Director Matt Shakman discusses working with Toho & Legendary, whether they follow the comics, Titan-sized set pieces, and bringing on Kurt Russell.
The Big Picture In Apple TV+’s highly anticipated new 10-episode series, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, co-creators and executive producers Chris Black and Matt Fraction take legacy to a whole new level. Taking place as part of Legendary’s MonsterVerse, Monarch is set as a direct sequel series to Gareth Edwards’ Godzilla but spans generations, dating back to the 1950s, and stars Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell, who both play Army officer Lee Shaw as the link to the mysterious program.
MATT SHAKMAN: A bunch of smart people who are excited about telling different stories and about being ambitious. They're great collaborators, they're passionate about what they're doing, and for a show like this to take a big swing, to travel internationally. We shot in Tokyo, we shot in Vancouver, Canada, we shot in Hawaii; we moved all over the place just to get the scope and scale to tell the story right.
SHAKMAN: Chris Black and Matt Fraction, I have to give them all the credit because they developed the show. They created this version of the show, and they worked hand in hand with Legendary because there's a lot of mythology to wrap our heads around. So they very carefully constructed a show that could work within the existing mythology of the films we've seen and the films we're going to see.
First of all, getting Kurt and Wyatt to play these characters is genius because it's just so good. How did that come about, actually, and was it ever gonna be two different actors? SHAKMAN: No, there's definitely an evolution for sure. I mean, those parts were already important. It's a rich tapestry. I don't wanna ruin too much for people, but we're telling a multigenerational story, as I mentioned about legacy, and so it was already a really beautiful chess board, and all of these pieces come together in surprising ways, these characters interact and intersect in different ways, and so that character was a hugely important figure.
One of the things about this is, like everything, you're going to have a budget. We already know visual effects are gonna take money, and big visual effects are gonna take real money. So my question is, how much did you guys, in the writing process, say, “Okay, we're gonna be able to afford four major action set pieces in Season 1.
SHAKMAN: One of the great things about this was the chance to create new Titans, new monsters to add to the MonsterVerse. So, that's a part of it, using folks that we know and love from before is a part of it. I don't want to say too much so that you can be excited about what you see when you watch it.
SHAKMAN: Definitely have thought about it. I don't wanna say too much, but you know, the notion of legacy and generations dealing with things is part of what the show's DNA is. So, I think you can sort of imagine what might happen there.
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