Three-time Academy Award® winner Peter Jackson ("The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King") directs "King Kong".

The screenplay by Jackson, Walsh (three-time Oscar® winner) and Boyens (Academy Award® winner) is based on the original story by Merian C. Cooper and Edgar Wallace, which became the classic 1933 RKO Radio Pictures film, directed by adventurers Cooper and Ernest B. Schoesdack. The RKO "King Kong" has been designated by the National Film Registry of the United States Library of Congress as one of the 100 Greatest Films and chosen by that organization for permanent preservation as a national treasure.

Jackson will employ the latest motion picture technology to cinematically portray the timeless tale of the beast and his beauty. Expanding on the chapters of the tale that take place in the mysterious and dangerous jungles of Skull Island, Jackson's Kong promises to be a unique and breathtaking creation. As with his "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, Jackson will shoot "King Kong" on location in his native New Zealand. Visual effects will be again accomplished by New Zealand-based companies Weta Digital and Weta Workshop, recipients of multiple Academy Awards® for their collective work on "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy. Visual effects and miniatures will supplement practical locations in creating primordial jungles and '30s-period America.