#pacific rim draft script

[kaijuposting]

The Pacific Rim Draft Script: Who The Heck Is Newt Gotlieb?

Some of you may have heard (or even read it on Travis Beacham's blog) that Newt Geiszler and Hermann Gottlieb were originally one character. And indeed, in the Pacific Rim draft script, we can find a guy named Newt Gotlieb.

But if we read through the script, we can see that this an oversimplified statement. Newt Gotlieb has a different vibe from the both of them, and it's very obvious that Newt Geiszler was strongly influenced by another character.

Newt Gotlieb is a particle physicist who works for the Calixto Particle Observatory near Lima, Peru. At some point before the story, he began e-mailing Felicity "Flick" Kincaid, reporter and former girlfriend of Yancy Antrobus, who wants to uncover the mysteries of the kaiju and maybe even find a way to stop them. But it seems he got cold feet, because whenever Flick tried to e-mail him for more information, his replies were "vague and infrequent."

Finally, Flick tracked him down to his workplace. Here's his introduction and first scene:

INT. MAIN CORRIDOR -- CONTINUOUS Flick enters the dim hallway, relieved to be in from the cold. No sound save for the BUZZ of fluorescent lights and the ghostly CROONING of the wind outside. She spots a man come out into the hallway and linger, engrossed by his clipboard. He wears headphones, listening to music. He hasn't noticed her.

He's NEWT GOTLIEB (33) -- a lanky, unkempt academic with scruffy brown hair and an impish grin. Geekishly cute in his own peculiar way. Flick attempts to get his attention.

FLICK Excuse me… (he doesn't hear) Excuse me! Finally he looks up and takes off the headphones.

FLICK (CONT’D) I got an e-mail from someone here in reference to an article I'm --

NEWT You're Felicity Kincaid.

FLICK You can call me Flick… And you must be gotlieb @ calixto.org?

NEWT No. No, I'm not.

She glances at nametag on his lanyard: "Gotlieb." He relents.

NEWT (CONT’D) What are you doing here?

FLICK You e-mailed me. “I have info relevant to your investigation.” That’s what you said.

NEWT I figured you probably got stuff like that all the time.

FLICK I don’t. How substantial is it?

NEWT I don’t know. But I know COSDEC’s got it too, and I know they don’t talk about it.

FLICK All the more reason to have this conversation in person, right?

He turns to go.

(A quick note - "COSDEC" stands for "Combined Special Defense Corp." It's essentially an older version of the PPDC.)

Newt Gotlieb also works with a "stout, bespectacled scientist" named Myron Toynbee. Toynbee is glad that Newt e-mailed Flick, because there's some hot scientific data they're sitting on that Toynbee would rather the world know about. Eleven years ago, Gotlieb and Toynbee worked for a Doctor Ivo Czerny, who discovered that the kaiju were coming from a portal leading to a parallel universe. Soon Czerny got a call from COSDEC and went to work for their sci-division... until one day, they exiled him to the Australian outback.

Flick decides to talk to Doctor Czerny, and Newt follows after.

Across the lobby, Newt enters off the street, looking lost. He cranes his to scan the casual crowd of GUESTS. He searches and finally spots Flick at the front desk. He beams.

NEWT Hey! I caught you.

Finished with both her transactions, Flick hangs up and turns, a bit surprised to see Newt.

FLICK What are you doing here?

NEWT Well, I was thinking -- You're going to need some help.

FLICK You're bold all of a sudden.

NEWT I got you into this. I feel like I need to own up to that.

Before they can leave for Australia, a kaiju attacks and the pair of them have to avoid getting squished. After escaping, Newt cleans Flick's wounds; Flick abruptly insists that they'll never have a relationship, and Newt plays ignorant.

They reach Doctor Czerny, who reveals that the Interstice is a portal to an older, dying universe. He believes that the Precursors used a particle accelerator to create a new universe - our universe. When Czerny refuses to give Newt and Flick more answers, the pair of them poke around his place.

Flick picks her way into a quonset hut, but she's caught by Czerny, who reveals how he learned this information: he drifted with a kaiju brain. He lets Flick drift with the kaiju brain he has.

While this is going on, Newt discovers Czerny's data on the Interstice, and discovers what appears to be a weak point. Czerny, who has made up his mind that there's simply no stopping the Precursors, attempts to blow the whole place up with a nuke to try and stop Newt from bringing false hope to the world. He attacks Newt, but Newt escapes and rescues Flick before the bomb can go off. (It's quite obvious that this inspired the scene of Hermann rescuing Newt in the film.)

Flick reveals that she learned through her drift with a kaiju brain that the Interstice is stabilizing, which means that the weak point Newt discovered can be targeted. The pair of them take their discovery to COSDEC. The scene where Newt explains the Interstice's weakness is very similar to the scene where Hermann explains how he believes that detonating a nuke in the breach will close it.

Mako and Raleigh close the Interstice, and Newt holds onto Flick as they wait to find out whether they survived.

I'm sure you've noticed that Flick has quite a lot in common with Newt Geiszler, and that her interactions with Newt Gotlieb strongly mirror interactions between Newt Geiszler and Hermann Gottlieb. So while I would say that this statement that Newt and Hermann used to be one character isn't exactly wrong, I would also propose that it's just as accurate (if not more accurate) to say that Newt used to be a gal - until Guillermo del Toro transed his gender.

[driftwithme]

Seeing the script draft is so weird but cool.

I love seeing the little parts and recognizing how they morphed into the final movie. Like how the therapy session when Raleigh said he wantes to bury the past and be at peace (I am not a driver anymore) became Raleigh on the Kaiju Wall. Or how at first the scene he watched on the tv around the lobby was one of a destroyed jaeger. Mako (who is 22 years old and Raleigh is 23 years old), is already a full j-pilot walking out, since she just lost her co-pilot in the attack. That scene changed into the Striker Eureka victory and Chuck's interview!

[monsterblogging]

How Pacific Rim 2013 is about killing the gods, and why we need to accept this

After years of researching the development of Pacific Rim, and learning more about its creators, I've reached a conclusion.

