MOVIECOLLECTION.JP TRANSLATION:1,200 people go crazy over Tom

1,200 people go crazy over Tom, Samuel and the others! 『Kong』 Japan Premiere

The 『GODZILLA』 production team revived King Kong, which has shined brightly through movie history, in the movie 『Kong: Skull Island』, which had it’s Japan premiere held on March 15 at Shinjuku Kabukicho’s Godzilla Road. It was attended by Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, and Brie Larson, the cast members of the movie, and GACKT and Sasaki Nozomi, the Japanese dub cast members. Around 1,200 people were gathered along the red carpet that was laid out at the venue to send their cheers to the members of the cast.

This movie, where an expedition team was sent to Skull Island, an isolated island in the Pacific, to confirm the existence of unknown creatures there but ends up encountering the gigantic creatures lurking on the island, is the 2nd work in the 「MonsterVerse」 series (the first work is 2014’s 『GODZILLA』), that depicts the battle between man and monster.

The movie 『Godzilla VS. Kong』, which has Godzilla and King Kong confronting each other, is planned for release in 2020, and a Godzilla head was turned into a landmark at the venue of Shinjuku Kabukicho’s Godzilla Road where the red carpet event was held.

Hiddleston, Jackson, and Larson, who came to Japan for the red carpet, happy obliged to the requests of autographs and pictures from the fans who were lined up along the road despite the cold wind blowing, and brought great excitement to the venue.

After that, on the stage that was set up right under the Godzilla head, Hiddleston said with a smile 「This is my first time in Japan and I wanted to say, thank you for the warm welcome. I’m also very excited to be standing below Godzilla」. Also, Larson, who came to Japan a year ago for the promotion of the movie 『Room』, said, 「Tokyo is my favourite city in the world」, and Jackson too, who was last in Japan 5 years ago for 『Avengers』, commented jokingly 「It’s awesome being here! In this movie, we have a beautiful, handsome guy, and me」, getting the venue excited.

GACKT, who is the voice actor dubbing for Hiddleston’s character James Conrad, praised the movie, saying 「It’s a different King Kong from what everyone imagines, it’s fast. If I may say, it’s 20 times more interesting than 『Jurassic Park』」. Having met Hiddleston in person, GACKT recalled the experience, saying 「I think he’s a really good man up close. And Samuel was funny and friendly」. In addition, Hiddleston asked 「What do you recommend (to do in Japan)?」, to which GACKT answered 「(Shinjuku’s bar district) What about going to Golden Gai?」. Hiddleston looked excited as he said 「That sounds fantastic!」.

On the other hand, Sasaki, who dubbed for Larson’s character Mason Weaver, said with a satisfied expression 「As this was my first time dubbing, it was difficult but there’s a sense of urgency in the movie until the end of it, and it’s thrilling. There’s tension too, and I think that it’s enjoyable to watch」. With a smile on her face, Sasaki recounted her experience of meeting Larson, saying 「In the movie, her character is a cool and strong-willed woman. And she’s lovable too. Despite that she was very friendly when we met. I’ve become a big fan」.