Jackson lets monkey out of cage

The high anticipated King Kong is to have its world premiere tonight in New York.

The film is the return to the screen for Peter Jackson, director of The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King, with another epic lasting over three hours.

The film, a second remake of the 1933 classic, cost over $200 million to make, $32 million over budget, so much is riding on its success both for Jackson and Universal Studios, which gave him full creative control.

Starring alongside the huge ape will be Naomi Watts (21 Grams, The Ring), playing the tragic heroine, Jack Black (The School Of Rock) and Adrien Brody (The Pianist, the Jacket).

King Kong himself is played by Andy Serkis, the British actor most people will remember as being Gollum in The Lord Of The Rings trilogy.

The film also stars another Brit Jamie Bell, who made his name in Billy Elliot and is set to appear in Clint Eastwood's Flags Of Our Fathers, proving his child stardom was not just a flash in the pan.

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