What could be better than watching giant robots fight giant monsters? Well, for U.S. audiences, a lot, it turns out. Guillermo del Toro’s “Pacific Rim” opened at number three at the box office in July 2013, selling just over $37M in tickets. Over the next few months, it went on to gross nearly $102M domestically. Returns were far lower than hoped, especially given the sci-fi flick’s reportedly $190M budget.
So why, given the not quite mega-blockbuster haul of "Pacific Rim," was del Toro talking to Collider about not just “Pacific Rim 2” but “Pacific Rim 3”? Because, though American audiences didn’t turn out in droves to watch the epic battles, international moviegoers did. “Pacific Rim” pulled in over $300M abroad, which was more than enough to propel the franchise forward. And forward is indeed the direction it’s headed.
Del Toro discussed the status of the second installment of the franchise. “We got the first draft of the movie now, and we are going to spend another...
