Legendary Entertainment is looking to dip back into the prequel well after giving Dune a prequel series with Max’s Dune: Prophecy. Deadline reports that an origin story for Guillermo del Toro’s Pacific Rim is in the works at the indie studio from Eric Heisserer (Shadow and Bone, Bird Box).
The prequel is part of a first-look deal with Heisserer and Chronology, his recently launched production company with Carmen Lewis, who has signed with Legendary to work on IP and related projects.
Pacific Rim was originally released in theaters here in the United States on July 12, 2013 in 3D and IMAX 3D, stomping its way to $411 million at the worldwide box office.
In the film, “As a war between humankind and monstrous sea creatures wages on, a former pilot and a trainee are paired up to drive a seemingly obsolete special weapon in a desperate effort to save the world from the apocalypse.”
Del Toro’s movie spawned the feature film sequel Pacific Rim Uprising in 2018, and the world was also expanded upon with an animated series from Netflix titled “Pacific Rim: The Black.”
Heisserer most recently served as the showrunner, executive producer and writer on Netflix series Shadow and Bone. He previously wrote the Netflix horror movie Bird Box, the Denis Villeneuve-directed sci-fi thriller Arrival, and the surprisingly great prequel Final Destination 5. So the scribe is no stranger to navigating genre prequels.
“Eric is a multitalented, prolific creator whose track record of critical and commercial successes speaks for itself,” said Jason Clodfelter, President of Legendary Television. “We are thrilled to launch our partnership with Eric, Chronology, and Carmen, with a new entry in the epic, globally popular Pacific Rim universe.”
Stay tuned for news on this project as it develops.