You cannot truly understand the narrative of Pacific Rim until you can wrap your head around the idea the kaiju are divine beings, their creators are functionally gods, and (at least sometimes), gods need to be killed.

This sentiment can be traced all the way back to Travis Beacham's draft script, where the Precursors were explicitly revealed as the creators of our universe, who made it so they could move here from their own dying universe. The script very deliberately codes them as gods, as evidenced in these quotes:

RALEIGH There’s things you just can’t fight. Acts of God or whatever. Like you see a hurricane coming, you just have to get out of the way, you know? But when you’re in a Jaeger, suddenly you can draw a line in the sand. You can fight the hurricane -- and you can win.

CZERNY Because I had to be quarantined. I looked into the abyss. I’d been infected with the truth -- that this is the end of us. We are the vermin of the gods. There’s no point in putting up a fight...

TAKADA I don't have it... We all know it's a siege. What can I say they don't already know? We call the enemy the Precursors... I may as well tellthe world the gods want us dead.

NEWT (CONT’D) I don't care if they are the creators of the universe. I like the universe. She leans her head on the seat and watches him with a pining look in her eyes. He turns to add with a chuckle -- NEWT (CONT’D) And I'm not a creationist.

The draft script is not fucking around. The Precursors are gods, and they must be slain.

The final movie retains the "acts of God" line, but the Precursors are never explicitly called "gods" like this. However - the subtext is still there. For example, Hannibal Chau tells us what the kaiju cultists believe:

HANNIBAL CHAU Look at 'em. They believe the Kaiju are sent from heaven. That the gods are expressing their displeasure with our behavior. The silly bastards.

The film also shows us kaiju sisters, who are very clearly meant to evoke Catholic sisters with their cornettes. And of course, we can't forget the kaiju church building.

And then there's the Precursors themselves, whom we only get a brief, blurry glance at. But their design had intention behind it, as we learn in Pacific Rim: Man, Machines, & Monsters (emphasis mine):

"When I was a kid," says del Toro, "we used to catch these bugs in the pool. They had a translucent, hard shell and you could see their organs. I wanted the design to evoke that. Wayne Barlowe and Keith Thompson worked the final design. We gave the Precursors elements of ecclesiastical royalty, dividing them into cardinals and bishops."

For anyone who doesn't know, del Toro is an ex-Catholic whose grandmother tried to exorcise him over his interest in monsters, and made him wear bottlecaps in the bottoms of his shoes as penance for his perceived sins. And Guillermo del Toro isn't shy about expressing anti-authoritarian sentiments. (Pan's Labyrinth and Pinocchio are very strongly anti-authoritarian films.)

Pacific Rim is using the godkilling trope the exact same way a lot of Japanese media does it: personifying corrupting ideologies and corrupt institutions as malefic gods that humanity must rise up against and destroy. (If you want to learn more about this, Moon Channel's video Why Do You Always Kill Gods In JRPGs? goes into this in detail.)

Where other western media that involves killing gods often aims to avoid controversy by reassuring its audiences that the god or gods being killed are false gods, or by targeting gods largely considered discredited (such as actual pagan gods, or fictional gods modeled on them), Pacific Rim refuses to pander to western Christian sensibilities in this way.

Had Guillermo del Toro had his way, this would have gone on to resemble the Japanese usage of this trope even more, where said divinities often are former humans, or are the product of human activity. He'd planned to reveal that the Precursors were humanity from the future:

And then we found out that the precursors are us thousands of years in the future. They’re trying to terraform, trying to re-harvest the earth to survive. (Source.)

Unfortunately, this didn't happen. The sequel to Pacific Rim was handed off to another director, and the Precursors were re-coded as demonic. All of the socio-political criticism embedded in the first movie were gutted - and I don't think it's any coincidence that the uberconservative weirdos I've been seeing in this fandom focus on it more than the first movie. (And if they aren't focused on Uprising, they're focused on The Black, which is even worse. I will suffice it here to say that The Black was practically tailor-made to attract young chuds. And while not everyone I've met who actually likes it was a chud, every one of them had extremely low media literacy.)

You see, when you remove Beacham and del Toro's careful symbolism and coding, the Precursors become nothing more than a vague enemy that you can project anyone onto. Hyperconservatives are free to compare the Precursors to whatever boogyman they've decided threatens Christianity and/or Western civilization, and engage in fantasies of using militaristic force to destroy them.

Failing to recognize or choosing to ignore how Pacific Rim uses the godkilling trope to criticize authoritarian religious institutions and late-stage capitalism is how a film directed by two anti-fascist creators gets twisted into a fascism-affirming narrative. And that, I think most of us can agree, is a problem.

[ginkasei]

"They linger atop the floating pod, holding tight to one another, not daring to let go.

We pull back, letting the blue ocean unfurl under us. The ships slowly approach the embracing pair. They never let go."

[newtliker]

the original draft of the pacific rim script is so strange and offputting

[avelera]

Just skimming the Old Guard comic and it really does highlight the strength of having the writer on the script team for the film as well as taking a second look at the story. The movie as a result really feels like a third draft and adds a lot of polish. The bones are there in the comic, but I’d argue almost every scene gets improved in the film.

- Having the movie open with the team dying so we can circle back to them coming back to life. It bypasses the need for verbal exposition on the fact they’re immortal in favor of raising a question for the audience to sink their teeth into, then showing how they come back to life. Meanwhile, the comic opens with Andy sleeping with multiple partners as a sign of her world weariness. Besides feeling very male-gazey, it doesn’t actually add anything to the themes of the story. A woman having multiple partners hasn’t been shocking since the 60s, nothing new is told with this about the story or about Andy. Her sex life is largely irrelevant to the story from that point forward.

- Nile’s introduction is reinforced by having her be active in resisting her own effective kidnapping in the film. She frees herself from the car, she stabs Andy (in the comic, Andy shoots herself to prove she’s immortal too), whereas in the comic there’s no fight on the plane. These new additions do a LOT of work in introducing us to Nile as a person and as a strong, effective protagonist, an equal to other members of the team from the outset.

