'Monster Hunter' Clip Introduces A Bigger, New And Improved Greater Rathalos Creature [NYCC ]

Mortal Kombat and Resident Evil director Paul W.S. Anderson is returning to the world of video game adaptations with a big screen version of Capcom's hit video game franchise Monster Hunter. New York Comic-Con brought in the filmmaker to have a chat about the upcoming movie, including the introduction of a quick clip showing off one of the game's massive creatures, but a bit bigger than fans might have been expecting. Get a look at the Monster Hunter clip and find out more about the movie below.

For those who are unfamiliar with Monster Hunter, the movie follows Milla Jovovich as Artemis, a lieutenant who, along with her loyal soldiers, is forced to fight for survival when they are dropped onto a dangerous new world crawling with massive monsters with incredible powers. Even though she's an Army Ranger, her skills aren't much of a match for the kind of creatures she's about to encounter. So far, there hasn't been a lot of footage from the video game adaptation, but a brief new clip revealed one of the game's signature monsters for fans to feast their eyes on:

We've cued up the above video to where the Monster Hunter clip debuted, but if it doesn't work, just go to the 42:09 mark. It's barely a 15-second teaser, but it does provide our first look at a Rathalos. However, this isn't the standard version of the dragon-like creature from the games. This is a bigger, new, and improved version called the Greater Rathalos. Why is it bigger? Apparently it has something to do with being associated with an ancient civilization that runs through several of the games, so diehard fans probably know what that's about. Anderson teased some kind of secret involved that will explain more about this Greater Rathalos in the movie.

Even though a lot of the monsters we'll see in the movie are massive and deadly, there will be at least one cute little monster to amuse us. The movie will feature the little creature known as a palico. They're described as a cat-like combat companion, and in addition to being cute, in the game they can be outfitted with armor and weapons, allowing them to offer offensive and defensive assistance. So hopefully we'll get to see a palico in action soon.

Anderson sounds like he has a lot of passion for this video game franchise. Not only did he first start talking to Capcom about turning the game franchise into a movie 10 years ago, but he snatched up the rights to it when it was only a big hit in Japan, long before the title ever become popular in the United States. He beat all the studios, who only looked into the franchise when Monster Hunter: World became a hit game everywhere in 2018.

Even though there will be a lot of special effects used to bring the monsters to life, Anderson went out of his way to make sure almost everything else was as real as possible. They shot almost everything on-location in Africa, with the exception of two days where they had to shoot indoors. Somehow Anderson only had to shoot one day with green screen, too.

Unfortunately, Anderson couldn't reveal much more about Monster Hunter, and we're still waiting for a proper trailer that gives us a better look at the movie. With the release strategy still somewhat up in the air, hopefully we won't have to wait too much longer to see more.

Along with Milla Jovovich, the movie also stars Tony Jaa, T.I., Ron Perlman, Meagan Good, and Diego Boneta.

Here's the official Monster Hunter synopsis:

Behind our world, there is another: a world of dangerous and powerful monsters that rule their domain with deadly ferocity. When Lt. Artemis (Milla Jovovich) and her elite unit are transported through a portal from our world to a new world, they are in for the shock of their lives. In her desperate attempt to get home, the brave lieutenant encounters a mysterious hunter (Tony Jaa), whose unique skills have allowed him to survive in this hostile land. Faced with relentless and terrifying attacks from the monsters, the warriors team up to fight back and find a way home.

Monster Hunter is slated to open in some markets starting in December, but it might not open in the United States until April 23, 2021. We're still waiting to get more solid information on how and when the movie will be released.