King Kong reboot’s crew arrives in Vietnam for shooting

The 120-member crew, among them Hollywood stars Samuel L. Jackson, Brie Larson, John Goodman, and Marc Evan Jackson, landed at the capital’s Noi Bai International Airport at 6:30 pm on a private jet, according to the Department of International Cooperation under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Apart from Avengers’ star Samuel L. Jackson, also coming to Vietnam for ‘Kong: Skull Island’ is rising actress Brie Larson, who just won her first Golden Globe and BAFTA last year and has been nominated for an Oscar for her role in ‘Room.’

Brie Larson at the 73rd Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, California on January 10, 2016

To the disappointment of Vietnamese fans who had hoped to catch him in real life, lead actor Tom Hiddleston, who does not appear in the scenes filmed in Vietnam, did not accompany the crew.

Roberts had previously elaborated on his decision to film part of the movie in Vietnam in a January interview with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, saying the country “houses an out-of-this-world beauty and adds a perfect sense of ‘cinematographic aesthetic’ to the film.”

The director refused to disclose the precise destination of the set, citing a desire to leave the thrill and joy of discovery to the audience.

Roberts’ crew will be staying at Hilton’s Metropole Hotel de L’Opera Hanoi.

The crew is scheduled for a press conference in the capital city on February 21 to answer the media’s questions about the blockbuster. They will begin filming the following day.

‘Kong: Skull Island’ crew waiting at the baggage claim at Noi Bai International Airport after their arrival on February 18, 2016

In a prior interview with Tuoi Tre, the producer’s representative Gregg Brilliant said that ‘Kong: Skull Island’ will bring the giant fictional beast King Kong back on the big screen in a heart-stopping adventure.

In the movie, a group of adventurers set foot on an uncharted island in the Pacific Ocean – one so breathtaking that people consider it unreal. Little did they know they just walked into the territory of the legendary King Kong.

Hoping to engage viewers in the mysteries of Skull Island, director John Vogt-Roberts has traveled with his crew to three different continents in roughly six months to film primitive scenes in Oahu, Hawaii, Australia’s coastal city of Gold Coast, and finally Vietnam.

The film, produced by Legendary Pictures and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, is expected to hit cinemas in March 2017.