Special Edition'.

A three-disc Deluxe Extended Edition was released on November 14, 2006, in the U.S., [67] and on November 3 in Australia. [68] Twelve minutes were reinserted into the film, and an additional forty minutes included with the rest of the special features. The film was spread onto the first two discs with commentary by Peter Jackson and Philippa Boyens, and some featurettes on discs one and two, whilst the main special features are on disc three. Another set was released, including a WETA figurine of a bullet-ridden Kong scaling the Empire State Building, roaring at the Navy with Ann in hand. The extended film amounts to 200 total minutes. [69]

A special HD DVD version of King Kong was part of a promotional pack for the release of the external HD DVD Drive for the Xbox 360. The pack contained the HD DVD drive, the Universal Media Remote and King Kong on HD DVD. [70] It was also available separately as a standard HD DVD. [71] The film's theatrical and extended cuts were released together on Blu-ray Disc on January 20, 2009. [72] A re-release of the Blu-Ray with a new bonus disc containing nearly all of the extras from the 2-disc Special Edition DVD, the Deluxe Extended Edition 3-disc DVD, and the "Peter Jackson's Production Diaries" 2-disc DVD titled the "Ultimate Edition" was released on February 7, 2017. [73] An Ultra HD Blu-ray followed in July 2017.

Cancelled sequel and reboot

In March 2021, Adam Wingard said in an interview that back in 2013, Peter Jackson had been interested in producing a sequel to the film, titled Skull Island, with Wingard as director and Simon Barrett writing it. [74] Jackson had been impressed with Wingard's work in You're Next , and investigated a potential sequel. However, the King Kong rights had already been transferred to Warner Bros. by 2013, which complicated a sequel to a Universal-produced movie. [74] Wingard says that Jackson was thinking of setting the proposed movie during World War I, which would make it a prequel, but that the studio was uninterested in a World War I era film. [75] Wingard pivoted to offering a modern-day sequel, but ultimately nothing came of the proposal. [75]

Ultimately, Warner Bros. rebooted the franchise with Kong: Skull Island in 2017, which is part of the MonsterVerse. [76] [77] Wingard would later direct 2021's Godzilla vs. Kong , another film set in the MonsterVerse.

Theme park

The Universal Orlando Resort location Islands of Adventure features an attraction called "Skull Island: Reign of Kong" which is based on Peter Jackson's remake. While the King Kong part of the Universal Studios Hollywood resort was destroyed by a massive fire, a 3D short inspired by the film was eventually created in 2010, King Kong: 360 3-D , which is another attraction based on Peter Jackson's remake. [78]

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>King Kong</i> (1933 film) 1933 film directed by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack

King Kong is a 1933 American pre-Code adventure horror monster film directed and produced by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack, with special effects by Willis H. O'Brien. Produced and distributed by RKO Radio Pictures, it is the first film in the King Kong franchise. The film stars Fay Wray, Robert Armstrong and Bruce Cabot. In the film, a giant ape dubbed King Kong captured from Skull Island attempts to possess a beautiful young woman.

<i>The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers</i> 2002 film by Peter Jackson

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers is a 2002 epic high fantasy adventure film directed by Peter Jackson from a screenplay by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Stephen Sinclair, and Jackson, based on 1954's The Two Towers, the second volume of the novel The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien. The sequel to 2001's The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, the film is the second instalment in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. It features an ensemble cast including Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett, John Rhys-Davies, Bernard Hill, Christopher Lee, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Orlando Bloom, Hugo Weaving, Miranda Otto, David Wenham, Brad Dourif, Karl Urban, and Andy Serkis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fran Walsh</span> New Zealand screenwriter and producer

Dame Frances Rosemary Walsh is a New Zealand screenwriter and film producer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philippa Boyens</span> New Zealand screenwriter

Philippa Jane Boyens is a New Zealand screenwriter who co-wrote the screenplay for The Lord of the Rings series, King Kong, The Lovely Bones, and the three-part film series The Hobbit.

<i>The Mighty Kong</i> 1998 film

The Mighty Kong is a 1998 American animated monster musical film. It is an adaptation of the classic King Kong story, produced by Lana Productions and is the 7th entry in the King Kong franchise. Jodi Benson and Dudley Moore headed its cast of voice actors. The film was animated overseas by the South Korean animation studios including Hahn Shin Corporation, and by Jade Animation in Hong Kong. It features original songs by the Sherman Brothers. The film was initially given a limited theatrical release before being released on VHS on June 16, 1998 by Warner Home Video as a part of their 75th Anniversary promotion. It was released on DVD by Tri-Coast Entertainment in 2019 as a Manufacture-on-Demand (MOD) release that is only available through online stores. The film is currently available on multiple streaming platforms such as Tubi and Vimeo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King Kong</span> Fictional monster

King Kong, also referred to simply as Kong, is a fictional giant monster, or kaiju, resembling a gorilla, who has appeared in various media since 1933. Kong has been dubbed the King of the Beasts and over time it would also be bestowed the title of the Eighth Wonder of the World, a widely recognized expression within the franchise. His first appearance was in the novelization of the 1933 film King Kong from RKO Pictures, with the film premiering a little over two months later.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carl Denham</span> Fictional character in King Kong franchise

Carl Denham is a fictional character in the films King Kong and The Son of Kong, as well as in the 2005 remake of King Kong, and a 2004 illustrated novel titled Kong: King of Skull Island. The role was played by Robert Armstrong in the 1933 films and by Jack Black in the 2005 remake. In The Mighty Kong, he was voiced by Dudley Moore. Denham's function in the story is to initiate the action by bringing the characters to Skull Island, where they encounter the giant beast Kong. Denham then brings Kong to New York City to put him on display as entertainment, but he escapes and rampages through the city. The less faithful 1976 remake has an analogue character named Fred Wilson, portrayed by Charles Grodin.

<i>Son of Kong</i> 1933 American adventure monster film directed by Ernest B. Schoedsack

The Son of Kong is a 1933 American Pre-Code adventure monster film produced by RKO Pictures. Directed by Ernest Schoedsack and featuring special effects by Willis O'Brien and Buzz Gibson, the film stars Robert Armstrong, Helen Mack and Frank Reicher. The film is the sequel to King Kong, being released just nine months after and is the second entry of the King Kong franchise.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Skull Island (King Kong)</span> Fictional island in King Kong movie

Skull Island is the name most often used to describe a fictional island that first appeared in the 1933 film King Kong and later appearing in its sequels, the three remakes, and any other King Kong-based media. It is the home of the eponymous King Kong and several other species of creatures, mostly prehistoric and in some cases species that should have been extinct long before the rise of mammalian creatures, along with a primitive society of humans.

<i>King Kong</i> (2005 video game) 2005 action-adventure video game developed by Ubisoft

Peter Jackson's King Kong: The Official Game of the Movie is a 2005 action-adventure video game developed by Ubisoft Montpellier and published by Ubisoft, based on the 2005 film King Kong. The game was created in collaboration between the film's director Peter Jackson and the game's director Michel Ancel. The game follows New York scriptwriter Jack Driscoll through Skull Island, as he attempts to save love interest Ann Darrow who has been sacrificed by the island's natives to the giant gorilla Kong.

Jack Driscoll is a fictional character in the King Kong franchise. In the original 1933 film he was the first mate of the ship named the Venture, while in its 2005 remake he was a playwright. He was played by Bruce Cabot in the original and by Adrien Brody in the remake. In both versions he is one of the main heroes of the story, a man who is on a ship heading for the mysterious Skull Island where Carl Denham intends to make a film. On the way, Driscoll falls in love with the actress Ann Darrow. When she is kidnapped by a giant ape named Kong on the island, Driscoll rescues her after helping to lead a search. Beyond these facts, his characterization is quite different in the two films.