- The safe house in the comic is basically a crack house. But that idea really is not that edgy anymore, imo, hasn’t been since it first became a cliche in the 90s. Nowadays it’s just kinda dated, tawdry, sad, and frankly classist. Whereas the abandoned church plays well to the movie themes of faith and timelessness, it reinforces the idea of our heroes being historic relics from time just like their home and serves as a beautiful backdrop for various scenes. It makes their safe house feel homey, which turns the Old Guard from kind of sketchy people Nile would be justified in escaping ASAP, into people we the audience also want to spend time with by having their home be a place we want to go, that has a sense of magic to it. This serves to strengthen the story’s overall appeal.

- Merrick is kind of just a violent rich punk in the comic. He’s got tattoos, a bad attitude, and acts like the tired stereotype of a gang member. A cleaned up pharma wunderkind is much more threatening in this day and age in terms of sheer body count, and it’s more shocking when he has that moment of violence where he seems to enjoy stabbing Joe, whereas in the comic the violent punk seeming to enjoy randomly stabbing his prisoner just doesn’t land as all that shocking a turn. The comic also has Dr Kozak as a kinda stereotypical male scientist with chunky glasses, reminiscent of Newt Geiszler from Pacific Rim (which kinda made me hate it when they killed him in the comic). Having the doctor be a woman breaks the sexism cliche and having the scientist live breaks a lot of tired, anti-intellectual action movie cliches around evil doctors being killed as an act of vengeance by the protagonists (now, we may see later whether or not that was a good move, but at least it made sense that some bad guys would get away in the chaos by FLEEING FOR THEIR LIVES IMMEDIATELY). 

[scarlet--wiccan]

re the pacrim anon - iirc the main jaeger was supposed to be named after some kind of world war engine that was really powerful, but honestly even if you knew that, the name is still offensive to use, no matter the intention. they had the chance to rename it in the sequel but not doing so spoke volumes to me (esp when a lot of people had spoken up about the name well before it)

whooo girl, I was not expecting the PacRim discourse to get this hot! 

In the mid-1900s, de Havilland produced a series of engines with names such as “Gipsy Moth,” or “Gipsy King.” So, the robot may have been named after a historical aircraft engine. I can understand why Beacham, the screenwriter, would look at such references when naming the Jaeger mechas, but he could have chosen... literally anything else. Anybody-- an editor, a producer, even del Toro himself-- could have made note, at any point during pre-production, that this name was inappropriate and suggested a change. Maybe somebody did, and they got shot down!

Beacham claims to have been totally ignorant to this issue when making the film, but early drafts of the film’s script reveal that he was drawing on specific details of both racial stereotypes and real Roma language. This actually reminds me of how Elizabeth Olsen feigns ignorance about her Avengers character being whitewashed, when we know that she, Whedon, and the Wanda/Vision showrunners have drawn on specific stereotypes, and made references to specific source material, which prove otherwise.

According to the PacRim wiki:

In the original screenplay for Pacific Rim, Gipsy Danger's key signifier and namesake was the image of a pinup decal featuring a "buxom Gipsy riding a bomb". Respectively, its pilots, "Raleigh Antrobus" and Mako Mori, were referred to as "Roma 1" or "Roma 2", "Roma" being the colloquial term for the Romani people of Europe, the Americas and Asia.

When Beacham was contacted on the matter of part of the name's definition on his twitter account, he claimed that he named Gipsy Danger after the pre-World War II aircraft engine, de Havilland Gipsy, designed by Frank Halford. He apologized, saying that his knowledge of the term's definition was "context-specific" and that he was unfamiliar with the pejorative use and promised to "be more careful" in future.

[inquisitoradaar]

i found a pdf of the first draft of the pacific rim script and my god. i am so fucking thankful gdt got involved

[maevesdarling]

Secrets from the Drift

This is an AU based on my all time favorite movie, Pacific Rim, in which Javier and Steve are jaeger pilots. Their jaeger's name is Black María, after the one from GDT's original idea for the second movie. Black María was supposed to be piloted by a latin couple but was written out of the script when GDT dropped out of the movie, but I really liked it, so I decided to give it a second life in this short snippet. Maybe, if I find the time, there'll be another installment, because Pacific Rim AUs are one of my favorites and I can't get enough of this pairing. This was written back in March or April this year but I forgot I had it in my drafts. Sorry!!!

