GODZILLA X KONG: THE NEW EMPIRE Was Inspired by Michael Mann’s 1981 Film THIEF; Director Compares James Caan to Kong

Director Adam Wingard has more to say about his upcoming monsterverse movie Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. In this latest interview with SFX Magazine, he revealed that the film was inspired by Michael Mann’s 1981 gritty action crime thriller Thief, and he compares James Caan’s character in it to Kong. He explained:

"There’s just something about the iconography of Kong that really relates to people. He’s sort of a representation of our baser instincts and vulnerabilities as human beings. Kong really is the last masculine hero in movies. They just don’t make them like that anymore.

"A big influence on me from that perspective is one of my favorite films, Michael Mann’s Thief. James Caan’s performance is one of the best performances I’ve ever seen. It’s the most masculine performance, I feel, in film history. He’s got his hairy chest, his hairy arms and all that, and he’s just such a badass. He doesn’t take shit from anybody. He’s good at what he does but at the end of the day what really defines him, what makes him feel truly masculine, is the fact that he’s also in touch with the sensitive side to him. He wants to have a kid, and it’s his relationship with the woman that you really remember."

Thief follows the story of Frank, a highly skilled professional safecracker played by Caan. Despite his expertise, Frank wants a normal life, which leads him to pursue a legitimate career and start a family. However, his criminal past catches up with him when he is pressured into doing one last heist by a powerful mobster. As Frank struggles to maintain his personal and professional integrity, he finds himself embroiled in a web of betrayal and violence that threatens everything he holds dear.

The filmmaker then went on to compare Caan to Kong:

"Kong is similar. He’s masculine because he’s a sensitive guy as well. In this film it’s all about his loneliness and him wanting to find others. We played with that in the last movie, his relationship with this little girl, Jia. What really, truly brings out what makes Kong such an interesting, very macho character is the sensitivity he can have as well. So there’s a lot of interesting things about him as a character that are fun to explore."

In the upcoming film, “The epic battle continues! Legendary Pictures’ cinematic Monsterverse follows up the explosive showdown of Godzilla vs. Kong with an all-new adventure that pits the almighty Kong and the fearsome Godzilla against a colossal undiscovered threat hidden within our world, challenging their very existence—and our own. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire delves further into the histories of these Titans and their origins, as well as the mysteries of Skull Island and beyond, while uncovering the mythic battle that helped forge these extraordinary beings and tied them to humankind forever.”

The film stars Rebecca Hall (Godzilla vs. Kong), Brian Tyree Henry (Godzilla vs. Kong), Dan Stevens (Legion), Kaylee Hottle (Godzilla vs. Kong), Alex Ferns (The Batman) and Fala Chen (Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings).

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire opens in theaters on April 12, 2024.