Legendary Pictures, Universal Pictures, and Warner Bros. team up to reboot King Kong in the US. Confirmed to take place within the same universe as Legendary’s Godzilla reboot, King Kong features the cast facing off against the Giant Gorilla in the forest, a fresher take from the scenery in New York of the classic film(s). Tom Hiddleston & Samuel L. Jackson lead as the main protagonist & antagonist respectively.

Kong: Skull Island is the 2016 reboot of the King Kong franchise, it is produced by Legendary Pictures, and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is currently available in Digital HD, with Blu-Ray & DVD releases set for July 18, 2017.

The destructive Kong as he appears in Skull Island.

Shared Universes are once again all the rage thanks to the success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Arrowverse. Now Legendary, Universal, and WB have worked together to bring old foes King Kong & Godzilla back in one universe for modern and original fans of the properties. While Godzilla had its issues it was still an enjoyable film, Kong: Skull Island however improves upon its universal predecessor in almost every way imaginable.

Dark, twisted, and full of action. Kong is an excellent second step into a much larger plan.

THE GOOD: Throughout the film’s run most of New York is ignored, this is very noticeable, as the city is such a huge piece of the lore for the original films. Instead, the film opts to focus on the forest and its residence, both human and monster. The scenery change was a nice refresher and gives some new background on King Kong and his environment. Cast performances were excellent from Tom Hiddleston, to  Samuel L. Jackson, to John C. Reilly, the cast brings the film to life from top to bottom. The film uses beautiful CGI for Kong and the monsters, and they never seem out of place or cheesy.

Powerful cast performances and CGI brings new life into the long-running franchise.

THE BAD: The fast pace could be a little much for some.

New lore brings King Kong into a much needed new world.

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Kong; Skull Island is a fantastic reboot of an otherwise tired franchise. With a new direction, stellar cast, and opting to go with forest scenery over having the battle with Kong in New York, it’s a remake deserving of your full attention. Otaku Dome gives Kong: Skull Island a 84 out of 100.