'King Kong' clocks in at three hours

Peter Jackson's big budget blockbuster will have a gorilla-sized running time

Oct 27 2005

Executives have announced that 'King Kong', one of the most eagerly anticipated films of the year, will be a butt-numbing three hours long.

The big-budget blockbuster, which is set to hit UK screens on December 15, was originally supposed to clock in at two hours and forty minutes, but writer-director Peter Jackson so impressed producers with his longer cut that they gave it the green light.

The decision comes at a cost though, with additional effects work pushing the budget up to a whopping $207 million, but Universal boss Stacey Snider said she was happy with the outcome.

'We expected to see a long movie,' she explained, 'and we loved it. It's a brilliant movie, an epic feast.'

In related news, 'King Kong' won't be playing in the IMAX format as the big-screen chain could not agree terms with Universal.

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