If given a chance to re-make the infamous 1998 American-made Godzilla film, producer Dean Devlin revealed a fundamental change he would make to change the audience's perception of the Kaiju.
During an interview with Yahoo!, in which Devlin discussed their "intellectual" decision while making the movie, "deciding Godzilla was neither good nor evil." Because the 1998 film's Godzilla, often referred to as American Godzilla or Zilla, is portrayed as an animal attempting to reproduce by laying its eggs somewhere safe, it was difficult for audiences to develop an emotional connection with the creature. Agreeing with fan backlash over the film, Devlin explained how he would change the movie to appropriately alter fans' perception of the Kaiju if the opportunity arose: "I would have made Godzilla an absolute hero, and everyone would have been rooting for him the whole time."
Godzilla's Sequel Would Have Introduced Monster Island
In addition to discussing what changes he would make to the movie, Devlin also expounded on the fact that they wanted to visit Monster Island. "We really wanted to go to Monster Island. In the original Godzilla movies, Godzilla started off as a monster, but became a hero by the time Monster Island was introduced." After introducing Monster Island, they would have introduced famous Kaiju, including Mothra and Rodan. Unfortunately, the public response to their American-made Godzilla film wasn't positive, leading to Sony passing on their Monster Island movie pitch. Despite the studio passing on developing a Monster Island film, Devlin had the chance to work on Fox Kids' two-season Godzilla animated series. Matthew Broderick's character, Nick Tatopulous, was voiced by Ian Ziering rather than the iconic actor.
Had Sony allowed Devlin to explore Monster Island, Devlin notes that Matthew Broderick, who portrayed the film's lead, would have been the only actor to reprise their role from the original. However, it may have taken some convincing for Broderick to return to the sequel, as Devlin felt he shouldered the blame for the movie not performing well. For his part, Devlin recounted reassuring Broderick, saying, "Dude, you're terrific in everything you do. This is all on me -- I screwed this up."
When asked whether he stayed apprised of Godzilla's more recent American adaptations, Devlin joked, "I have so much PTSD from my experience with Godzilla, I could never bring myself to watch the new version."
If, unlike Devlin, fans of Godzilla want to check out the Kaiju's latest adventures, Apple TV+'s MonsterVerse is scheduled for March 2024. Additionally, Netflix streams Godzilla (1998) in North America.
Source: Yahoo!