Pairing: Steve Murphy/Javier Peña

Rating: Mature

~~~

He's exhausted when the jaeger makes it back to the Shatterdome, sweat clinging to his skin and a tired burn behind his eyes. From what he can tell through their shared connection, Javi isn't feeling any better.

"Hey buddy, you alright?" He asks, forcing himself to take another step and another, their jaeger, Black María, slowly hobbling back towards it's place in the dome, where a bunch of mechanics where waiting to repair her. 

Javier grunted his response, too fixated on keeping his body in motion. It was only their third successful mission, but this time was different. This was their first solo mission, the battle had taken over six hours. Now, the remains of the category three kaiju where drifting towards the coast of Panama, where a clean up team was already waiting to salvage what they could. Black María had taken a few bad hits, damaging the right leg and some of the weapon systems which caused the jeager to limp through the shallow water, not one but two alarms constantly going off in the cockpit, still, they were alive and that was all that mattered.

The moment they came to a halt, a sudden rush of emotions crashed over Steve, threatening to overwhelm him. He could feel that these feelings weren't his, but Javier's, projected onto him through their shared bond. Images started flashing in front of his eyes, Javi and him on the day they first met, a late night sparring session, the first time Javi saw him in full armor, he had never realized how open Javi had oogled him when he appeared in the jaeger cockpit, all wide eyed and still wet behind the ears, but now it was like somebody had forced him to open his eyes to the inevitable.

Javi was in love with him.

"J- Javi-" He gasped, it felt emotionally overwhelming, to be bombarded with all these emotions, tears threatened to spill from his eyes. He threw a glance at the dark haired man, Javier looked like he was about to be sick, he had never seen him that pale, not even after their first battle. "Javi, calm down… It's okay. It's okay, I understand…"

The love he had felt just seconds before was making way for panic. "Steve, I'm sorry. I'm so fucking sorry! I didn't meant to-"

"Shhh…" He unhooked himself from the cables he'd been latched onto and crossed the distance between them, pulling his helmet off as he went.

"Javi look at me. Fucking look at me!" He grabbed his co-pilots face in his hands and forced him to look him in his eyes.

"I love you too, you stupid bastard! Okay? I love you! I've loved you since the day I got here and you volunteered to show me around! I love you even though you're side of the room looks like a bomb has gone off, I love you even though you eat the food I store in the fridge for myself, I love you even though you always use up all the hot water when you shower! I love you!" 

He pulled the other man's helmet off and pressed a quick kiss to Javi's lips. The dark haired man sobbed loudly, pulling him closer.

"I didn't wanted you to see me like this… God, it's pathetic. I'm so… pathetic. I shouldn't feel like this. You- you have Connie…"

"Connie loves you too, Javi. We both do. There's more than enough space in my heart for both of you."

They smiled, resting their foreheads against each other. 

"You smell." Javi teased after a while.

"Yeah? You too. Let's get out of these suits and take a shower… Together."

"I like the sound of that."

They exited the jaeger together, not bothering about the stares. Half of the j-tech department probably heard their love declaration, and those who hadn't would soon be informed by their colleagues. Everyone loved gossip, even during the apocalypse.

They were stopped on their way by Colonel Carrillo and his new drift partner, Trujillo. 

"Well… Congratulations." He clasped both of them on their armored shoulders. "I've always knew there was more to you two than friendship. Good to see you figured yourselves out."

"Yeah." Javi said, almost possessively pulling Steve closer by his waist.

"Talk to Gaviria when you can. I'm sure he'd like to be informed…" The colombian gave them both a knowing smile. "He won't mind."

"Sure. If you'll excuse us."

Giggling like school boys, they practically ran the rest of the way back to their room. "Did you see Carrillo's face? 'I've always knew there was more between you two' fucking bullshit, I tell you he was just as surprised as the rest of them." Javier mocked.

"So? I heard some of the ladies at J-tech started crying because you're officially off the market, Peña."

"Yeah? Well I heard-" Before he could go on, Steve was kissing him again, more passionately this time. They blindly fumbled with the door, somehow managing to open and close it behind them without even looking.

"I want you out of this suit and in the shower in five. Go." Javier rasped, pulling apart to catch his breath.

And fuck, if that wasn't the hottest thing Steve had heard in a while. He rushed to get out of his armored suit, throwing most of it onto the floor as he went, before he rushed into the bathroom, turning on the hot water. The small room was instantly starting to fill up with thick dunst. 

He waisted no time to get into the shower, washing his body with some lotion he found. 

"Did you start without me?" A very much naked Peña teased as he entered the bathroom, sending shivers down Steve's spine.

"Maybe…"

"Fuck- do you know how long I've been planning on doing this? You're driving me insane, Murphy." The dark haired man said as he stepped into the spray of water.

"Back at ya." Steve retorted, backing up until his his back was pressed against the wet tiles.

"I want you." Peña said in a low voice, cornering the blonde man. His hands were resting on either side of the wall.

"Then come and get me. I'm all yours." Steve answered, tilting his head so that their mouths were angling perfectly against each other.

This time, it wasn't just Javi that used up all the hot water, needles to say they didn't make it out of the shower for some time and when they did they were both boneless and practically dead on their feet, stumbling towards Steve's bed like zombies.

"Can I-"

"Are you really asking me if you can cuddle with me after you just fucked my brains out, Javi?"

The dark haired man blushed slightly. "I actually wanted to ask if you could be the one cuddling me? I- I like to be the little spoon. Makes you feel safe." 

"I know. I- I saw you. In a memory." 

Warmth flooded his body. Affection, Love, Tranquility. They had always liked to spend time with each other but never like this, with their naked bodies tangled together in the sheets, water droplets running down their bodies, disappearing into dips and seeping into the bedspreads.

Tomorrow, they'd have to give their report to Gaviria, oversee all the repairs to their jeager and probably give an interview or two about their triumphant win, but tonight, they'd be sleeping soundly in each other's arms.

"I love you, Javi." Steve mumbled tiredly, on the verge of falling asleep.

"Love ya too, Murphy." Javi mumbled after some time. It was the last thing either of them said for some time as they slept peacefully together, holding each other close.

[festiveferret]

3. What do you think makes your writing stand out from other works? 6. What element of writing do you find comes easily? 12. Tell us about a WIP you’re excited about. 35. Ramble about any fic-related thing you want! (Maybe what’s the oddest thing you’ve ever researched for writing? Or even, how do you usually do your research?)

