Legendary Pictures to Produce New Godzilla?

And let the rumors begin. A little fly on the wall has released news that Legendary Pictures (the company partially responsible for the little movie known as "The Dark Knight") is in negotiations to produce a brand new Godzilla film. Is this true?

When an insider asked Toho if this report had any legitimacy to it, they simply responded, "No comment." And added, "We're currently shopping around..." It sounds like Toho would have denied this outright if it weren't true. They're good at doing that. Even if it's true, however, this project is still a long way off as negotiations will no doubt take awhile if Toho is wanting to avoid another disaster like the 1998 movie.

There's also a fly on the wall spitting something about Weta hoping to do the effects work for Godzilla. For those keeping tabs on visual effects, that's the company that ditched out "The Lord of the Rings" beasts. But lets ignore that rumor based on the fact we don't even know if this movie is being made yet.

So why should I, a lifelong Godzilla fan, be excited about this? Am I not afraid another mistake like the 1998 debacle will be born? A few things to divert that fear: First, we've reached a point in film making where studios, crew members...etc... are actually paying attention to what fans want and thus, to avoid scrutiny, stay close to the source material. Why would it be much different for this new Godzilla, especially after the source-straying movie from 1998 bombed with both critics and fans?

The next fear stopper is simply the charm that some franchises have today. "Star Trek," "Iron Man," and yes, even that "Transformers" seem to have a spark audiences really take too and embrace. Whether they should or not is a different discussion altogether. But I can see a Godzilla movie, if done right, that can grab that same attention from audiences and receive enough love to continue as a franchise.

And finally, it's been nearly five years since the last Godzilla outing "Godzilla: Final Wars." Being use to the franchise's long list of movies, it feels uncomfortable to not add more titles on a regular basis. Similar to the James Bond franchise, you just can't go too long with out adding another Godzilla title. In short, I hope this Legendary Pictures deal moves forward and I hope I, and my fellow G-Fans, receive the American Godzilla movie we dreamt of over a decade ago.