What do you do when your last two films have grossed a billion dollars at the worldwide box office?  The answer is simple -- anything you want -- and director Peter Jackson of the mega-successful Lord of the Rings films has decided to start work on his version of the classic monster film King Kong as soon the final film in LOTR trilogy, The Return of the King, is released on December 17.  Jackson credits a childhood viewing of the Willis O'Brien King Kong as the key inspirational moment that led to his career in filmmaking -- and he was set to create his version of the Kong legend in the late 1990s until Universal pulled the plug (an action that led Jackson and writing partner Fran Walsh to turn their attentions to the Lord of the Rings).  Sometimes disappointments do work out for the better, and this could be one of those instances, since now Jackson will be able to realize his version of King Kong with a maximum of resources and a minimum of studio interference.

Jackson's version of King Kong will reportedly spend more time on Skull Island, the mysterious home of the mythic beast, and you can be sure that both the concepts and the effects will be first rate.  Universal plans to release Peter Jackson's King Kong in 2005.