I did 3 for the last one, so I’ll do the others!

6. What element of writing do you find comes easily? 

Dialogue! I love dialogue. I write it in my head all the time. I love writing scripts. Sometimes I have to remember to slow down and add action and description instead of just forever writing dialogue 😅

12. Tell us about a WIP you’re excited about. 

Ooo. Lately, I’ve been mostly excited about a collab project, but I generally keep those secret, not knowing how the other feels so... Hmm. I’m excited about a plan I have for a Pacific Rim AU.  I have it all planned out. But I’m intimidated by getting the world-stuff right so it’s been slow going. I may end up needing some help with that one, haha. But I really hope it happens!

35. Ramble about any fic-related thing you want! (Maybe what’s the oddest thing you’ve ever researched for writing? Or even, how do you usually do your research?)

My usual approach to research is to leave [] in my story when I need to look something up, finish the whole draft, do a ctrl+F on my [] and then cry when there are 18 of them. Then google until I’m frustrated (four point three seconds), beg discord for help, and then usually make something up that doesn’t quite fit. I don’t like research!

Thank you!!

[kaijuposting]

In the Pacific Rim draft script, the Precursors actually started sending people nightmares to try and demoralize them. This doesn't appear to be a thing in the final version, but it sort of makes me wonder if the beings on the other side psychically reached out to people and that's one reason we have kaiju cultists.

[driftwithme]

Reading the script draft by Travis Beacham is is painful :( still I like how in both this script draft and the final movie, Pacifim Rim starts with Raleight and he's feelings.

Well, in the script draft first thing you hear is Yancy's voice celebrating the Kaiju they just "killed" and Raleigh worrying because maybe it can come back??? And it did.

[monsterblogging]

How Pacific Rim gives the finger to the Catholic Church

Another interesting thing that many people miss about Pacific Rim is that it has some... things to say about religion, especially the Catholic Church. It can be easy to miss because it's not all spelled out for you, but once you see it, you'll never unsee it.

First, let's take a look at Raleigh's speech from the beginning of the film:

There are things you can't fight, acts of God. You see a hurricane coming, you have to get out of the way. But when you're in a Jaeger, suddenly, you can fight the hurricane. You can win.

This speech here establishes that when you fight kaiju, you aren't just fighting monsters. You're defying God himself.

"You're reading too much into it!" some of you might say. "'Act of God' is just a legal term for massive disasters."

Ah, but I'm not reading too much into it. Because this line was originally found in the draft script, which was way more explicit in linking the Precursors with the divine.

In the draft script, the Precursors aren't just some random alien invaders. They're actually the creators of our universe, and we're just a pesky little accident that happened on the planet they want to live on.

The character of Ivo Czerny, who had drifted with a kaiju brain, was given this dialog:

I looked into the abyss. I’d been infected with the truth -- that this is the end of us. We are the vermin of the gods. There’s no point in putting up a fight…

A different character, Commander Kaz Takada, says:

We call the enemy the Precursors… I may as well tell the world the gods want us dead.

The character of Newt Gotlieb is given this dialog:

I don't care if they are the creators of the universe. I like the universe.

And I'm not a creationist.

So, Raleigh's line wasn't just a careless reference to a legal term. It was introducing the story's thesis.

In the final version of the film, we don't have all of this explicit dialog. And yet, the sentiment is still there. How do we know this? For one thing, the Precursors are modeled on Catholic clergy. Pacific Rim: Man, Machines, & Monsters, quotes Guillermo del Toro as saying:

We gave the Precursors elements of ecclesiastical royalty, dividing them into cardinals and bishops.

Fun fact: If we go to the old Art of Pacific Rim page on The Internet Archive and check the filenames, we can see that this Precursor - the one who stares up at Lady Danger as it goes 'splodey - is a Precursor Bishop.

(Screencaps from quiteunlikely.net)

Further establishing the link between the Precursors and the Catholic Church are the costumes of the BuenaKai nuns:

(Screencap from movie-screencaps.com)

A better picture of the costume can be found on PropstoreAuction. If you want to see the whole thing, go there; because I'm going to crop it because the whole thing's pretty big. Anyway, you can see that their costumes include cornettes and stoles.

(By the way, there are also kaiju monks. This isn't a girls-only club like the Netflix cartoon would have you think.)

Now, forget everything you know about Uprising or The Black, and consider all of this in the context of the anti-authority themes in Guillermo del Toro's other work. This casts the nature of the Precursors and the hivemind in a somewhat different light than many of us are used to. These aren't just scary aliens. This is a civilization built on ideals of rigid hierarchy and total dominion. And they're also essentially theocrats.

What's also really interesting is that when you take all of this together, it means that the kaiju spiritualists aren't actually wrong in regarding the kaiju as divine beings sent by the gods. They're just assholes for aligning themselves with a malefic divine.

[luimnigh]

One thing I love about Pacific Rim is that Raleigh is the main character by virtue of story focus, his story isn't the usual main hero one. He's actually the mentor figure.

It's Mako who gets the typical main character storyline, right up until the end where Raleigh detonates Gypsy solo.

I absolutely believe that in the original drafts of the script, Mako was probably the main character while Raleigh was the deuteragonist. And they probably were pressured by the studio to make Raleigh the protagonist.

And they did that by simply changing the story focus, giving us Mako's heroic arc while satiating the demands of the studio.

[sunriseverse]

Who are Steven and Travis and what’s the beef

steven: directed pacific rim: uprising. this speaks for itself i think.

travis: wrote the pacific rim (first movie) script. also the initial copy of the script had gems such as, oh, raleigh lowkey saying he didn’t save yancy because yancy was engaged to raleigh’s ex gf

(from the wiki on the draft script)

(if you want to hurt your brain, here’s the link the copy of the draft script)

[superdorkcat]

DCEU Movies in Development: A Master Post

Last Edited: May 01, 2019

Since Shazam! is coming out soon, I thought I’d make a master post of all the various DCEU movies in development. However, since there’s a huge amount of movies in development, I might miss one or two. Be sure to let me know if I do. 

Also, as a side-note, I broke Birds of Prey and Wonder Woman 1984 into three segments of story, crew, and cast, but since things are less clear in regards to The Batman, The Suicide Squad, and Aquaman 2, I wasn’t able to do the same for them.

Confirmed Release Dates:

Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) - February 7, 2020

