Pacific Rim 2 Gets a 2015 Greenlight

Director Guillermo del Toro also hints at Pacific Rim 3.

Although one of the best action films of 2013, Pacific Rim didn't exactly destroy the competition, taking in a paltry $101m domestically. That it did three times that overseas is the only reason why Director Guillermo del Toro has even been able to hint at a sequel. Luckily, he no longer needs to dream about it. According to Collider.com, a sequel to the robot-kaiju flick will begin filming sometime in 2015 with a release date in 2017.

This shouldn't come as a surprise, considering Legendary Pictures already announced an animated series which will probably focus on the early years of the conflict. But now, details are beginning to emerge about the sequel: again speaking with Collider, del Toro revealed that filming is slated to begin November or December of next year, and that Co-writer Zak Penn has been working with him on a script. But it was his direct quote about the plot that has fans excited:

"Some of your favorite characters come back, some others don’t because we have decided that we’re going to shoot ambitiously and say ‘Let’s hope we have three movies,’ so some characters come in at the end of the second, hoping that it will ramp up on the third one.”

The suggestion of a cliffhanger is appealing, especially considering that stars Charlie Hunnam and Rinko Kikuchi would likely return to star in the PR2, and that del Toro would hold back other character for a proposed third film.

With the success of 2014's Godzilla, there is a good chance del Toro will be able to stretch his wings (and not that of Ochati) to expand a universe with seemingly unlimited potential. For now, the sequel is planned and perhaps more if the domestic market can show up to prove that kaiju movies are here to stay.

Pacific Rim 2 smashes into theaters on April 7, 2017.

Discuss this story with fellow SJF fans on Facebook. On Twitter, follow us at @SandwichJohnFilms, and follow author Matt Cummings at @mfc90125.