Universal and Legendary Pictures will have to do without an Oscar winner and an Oscar nominee. Because, thanks to a change in the filming schedule, both J.K. Simmons and Michael Keaton have had to leave **Kong: Skull Island.
That means Tom Hiddleston is, at least for the immediate future, the only person set to charter a voyage to the giant ape-inhabited isle, though the producers and director Jordan Vogt-Roberts are already out in the wilds with giant casting nets looking to capture two new co-stars.
The film finds a team of explorers venturing deep into the island’s jungles in search of its mysterious creatures and, most likely, getting much more than they bargained for. Universal, in turn, will be hoping that the presence of huge beasts lumbering around an island threatening to eat people will bring the Jurassic World crowd out.
Vogt-Roberts was originally planning to kick off production in the autumn, but that has now moved back a few weeks to closer to the end of the year. According to Deadline the film’s release plan (March 10, 2017 currently here) shouldn’t be affected. Both of the actors are in demand at the moment: Keaton (his voice at least) is on screens in Minions and he’s worked on Spotlight and The Founder. Simmons is in Terminator Genisys, which is just arriving now, and he’s part of Worlds Apart,** The Accountant**, Meddler, Kung Fu Panda 3, The Lake and thriller TV series Counterpart.