The Story: Since the events of Suicide Squad, Batman has disappeared, leaving Gotham City unprotected from crime, and Harley Quinn has left the Joker. When Cassandra Cain, a young girl, comes across a diamond belonging to crime lord Black Mask, Harley joins forces with Black Canary, Huntress, and Renee Montoya to help protect her.

The Crew: Cathy Yan (director), Margot Robbie, Sue Kroll, Bryan Unkeless (producers), Christina Hodson (screenwriter), Matthew Libatique (cinematographer)

The Cast: Margot Robbie (Harley Quinn), Jurnee Smollett-Bell (Black Canary), Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Huntress), Rosie Perez (Renee Montoya), Ella Jay Basco (Cassandra Cain), Ewan McGregor (Black Mask), Chris Messina (Victor Zsasz)

Wonder Woman 1984 - June 5, 2020

The Story: Diana Prince comes into conflict with the Soviet Union during the Cold War in the 1980s, and finds a formidable foe in the form of the Cheetah.

The Crew: Patty Jenkins (director), Charles Roven, Deborah Snyder, Patty Jenkins, Stephen Jones, Gal Gadot (producers), Patty Jenkins, Geoff Johns, David Callaham (screenwriters), Patty Jenkins, Geoff Johns (writers), Hans Zimmer (composer), Matthew Jensen (cinematographer), and Richard Pearson (editor)

The Cast: Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman), Chris Pine (Steve Trevor), Kristen Wiig (Cheetah), Pedro Pascal (TBA), Connie Nielsen (Hippolyta), Robin Wright (Antiope)

The Batman - June 25, 2021

In October 2014, a Batman standalone film was announced by Warner Bros. By 2016, Ben Affleck was set to star in, produce, direct, and write the project. Geoff Johns and Chris Terrio were hired as co-writers. After various drafts of the script had been completed the film was moving towards beginning shooting by 2017, until Affleck stepped down as director that January. Affleck initially cited his intentions being to more specifically focus on starring as Batman, later acknowledging that after various attempts to get the script where he wanted it, it simply became "time to let someone else have a shot at it". In July 2017, Matt Reeves confirmed that the script was being rewritten: the final draft was completed by January 2019. Reeves reworked the story to focus on Batman earlier on in his career as a vigilante; he said the film will be character-driven and stylistically noir, and will explore the detective aspect of the character to a greater extent than previous films. In January 2019, Affleck confirmed he will not reprise his role as Batman, but remains involved as a producer. Principal photography is expected to begin in November 2019.

The Suicide Squad - August 6, 2021

In March 2016, a Suicide Squad sequel was announced to be in development, with David Ayer returning to direct. Adam Cozad was hired to write the script by March 2017. By July 2017, a new story treatment was written by Zak Penn. In September, Gavin O'Connor was hired as director after Ayer dropped out, as well as co-screenwriter with Anthony Tambakis, David Bar Katz and Todd Stashwick. The final draft of the script was completed in October 2018, though production was delayed due to conflicts with Will Smith's production schedule, followed by O'Connor leaving the project. Production was placed on hold as Warner Bros. believed the script was too similar to Birds of Prey. Charles Roven, Michael De Luca, Peter Safran, Geoff Johns, Richard Suckle, Dan Lin and Andy Horwitz will produce the film. In January 2019, the film was retitled The Suicide Squad, with James Gunn directing, from a new script he wrote. Gunn chose the project over various other films Warner Bros. has in development, including the Man of Steel sequel. In March, Idris Elba joined the cast. He was initially going to replace Smith, who dropped out due to scheduling conflicts, as Deadshot, but it was later decided that Elba would play a new character so Smith could return in the future. Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, Jai Courtney, and Viola Davis will reprise their roles as Harley Quinn, Rick Flag, Captain Boomerang, and Amanda Waller, respectively.  David Dastmalchian and Daniela Melchior were cast to portray Polka-Dot Man and Ratcatcher, respectively. John Cena is in talks to portray an as-of-yet unnamed role. Other members of the titular team include King Shark and Peacemaker. Production will begin in September 2019

Aquaman 2 - December 16, 2022

By December 2018, a sequel to Aquaman was in development. In October 2018, James Wan stated the first film intentionally left room for a follow up. Jason Momoa later revealed that he had an idea for the sequel, and had written the first act. The actor pitched the story to Warner Bros. through Toby Emmerich and producer Peter Safran, who were receptive. By December, high pre-release ticket sales and positive reception for the film had convinced Warner Bros. to begin developing a sequel. In January 2019, Warner Bros. confirmed development, with intentions for Wan to return as director. The following month, David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, co-writer of the first film, signed on as screenwriter. In March, Safran announced the film will explore the other Seven Kingdoms of Atlantis.

Unknown Release Dates:

The Flash

By July 2013, Greg Berlanti was developing a film that centered around the Barry Allen incarnation of the Flash. In October 2014, The Flash was announced with a scheduled 2018 release date. The initial script was drafted by Berlanti, Chris Brancato, Michael Green and Marc Guggenheim. In April 2015, a story treatment was written by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller based on the previous draft, with the intention being that the duo would also direct the film. Over the next two years, Seth Grahame-Smith and Rick Famuyiwa, had individually dropped out as directors of the project due to creative differences with the studio. In January 2017, Joby Harold was hired to do a page-one rewrite of the script, which previously had drafts written by Grahame-Smith and Famuyiwa. In July 2017, the title for the film was changed to Flashpoint, based on the comic book story arc of the same name. In March 2018, John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein were hired to co-direct. Zack Snyder, Alex Gartner, Geoff Johns, Dan Mazer, Richard Suckle, Deborah Snyder, Phil Lord, Chris Miller, Jon Berg, Denise Di Novi, and Michael Disco will serve as producers on the project. Dan Mazeau was brought on as co-writer, followed by Grahame-Smith and Brancato as additional screenwriters. The directors had initially announced the release of The Flash to be sometime during 2020, though production was delayed from April 2019 to later in the year for additional script work. By February 2019, Daley and Goldstein had contributed to the script with the film's star revealing that the plot will involve the Speed Force multiverse. Principal photography is scheduled take place in Atlanta, Georgia, and follow in Leavesden, Hertfordshire, England. In March, Ezra Miller was hired to co-write a new draft in a collaboration with Grant Morrison. The tone of the film is expected to be similar to Back to the Future. The Flash is on track to release in 2021.

Lobo