<i>King Kong</i> (comics) Appearances of King Kong in comics publications

Throughout the decades King Kong has been featured in numerous comic book publications from numerous publishers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Jackson</span> New Zealand filmmaker (born 1961)

Sir Peter Robert Jackson is a New Zealand film director, screenwriter and producer. He is best known as the director, writer and producer of the Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001–2003) and the Hobbit trilogy (2012–2014), both of which are adapted from the novels of the same name by J. R. R. Tolkien. Other notable films include the critically lauded drama Heavenly Creatures (1994), the horror comedy The Frighteners (1996), the epic monster remake film King Kong (2005), the World War I documentary film They Shall Not Grow Old (2018) and the documentary The Beatles: Get Back (2021). He is the fourth-highest-grossing film director of all-time, his films having made over $6.5 billion worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adam Wingard</span> American filmmaker

Adam Wingard is an American filmmaker. He has served as a film director, producer, screenwriter, editor, cinematographer, actor, and composer on numerous American films.

<i>King Kong</i> (2013 musical) 2013 stage musical

King Kong is a musical with music by Marius de Vries, lyrics by Michael Mitnick and Craig Lucas, a book by Lucas and additional musical and lyrical contributions by 3D, Sarah McLachlan, Guy Garvey, Justice and The Avalanches. It is based on the 1933 film of the same name. The original production was mounted in Australia in 2013. A re-worked Broadway production premiered in October 2018.

<i>Kong: Skull Island</i> 2017 film by Jordan Vogt-Roberts

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 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 travel to the uncharted Skull Island and meet Kong, a gigantic ape who is the last of his species, closely followed by other terrifying creatures.

<i>Godzilla vs. Kong</i> 2021 American film by Adam Wingard

Godzilla vs. Kong is a 2021 American monster film directed by Adam Wingard. Produced by Legendary Pictures and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, it is a sequel to Kong: Skull Island (2017) and Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019), and is the fourth film in the MonsterVerse. It is also the 36th film in the Godzilla franchise, the 12th film in the King Kong franchise, and the fourth Godzilla film to be completely produced by an American film studio. The film stars Alexander Skarsgård, Millie Bobby Brown, Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Shun Oguri, Eiza González, Julian Dennison, Lance Reddick, Kyle Chandler, and Demián Bichir. Brown and Chandler reprise their roles from the previous Godzilla film. In the film, Kong clashes with Godzilla after humans move the ape from Skull Island to the Hollow Earth, homeworld of the monsters known as "Titans", to retrieve a power source for a secret weapon intended to stop Godzilla's mysterious attacks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MonsterVerse</span> Shared fictional universe

The MonsterVerse is an American multimedia franchise and shared fictional universe featuring Godzilla, King Kong, and other characters owned and created by Toho Co., Ltd. The franchise is produced by Legendary Pictures and currently distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures (films), Apple TV+ and Netflix (streaming), it consists of five films and two television series. The franchise has received a generally positive critical reception and has grossed $1.955 billion worldwide at the box office.

<i>King Kong</i> (franchise) American media franchise

King Kong is an American monster media franchise that consists of thirteen films, as well as television, novels, comic books, video games, attractions, and other merchandise. The franchise is centered on King Kong, a giant ape living on a primordial island inhabited by prehistoric creatures. The original film King Kong was co-directed by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack and was released on March 2, 1933; it was a box office success, despite opening during the Great Depression. The film's stop motion effects by Willis H. O'Brien revolutionized special effects, leaving a lasting impact on the film industry worldwide.

<i>The World of Kong</i> 2005 tie-in art book

The World of Kong: A Natural History of Skull Island is a 2005 art book released as a tie-in to the film King Kong (2005). The book is written in the form of a field guide and natural history of the version of Skull Island and its creatures as presented in the film.

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