Things stomp along slowly but steadily in the MonsterVerse. Godzilla vs. Kong, first announced , seemed all set for a streaming debut as of late 2020–but in the joint venture between Legendary Entertainment and Warner Media, the latter threw a massive wrench in the works with its surprise announcement in December that it would .
After a brewing legal clash and some back and forth in the intervening weeks, is now indicating the two companies are nearing a deal to resolve release plans for Godzilla vs. Kong. An agreement means the parties are close to averting a potential legal confrontation. is also reporting that a settlement seems likely, with Godzilla vs. Kong keeping its previously announced simultaneous theatrical and HBO Max release date on May 21.
Meanwhile, another battle between the companies is persisting over Denis Villeneuve’s Dune–whose Oct. 1 release still seems complicated. The to release digitally over theaters, placing blame in a Variety opinion piece on Warner Media’s parent company AT&T for “[hijacking] one of the most respectable and important studios in film history.”
“Streaming services are a positive and powerful addition to the movie and TV ecosystems,” Villeneuve wrote in . “But I want the audience to understand that streaming alone can’t sustain the film industry as we knew it before COVID. Streaming can produce great content, but not movies of Dune’s scope and scale.”