In September 2009, Warner Bros. announced that Guy Ritchie would direct a live-action adaptation. Variety described the premise: "Lobo is a seven-foot tall, blue-skinned, indestructible and heavily muscled antihero who drives a pimped out motorcycle, and lands on Earth in search of four fugitives who are bent on wreaking havoc. Lobo teams with a small town teenage girl to stop the creatures." Ritchie was scheduled to begin production of Lobo in early 2010 and bring an "irreverent, gruff tone" to the film as he did with previous films Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch, though the studio was reportedly aiming for a PG-13 rating from the Motion Picture Association of America. In early 2010, it was reported that Ritchie had left the project in order to pursue working on a sequel to his hit film Sherlock Holmes instead. The future of the movie was then put on hold. In 2012, Deadline reported that Brad Peyton would write and direct the film. In July 2012, Dwayne Johnson announced via Twitter that he was in talks with Joel Silver and Brad Peyton to portray Lobo, however on in February of the following year, Johnson left the project to play another villain from the DC Comics, Black Adam, in Shazam!. In March 2016, it was reported that Jason Fuchs will be writing the film's script. As of February 2018, DC Films is eying Michael Bay to direct the film inspired by the success of Tim Miller's Deadpool film. Fuchs is currently rewriting the script at Bay’s request so that the script can be lowered to under to under $200 million.

Justice League Dark

Rumors in November 2012 suggested that Guillermo del Toro was working on a Justice League Dark film titled Heaven Sent. It would feature Deadman, the Spectre, Swamp Thing, John Constantine, Phantom Stranger, Zatanna, Zatara, Sargon the Sorcerer, and Etrigan the Demon. Del Toro later confirmed in January 2013 that he was working on such a film, with the working title, Dark Universe, and was hiring a screenwriter. Del Toro revealed Swamp Thing, Constantine, The Spectre, Deadman, Zatanna and Zatara were characters in the story.

In March 2013, del Toro gave an update on the film at WonderCon 2013, while talking about his film Pacific Rim. He revealed that the story bible was complete and he hoped to start the screenplay soon. Production would begin after his next project, Crimson Peak. The film's story would center around John Constantine recruiting Swamp Thing, Etrigan the Demon, Deadman, Spectre, and Zatanna. The film would not be an origin story, with each character already established and elements of their backstory coming into play throughout the film. Del Toro also revealed that Floronic Man would be in the film. In May 2013, del Toro revealed that his script featured Constantine, Swamp Thing, Madame Xanadu, Deadman and Zatanna as the team, with others "in the mix". He also revealed that he was still waiting for the go-ahead from Warner Bros. Pictures. Del Toro revealed in July 2013 that he hoped that the DC Extended Universe, which started with Man of Steel, would become as cohesive as the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and he added that if there was any correlation to that universe and this film, he would honor it.

In October 2013, del Toro stated he felt his film would be able to coexist with the television series, Constantine and reiterated that the film was still active and in the writing process. In July 2014, del Toro once again stated he was working on the film, and stated it would be independent from the universe established with Man of Steel, saying, "DC and Warners have been very clear that they are trying to keep [this film and Sandman] separate so when the time comes they can unite them, once they know they’re quantifiable." Del Toro also added that his Constantine would not adhere to the continuity established in the television series, but he would consider incorporating elements from it, and even think about casting the same actor (Matt Ryan). In November 2014, del Toro confirmed that the script was complete and handed it in to Warner Bros. to be reviewed. In December 2014, he hinted that the film would be part of the DC Extended Universe.

In April 2015, del Toro said the script revision has been handed in and if there was availability in his schedule, he would direct it; if not, "somebody else will do it... [The film] needs to fall into the plan of the shared universe." In June 2015, the film was confirmed to still be in development at Warner Bros., with some of their other Vertigo Comics film adaptations moving to New Line Cinema. The Hollywood Reporter stated that del Toro was no longer attached to the project. In July 2016, Swamp Thing test footage was released directed by Joseph Kahn. In August 2016, it was announced that Doug Liman would direct the film with del Toro and Scott Rudin producing and Michael Gilio writing, with the film being titled Dark Universe. By May 2017, Liman left the film to focus on directing Chaos Walking. At the San Diego Comic-Con in July 2017, the film's title was announced to be Justice League Dark. By August 2017, Gerard Johnstone was hired to polish the script.

Black Adam

In September 2014, after being considered to play Shazam and Lobo, Dwayne Johnson was cast to play Black Adam in the DCEU. The character was intended to be introduced in Shazam!, but by January 2017 the film's production studios had chosen to divide the narrative to focus on Black Adam's origin. Johnson, who is also attached as producer, has stated the two characters will cross paths in a future film, while other DC characters will make appearances in Black Adam. In October, Adam Sztykiel was hired to write the script. Co-producer Hiram Garcia stated the film will be gritty and violent, similar to the comics. By February 2019, the script was nearly finished with Warner Bros. and Seven Bucks Productions searching for a director. The plot will involve the Carter Hall version of Hawkman, Atom Smasher, and Stargirl. Principal photography is scheduled to begin sometime between late 2019 and early 2020.

Justice League sequel

In October 2014, Justice League Part Two was announced, with Zack Snyder returning as director. In June 2016, Deborah Snyder revealed that Justice League would not be one film split in two, leaving the sequel untitled. The film was scheduled to be released on June 14, 2019, but production was pushed back to accommodate The Batman. In October 2017, J. K. Simmons stated that work on the script was in-progress, while in December, Variety reported that there were "no immediate plans" for Snyder to direct. By 2019, Warner Bros. had prioritized standalone films over the project, although Patty Jenkins noted she would be open to directing the next Justice League film. Though Ben Affleck will not play Batman in Matt Reeves' film, he is still signed on to reprise the role for the Justice League sequel.

Green Lantern Corps

A film based on the Green Lantern Corps was announced to be in development in October 2014. In January 2017, David S. Goyer and Justin Rhodes were hired to co-write the screenplay, based on a story by Goyer and Geoff Johns, with Goyer also serving as producer. Warner Bros. described the film as "Lethal Weapon in space". In January 2018, Goyer reaffirmed that despite the franchise's leadership shakeup the film was still in active development. By June 2018, Geoff Johns was hired to do a rewrite on the script, in addition to his role as producer. Johns stated that the script draws inspiration from his work on the New 52 Green Lantern comics. Green Lantern Corps was scheduled for release on July 24, 2020, but is believed to have been delayed.

Man of Steel sequel

