Reports from Deadline state that Mari Yamamoto, who recently featured in Pachinko, has joined Legendary’s Monsterverse and will appear in the unnamed television spinoff for Apple TV+ in an unannounced capacity. Some of the already revealed cast members include Kurt Russell (The Hateful Eight), Wyatt Russell (Falcon and the Winter Soldier; John Walker), and Elisa Lasowski (Somer’s Town), with Yamamoto, set to join them. The cast also includes Ren Watabe (461 Days of Bento), Kiersey Clemons (Dope), and Joe Tippett (who just appeared in F9) (Mare of Easttown).
The cast’s roles in the as-yet-untitled programme have been kept under wraps out of respect for the performers’ privacy. We don’t know much about the programme just yet, but we do know that it takes place after Godzilla’s fight in San Francisco and follows a family as they try to learn the truth about the monsters and their connection to the shadowy organisation known only as Monarch.
Chris Black and Matt Fraction’s project is still in development, so more information about it will likely be made public as the premiere date draws near. Godzilla, released in 2014, marked the beginning of a new era for the Monsterverse franchise. Following the success of the first film in the franchise, King Kong: Skull Island, a stand-alone entry in the same world, was released to similarly enthusiastic reviews. In 2019, a Godzilla sequel named Godzilla: King of the Monsters stomped its way into theatres to mixed reviews. However, the Monsterverse roared back stronger than ever in 2021 with the release of Godzilla versus Kong, which pitted the two titular titans against each other in the ultimate fight.
Another instalment is now in production and scheduled for release on March 15, 2024, thus the franchise shows no signs of stopping down. The universe of the titans is growing with the announcement of a live-action television series; fans are already making predictions about what old and new monsters will make an appearance. No specific date has been announced for the debut of the as-yet-unnamed Monsterverse series.