Make Godzilla Scary Again (And Hire Clive Barker For The Job)
By Rachel Davis
Most "Godzilla" fans regard Roland Emmerich's 1998 American remake as an abomination. It's a fun movie, but Emmerich was the wrong guy for the job. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the director admitted that he wasn't interested in the project from the get-go, and his lack of respect for the franchise's legacy shows. Sure, the creature in Emmerich's movie is reawakened by radiation, similar to its Japanese counterpart, but that's where the similarities end.
Before Emmerich was offered the gig, filmmakers such as Jan de Bont, Tim Burton, and Clive Barker were in talks to helm the blockbuster. Barker's pitch, in particular, was seemingly too dark and horrific for studio executives to consider, but that's hardly surprising considering that he made "Hellraiser." That said, his idea sounds like a real bona fide "Godzilla" movie: the story would have taken place during the final days of 1999 and explored the theme of Y2K panic, with Godzilla serving as the apocalyptic harbinger of destruction. For whatever reason, the studio didn't want to bankroll a Barker monster movie that tapped into contemporary moral panics, and that's a shame.
Hollywood has found success with "Godzilla" movies since Legendary brought him back in 2014. "Godzilla," followed by "Godzilla: King of the Monsters," and "Godzilla vs. Kong" honor many elements of the original Toho flicks, and they are lots of fun. But doesn't an apocalyptic Clive Barker "Godzilla" movie sound way more interesting than more movies about monsters laying the smackdown on each other? It isn't too late to hire Barker to write a script for a "Godzilla" movie either, but Hollywood is too scared of his imagination.
