Skull Island is the latest animation from Powerhouse Animation and Netflix, and this time Legendary Television is along for the ride. Expanding the Monsterverse, Skull Island brings Kong to a new generation by capturing the wonder of Jurassic Park, the myth of the kaiju, and adding in that hearty center of Amblen adventure. We got the chance to talk with Jacob Robinson, an Executive Producer on Skull Island, about the eight-episode series and what it’s like being a part of a team that will surely craft someone’s first memory of Kong.
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BUT WHY THO: So I want to jump right into it because I am a huge kaiju fan. I’m a huge Kong fan, and I’m huge Powerhouse fan. So my first question is: Are you a fan? And what brought you to work on Skull Island and Kong as a series?
JACOB ROBINSON: Yes, I am a fan and I’ve been over here working with Legendary for a while and got excited by the opportunity to help expand the Monsterverse. But what really excited me is I think that Legendary on the feature side does these huge, epic, incredible visual kaiju battles so brilliantly. To me, there was an opportunity to sort of focus on a little bit of a quieter sort of section of the Monsterverse. And so the genesis of this was really trying to figure out like, “Hey, what’s that kind of Goonies on Skull Island?” Then I took it to my friend Brian Duffield—whose two of his four favorite movies of all time are the original King Kong and Jurassic Park. And that sort of became the true north. I like kaiju. I liked the battle. But to me, the fun was finding and expanding this little side corner of the universe.
BUT WHY THO: Both live-action and animation have their own strengths. But what about the medium itself that lends to telling this more intimate story with humans at the center of it?
JACOB ROBINSON: I think it’s in the intimacy of animation itself and the relationship that it has with its audience. I think there’s also a little bit of a price point in the budget when you pull back. I think on the feature side, there’s an expectation of these incredible visuals and these epic battles. And to me, there was something that’s great about seeing [those] in animation. But at the same time, when anything’s possible, and everyone expects anything to be possible, [there is a question]: is the spectacle going to live up to the live action in that regard? That shock and almost going the other way than where everyone’s expecting from epic booms and instead into characters, was the real exciting opportunity. Especially to do that in animation.
Someone once told me [something] that stuck with me, that there is a hurdle for most people in animation to accept a reality because it’s not our reality. But once you clear that hurdle, you accept the characters and the world so deeply because it has to become your reality. I felt that was important for this. And so that was exciting to really dig in on the character side.
BUT WHY THO: When you have a property that is known for its large monster, and the other monsters on his island, what goes into kind of balancing those expectations that you’ve kind of talked about for existing fans… and making the humans moments as impactful as something as large [as a kaiju]?
JACOB ROBINSON: Listen, this is where Brian deserves all the credit. Because I didn’t have to do anything. As a genuine fan, we saw incredible spectacle and battles, and just cool sh*t, right? But [Brian is] also a very character-driven writer and that was what interested him. So everything that you’re seeing in this [series] is full credit to Brian, I don’t think I’ve ever given fewer notes on a project than on this in the script stage because he got exactly what it was. And he did it with such love. And I think that really comes through. There wasn’t a lot of active balancing. It’s just what he delivered is what you’re seeing, more or less.
BUT WHY THO: What was the Northstar for creating [Skull Island, the location] and making sure the island was a home in a way to a very specific type of life and culture?
JACOB ROBINSON: There’s an entire team at Legendary dedicated to the mythology build. And it was an incredible sort of first meeting when they were running through, “Oh, here’s the type of flora and fauna that would grow here,” and “Hey, we haven’t seen this in the movie, but we think this type of plant would exist in this part of the island because of the shade that it gets into.” So in terms of bringing the island to life, that team has just dedicated so much brain power and creativity to it. And then they were a wonderful resource, who at the same time said to Brian, “We want your creations, we want to know what creatures you think because we’re building out this world.” So we’d say it was a partnership in that way. But mostly, that incredible mythology team, supporting and informing Brian who then sort of built this out and they created the sandbox.
BUT WHY THO: Do you have a favorite element of what came alive on Skull Island?
JACOB ROBINSON: Oh, you know, I think the trio of the kids are my favorite. Like, whenever I hear the banter and the exchange between them, my heart soars. It’s amazing because we did this during COVID and the [actors] never met. I was talking to Nicolas Cantu who plays Charlie the other day and he was just saying what a shock it was watching it through because it feels like there was this intimacy between the three of them and that they’ve known each other for years. It’s remarkable, but I think that that trio is always what I come back to. I mean, there are great creatures and great sequences—the seventh episode holds a special place in my heart… but I think I think the trio of the kids.
BUT WHY THO: Is there a specific character that you identify with now or even when you were in that Amblin age?
JACOB ROBINSON: Oh definitely! Charlie would love to meet a girl, he would love to go on an adventure, but a risk-adjusted adventure. Don’t do anything too crazy. Yeah, although I can say I’d be Cap as a dad. But I think Charlie is a pretty good proxy for a lot of fans of the show.
BUT WHY THO: What do you want fans to take away from Skull Island?
JACOB ROBINSON: I’ve sort of always viewed this as like our 10 Cloverfield Lane, or our Rogue One. I hope that it exposes a new audience to the Monsterverse and gets them excited. I hope for existing fans, it feels like it’s an enrichment. I think, again, being able to have some of those quieter moments, is something that is hard to come by in the Monsterverse when you’re trying to pack so much story into two hours, and these epic battles and we just have more real estate. So I hope that’s where fans connect, and also just get the tone. Ge the comedy, the banter, having that is something that feels pretty unique. So that’s what I’m hoping they’ll find and connect with and really that it will bring a new audience.
BUT WHY THO: That’s a perfect segue, what’s it like to potentially be people’s first Kong memory? This will open up a new generation to the Monsterverse, have you thought about being people’s first moment with the character?
JACOB ROBINSON: No! You just gave me chills. I’m glad no one brought that up when we started down this path. It’s exciting, it’s great, and I wonder how many people have no exposure to Kong just because I feel like Kong is such a part of pop culture. But I guess maybe, maybe it will, and that’d be really exciting. Listen, I think this is a great introduction to Kong. And, you know, again, in particular, there’s an episode where we try and do kind of a deeper dive into Kong backstory, even a little bit of like POV just because, again, we have that luxury of time and real estate that you don’t necessarily get in a feature format. So it’s actually really exciting. I hope we do have some, but a big responsibility. Now, I’m a little nervous.