In August 2016, The Wrap reported that Warner Bros. put the film in active development as a top priority. The news of a stand-alone Superman film were later confirmed by Dany Garcia, Henry Cavill's manager. While promoting Arrival, Amy Adams confirmed that work had begun on the screenplay. In March 2017, it was announced that Matthew Vaughn was being eyed by Warner Bros. to direct. In April 2018, it was reported that Christopher McQuarrie is considering directing the film but later dropped it. In June 2018, Cavill revealed that he is preparing to reprise the role.

Booster Gold

In September 2015, a film centered around Booster Gold and the Ted Kord Blue Beetle was announced to be in development with producer Greg Berlanti. The film's tone was described as a buddy cop film with connections to Justice League. By May 2016, Zak Penn had begun work on a script. Berlanti stated that the project had "no connective tissue" to other films at one point, but following a consideration for television series adaptation at Syfy, the project entered a script rewrite from Zack Stentz in May 2016. Berlanti was asked about his involvement with the DCEU as a whole, and indicated that he has interest in the Booster Gold film. After years of being involved in the project's development, Berlanti was reported to be in negotiations with the studio to serve as director. By March 2018, the script, co-written by Berlanti, had been completed. Berlanti stated production would begin once Warner Bros. decides where to place it within the slate of films.

Gotham City Sirens

A film based on the Gotham City Sirens, a team consisting of Harley Quinn, Catwoman, and Poison Ivy, was announced to be in development in December 2016. David Ayer signed on as director/co-producer from a script by Geneva Robertson-Dworet, Margot Robbie will reprise her role from Suicide Squad and take the role of an executive producer, while Geoff Johns and Jon Berg will produce. Production was originally scheduled to begin in mid-2017, but following the restructuring of DC Films leadership the film's development was placed on hold in favor of Birds of Prey. In August 2017, Jared Leto was confirmed to reprise his role as the Joker. Despite a busy production schedule on other projects, Ayer has continued to work on the film, meeting with Gotham City Sirens creator Paul Dini in August 2018.

Deadshot

In December 2016, The Hollywood Reporter noted that a film centered around Deadshot was in development. By September 2018, Will Smith confirmed he would reprise his role from Suicide Squad and that the story is in development.

Nightwing

On February 23, 2017, it was reported that Warner Bros. Pictures was developing a Nightwing live action movie centered on the character, set in the DC Extended Universe, with Bill Dubuque writing the script and The LEGO Batman Movie director Chris McKay signed on to direct the movie.

Discussing why he likes the character and signed on for the project, McKay cited the character's showman personality and background as an entertainer and expressed his excitement for depicting that in the film. He later stated that he wants to introduce a complete adaptation of the character, something that hasn't been done in previous film interpretations of him before. McKay continued to state that the director-driven approach is why he loves Warner Bros., and how the franchise is differentiating itself from other popular shared universes. In an interview with Cinemablend, McKay confirmed that the film would acknowledge the titular character's past from the source material, including his time as a part of Haly's Circus, and also reaffirmed that the film will be a straightforward action movie with minimal use of CGI special effects and grounded realism.

In February 2018, McKay stated the script was nearing its final draft.

Batgirl

In March 2017, it was announced that Joss Whedon was in talks to write, direct and produce a Batgirl film as part of the DC Extended Universe. The film will feature the Barbara Gordon incarnation of the character, with The New 52 comics by Gail Simone serving as "a starting point" for the film. In April 2017, Whedon stated that he was fascinated by a character that chooses to be a vigilante, even though she hadn't suffered any tragedies in her life like Batman, and that the damaged aspect of the character will be explored in the film. In July, Geoff Johns stated production on the film would begin in 2018. At San Diego Comic Con 2017, the title was announced to be Batgirl.

Whedon was to begin production on the film in 2018, but stepped down in February 2018. In April 2018, after impressing the studio with her work on Birds of Prey, Christina Hodson was hired as screenwriter for Batgirl as well. The studio is actively looking for a female director.

Deathstroke

In October 2017, TheWrap reported a film centered around Deathstroke was in development, with Gareth Evans attached as screenwriter and director and Joe Manganiello set to reprise his role from Justice League. Ben Affleck released test footage with Manganiello in costume in August 2016. Warner Bros. greenlit the film after Evans impressed executives with his story pitch, which he described as dark and unforgiving, similar to Korean noir films. However, in October 2018, Evans stated that he is yet to be attached to the project contractually.

New Gods

By March 2018, a film about the New Gods was confirmed to be in development, with Ava DuVernay signed on as director. Kario Salem was hired as screenwriter after working on a story treatment with DuVernay.

Supergirl

In August 2018, a film centered on Supergirl, was announced to be in development with Oren Uziel penning the script. Warner Bros. is seeking a female director, with Reed Morano—who has expressed interest in the project—being its top choice.

Blue Beetle

By November 2018, a film centered around the Jaime Reyes incarnation of Blue Beetle was in development. Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer and Zev Foreman are respectively attached as screenwriter and executive producer.

Plastic Man

By December 2018, a Plastic Man film was in development with Amanda Idoko hired to write the script. The plot is described as a comedy-action adventure.

Wonder Woman 1984 sequel

In January 2019, after principal photography on Wonder Woman 1984 was completed, director and co-writer Patty Jenkins stated the plot for a third Wonder Woman film had been mapped out. She revealed that the story arc for Wonder Woman had been planned over three films, with the third taking place in the present.

The Trench

In February 2019, Warner Bros. announced a horror spin-off from Aquaman focusing on the villainous Trench kingdom. Peter Safran and James Wan are set to produce, with Noah Gardner and Aidan Fitzgerald acting as screenwriters. The film is expected to have a lower production budget compared to other DC-based films. The following month, Safran said he expects the film to be released before Aquaman 2.

Blackhawk

In April 2018, it was announced that Steven Spielberg will produce/direct a film adaptation of Blackhawk for Warner Bros., with the screenplay being written by David Koepp. Spielberg will co-produce the film with Kristie Macosko Krieger and Sue Kroll.

Shazam! sequel

Following the success of Shazam!, in April 2019 a sequel was announced. Henry Gayden is returning as screenwriter, while David F. Sanberg and Peter Safran are expected to reprise their duties as director and producer, respectively. Mark Strong will reprise his role as Dr. Sivana. Michelle Borth confirmed she will reprise her role as Lady Shazam, as part of a five-picture Warner Bros. contract.