Kong returns!

Disney+ is developing a series with the working title King Kong, with James Wan’s Atomic Monster studio in on the deal. The show reportedly will tell the origin story of the colossal ape, and be the first live action series set in the Kong universe.

The project will be based on the 1933 film, conceived by producer and director Merian C. Cooper, as well as more recent novelizations by artist Joe DeVito, made in conjunction with Cooper’s estate.

Stephany Folsom, who created Prime Video’s Paper Girls adaptation, is attached to write a script and executive produce alongside James Wan (Aquaman), Michael Clear and Rob Hackett (also with Atomic Monster) and Dannie Festa of World Builder Entertainment.

Previous efforts at a live-action series include King Kong Skull Island, which was in development at MarVista Entertainment and IM Global Television five years ago, though with a different creative team. That project was also based on Cooper’s King Kong and DeVito ArtWorks’ Skull Island but was never produced.

King Kong has been a movie star for the past 90 years. The rights to the character, the subject of a slew of movies, have been knotted up by various owners over the years. The ape was most recently featured in Legendary/Warner Bros’ Monsterverse, which drops the King in its titles, like 2017’s Kong: Skull Island, 2019’s Godzilla: King of the Monsters, and 2021’s Godzilla vs. Kong. The studio also used Kong in a Netflix anime series called Skull Island.

No other details are available, including when the series might launch.