Guillermo del Toro on Why Steven S. DeKnight Replaced Him as Director for 'Pacific Rim 2'
Guillermo del Toro is one of the most highly acclaimed film directors today, that's why fans were disappointed to know that "Pacific Rim 2" would proceed without him sitting in the director's chair. "Daredevil" showrunner Steven S. DeKnight has taken his place as the director of "Pacific Rim: Uprising."
In his interview with Collider, del Toro talked about the second season of his Netflix cartoon series "Trollhunters" and explained why Legendary Pictures went with DeKnight for the upcoming "Pacific Rim" project. According to the film director, it was all about poor timing.
"The timing started to suck. I had this little movie that I wanted to do — 'The Shape of Water' — very, very much. At one point it was 'Justice League Dark' or 'Pacific Rim,' I said, 'Let's go to Pacific Rim.' The reality is they said, 'We're gonna need to postpone,'" explained del Toro.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
The postponement was due to changing hands. That time, Legendary Pictures was set to be sold to Chinese company Wanda Group. He said the studio told him to wait for nine months, but he could not afford to wait that long since he was already set to shoot "The Shape of Water." Ultimately, Legendary Pictures decided to tap DeKnight to do "Pacific Rim 2."
Despite abandoning the directorial post, del Toro is still the producer of the film. He is also said to be taking a hands-off approach to producing so DeKnight can tell the story that he needs to tell. He said he only gets involved when DeKnight asks him directly.
Del Toro said he has already seen footage trickle in and he's excited for what "Pacific Rim 2" would look like down the road. He teased that the movie would be great now that DeKnight is at its helm.
"Pacific Rim: Uprising" is set for release on Feb. 23, 2018.
