King Kong (1976)
Kong climbs the World Trade Center.
King Kong is a 1976 American adventure monster film directed by John Guillermin, a remake of the 1933 film. It stars Jeff Bridges, Charles Grodin and Jessica Lange, with mechanical effects by Carlo Rambaldi and makeup effects by Rick Baker, who also played Kong. It is the fifth entry in the King Kong franchise.
Quick Facts
- Released
- December 17, 1976
- Director
- John Guillermin
- Producer
- Dino De Laurentiis
- Starring
- Jeff Bridges
- Charles Grodin
- Jessica Lange
Plot
Frederick Wilson, an executive of the Petrox Oil Company, leads an expedition to an undiscovered Indian Ocean island hidden by a permanent cloud bank, believing it holds a huge oil deposit. Primate paleontologist Jack Prescott stows away to warn the team and is eventually hired as its photographer, and the expedition rescues the aspiring actress Dwan from a life raft. Kong is brought to New York; at the end of the film he is shot down from the World Trade Center.
Production and release
The idea of a remake came from ABC executive Michael Eisner in 1974. Dino De Laurentiis acquired the rights from RKO-General and hired Lorenzo Semple Jr. to write the script, and filming ran from January to August 1976. Released on December 17, 1976, the film drew mixed reviews but grossed $91 million against a $23-24 million budget, and won a Special Achievement Academy Award for its visual effects. Its sequel, King Kong Lives, followed in 1986.
Elsewhere in King Kong
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced