But whatever happened to the feature film adaptation of The King of Kong?
How close did aKing of Kongnarrative feature actually come to getting made?
Youve got to be passionate and excited about what you’re making or you’re going to just die.
Image via Picturehouse
Youd end up being a cartoon.
He’s a nuanced, complicated, incredibly compelling, real person.
And by the way, you may not know this, we’ve got a follow-up thats finished.
It’s a very touching, beautiful little story about Walter’s side of things20 yearsafter the doc.
Fuck, Im old.
But for fans ofThe King of Kong, you have Steve [Wiebe] and Billy in this movie.
Image via MGM
People made some assumptions about Billy, and some people said some nasty things at times.
In a way, we are owning that ourselves because we weren’t trying to cause trouble.
We were trying to show what we saw.
Image via Sony
It’s a great piece and it’s going to get out there soon.
Billy Mitchelle reflects on The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters in a recent interview.
Despite mixed feelings, he doesn’t regret the experience.
Image via Netflix
Do you consider it a sequel toKing of Kong, or is it sort of like a cousin?
GORDON: Cousin.It’s got a completely different story arc.I just don’t want to be misleading.
As soon as I get a link or a way to see it, I will watch it.
Image via Netflix
The World Wasnt Ready for This WarGames Remake
Its still relevant.
Whatever happened with yourWarGamesremake?
How close did that come?
Former CIA spies Emily and Matt are pulled back into espionage after their secret identities are exposed.
GORDON: Not as close as I wish it would have come.
Like everything that happened with [Sandworm] a couple of years ago.
Last thing before getting into your film, what happened with yourUnchartedversus the version that everybody got?
Was it radically different from your version?
GORDON: There’s a fair bit of it, actually, of the work we did.
It’s my production designer, the same production designer who did this movie.
So, I brought him in, and a fair bit of what we worked on was in there.
But it’s one of those things Sony got hacked.
That totally trashed the version that I was working on.
A bunch of stuff leaked.
Amy [Hennig] was out, Tom [Holland] came in.
So, I actually was psyched with what they made, though.
I wasn’t bitter, butt-hurt, sour grapes over there.
It was more, Good job.
I thought he killed it.
That was a very ambitious undertaking.
Cameron Diaz is Back in Action, Baby!
Jamie Fox got his old friend out of retirement.
And that’s the thought that occurred every day on set.
She’s the best.
She’s all of it.
She’s not only that talented, that cool, and that kind…
It’s crazy, honestly.
She’s an amazing person.
I feel lucky as hell that she said yes to my thing.
She said no to everything for, like, nine years, so it’s crazy.
GORDON: It sounds like you’ve done your homework, and I believe you.
[Laughs] I just believed what I was told: “She’s out of the business.
Don’t even think about it.
He knew there was a possibility or a glimmer of hope.
He wasn’t making any promises.
He kept this secret for a while, but he was working on something.
[Laughs] Its too good.
Thatd be too good!
This is the first thing I think you’ve co-written and directed.
GORDON: It changed a bit specifically in that way.
The overall story was very similar.
Butit was definitely about dialing into their voices.
It was not unlikeHorrible Bosses, actually, when the three guys start rolling in that.
You don’t always have to pay setup, pay off bills, right?
Just let them do their thing.
You just want to hang out with them, you know?
That Salt-N-Pepa Scene Was Completely Unscripted
“She knew all the lyrics.”
I didn’t scrub the song.
There was no permission.
She knew all the lyrics.
She started doing the rap.
The kids didn’t know the song because they’re too young.
So, that’s real.
That they would roll with it is why they’re so great, honestly.
I’m fascinated by the editing process.
So you show the film to friends and family, or you do a test screening.
What did you learn from those screenings that impacted the finished film?
GORDON: Well, this was a crazy process because we lost him right at the end of shooting.
People were still leaning in and still into it.
So we were just praying for him to get better as soon as possible.
Then it was just, Let’s finish what we planned.
That was the big thing.
So the club scene, the fight used to happen outside.
I had a lot of fights and a lot of action scenes in the movie already.
I was like, This one can be quick.
But I got to make it a little better.
The binoculars scene didn’t exist.
So, so funny the way they did that.
I know this is going to be a big hit on Netflix.
GORDON: I’ve asked really gingerly, not trying to put pressure.
But she seemed open.
I think she doesn’t need the work.
It was just she was into it.
So I think it’d be the same kind of thing.
If the script is right and the pieces are in place, maybe she’s open.
Back in Actionis available to stream now on Netflix.
