When writer and director Guillermo del Toro’s Pacific Rim first hit theaters in 2013, it wasn’t much of a success Stateside, despite the passionate love of its small, dedicated following of fans. Instead, the large blockbuster made most of its money internationally, leading to the possibility of a sequel to be called into question for several years, including from del Toro himself at points. But luckily, the world of Pacific Rim will be returning to the big screen next year after all with Pacific Rim: Uprising, though, it is worth noting that the highly-anticipated sequel, while featuring the return of the Kaiju and Jaegers, will not have del Toro reprising his role as director.

Instead, Daredevil season 1 showrunner and experienced TV writer/producer/director Steven S. DeKnight is the one at the helm of Uprising, which replaces most of the original film’s stars with talented up and coming actors like John Boyega, Scott Eastwood, and more. And with a little less than a year to go until Pacific Rim: Uprising hits theaters, the tentpole film has just reached a new milestone in its development process.

DeKnight has officially announced through his personal Instagram account today, that principal photography on Uprising has officially wrapped, as he and the rest of the film’s behind-the-scenes creative team now begin moving into the post-production, editing phase. This news also comes just a few days after Boyega, the film’s lead star and one of its main producers, announced the end of his time shooting the film. Check out DeKnight’s announcement for yourself down below:

That’s a picture wrap on #PacificRimUprising! Huge thanks to cast, crew, and @legendary & @universalpictures! (And the amazing @jasinboland for the photo!) A post shared by Steven S. DeKnight (@stevendeknight) on Mar 31, 2017 at 2:22am PDT

While the absence of del Toro as director might be worrying for some of the franchise’s more dedicated fans, the level of talent involved in this sequel should be enough to warrant at least some optimism towards it. DeKnight has proven himself to be an expert storyteller throughout his career, beginning with his work on Buffy the Vampire Slayer through Daredevil, Spartacus, Angel, and more. Pacific Rim: Uprising will also mark DeKnight’s first feature film effort as a director, which should speak to Legendary’s confidence in him.

Following his breakout turn in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the Pacific Rim sequel was the first big role that Boyega signed on to, and he and the rest of the cast’s youthful charisma marks an interesting turn for the franchise to be taking with this sequel. Not much is known about Uprising’s plot as of yet either, except that it picks up years after the events of the first film, and will follow Boyega’s character, the son of Idris Elba’s Stacker Pentecost from the first film. But with the film set to be released in the same month as another highly-anticipated blockbuster, Marvel’s Black Panther, it’ll be interesting to see just how well Pacific Rim: Uprising performs, given it’s welcomed to a similarly positive critical response as the first. Will the added star power of its new actors and the several year gap between installments help it out at the box office, or hurt it? Only time will tell.

Source: Instagram

  • Pacific Rim: Uprising Release Date: 2018-03-23