Legendary Pictures announced today they are ready to start developing a new movie based on the legendary Toho Studios monster Godzilla, having acquired the rights to the character Toho created over fifty years ago in the 1954 film, which has since become a genre classic. Legendary is producing the movie through their deal with Warner Bros. with hopes to announce a director soon to helm the movie with the intention of having it ready for a 2012 release.

Toho has kept Godzilla alive through two generations of movies, many of which were only released in Japan. The last time Godzilla arrived on these shores, it was for a 50th Anniversary re-release of the original movie. Before that, Toho released one of the Japanese films in the United States as Godzilla 2000, and in 1998, director Roland Emmerich and his partner Dean Devlin tackled a reinvention of Godzilla for Sony, a summer blockbuster that grossed $379 million worldwide despite generally tepid reviews and disfavor from the long-time fans of the character.

The official press release from Legendary includes quotes from the three key players in the deal.

Thomas Tull, Chairman and CEO of Legendary:

"Godzilla is one of the world's most powerful pop culture icons, and we at Legendary are thrilled to be able to create a modern epic based on this long-loved Toho franchise. Our plans are to produce the Godzilla that we, as fans, would want to see. We intend to do justice to those essential elements that have allowed this character to remain as pop-culturally relevant for as long as it has."

Hideyuki Takai, President of Toho Co., Ltd.:

"Godzilla is a signature Japanese character which we have nurtured over the years. It is a great honor to reach an agreement with Legendary Pictures, the parent to many a blockbuster film, and we are delighted in rebooting the character together to realize its much anticipated return by fans from all over the world. We are anxious to find out where Godzilla's new stomping will take us."

Jeff Robinov, President, Warner Brothers Pictures Group:

"Godzilla is emblematic of the kind of branded, event films for which Warner Bros. and our partners at Legendary are best known. We have enjoyed a great deal of success together to date and this newest opportunity represents yet another chance for us to collaborate on a property that is very clearly in their wheelhouse."