The long awaited fight between two Titans is finally almost here! March 31, 2021 Godzilla vs. Kong will not only hit theaters, but it will be available to stream on HBO Max as well. Millie Bobbie Brown and Kyle Chandler will both return as Madison and Mark Russell, but Alexander Skarsgard, Eiza Gonzalez, Lance Reddick, Rebecca Hall and Julian Dennison will be making their first appearances in MonsterVerse. It is reportedly the final film in the deal between Legendary Studios and Toho, but that could change.
Screen Rant
New details have come to light regarding the film thanks to Collider:
The film takes place 5-years after the events of King of the Monsters
Godzilla has retaken the mantle as the Apex predator, but he’s still acting awry and Madison believes there to be a reason behind this
In an attempt to extract Kong from Skull Island, it causes a conflict with Godzilla
While Monarch will continue their attempt to do go, the nefarious megalithic organization known as Apex will rise to power
It’s been revealed that Skull Island is what happens when the Hollow Earth comes to the surface. In the movie people will begin to realize that Skull Island could be a prelude to the threat that could swarm the planet
Madison will investigate Apex, Godzilla, and Kong, along with the help of Josh (Julian Dennison) and former Apex technician Bernie Hayes (Brian Tyree Henry)
Godzilla and Kong will both be the main parts of the storyline, along with Apex possibly taking a liking to either of the monsters. Monarch will likely try to prevent a global version of Skull Island from taking over the world, while Apex might not be entirely against it.
Who’s the Villain?
Scified
Producer Alex Garcia saying that, “the terror of Ghidorah looms”, leads me to assume that we haven’t seen the end of the vile villain; in a way. It is highly unlikely that another monster will NOT come to play with Godzilla and Kong. A third party coming in as the big bad seems like a really good bet. If you stuck around through the credits of King of the Monsters, you’d have seen a possible tease to what’s likely to come in Godzilla vs. Kong.
Charles Dance’s Alan Jonah is seen buying one of the decapitated King Ghidorah heads, and if Toho has shown us anything, it’s that Mecha-King Ghidorah is a thing. Apex could be working with Jonah to create the robotic three-headed monster. Apex could use this weapon to try to destroy Godzilla and Kong, causing the once bitter rivals to team-up. Or, one of the two could join forces with Mecha-King Ghidorah to kill the other.
Destoroyah
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1995’s Godzilla vs. Destoroyah, the final installment in the Heisei series, revealed that a side-effect of the military using the Oxygen Destroyer to kill Godzilla, caused Godzilla’s toughest villain to be born. The Oxygen Destroyer apparently mutated a group of crustaceans into Destoroyah; an incredibly powerful and destructive being. Godzilla, who was leaking radiation and near the end of his life, barely managed to defeat Destoroyah, before using what was left of his life-force to save his son, Minilla.
While Mecha-King Ghidorah is the likely choice for the villain, maybe he’ll go rogue just like Mecha-Godzilla has in the past. Most notably when he became sentient after being blasted with Godzilla’s atomic breath. Subsequently he could join forces with Destoroyah. The Oxygen Destroyer being created and used by the military in the manor that it was used, is too similar to the 1995 film to just be a mere easter egg. Unless the closing moments of Godzilla vs. Kong reveals a nod to Destoroyah, also revealing that a sequel will be coming.
The trailer that was recently released for Godzilla vs. Kong seems to show that sea-travel will be a main feature in this film. Let alone the fact that we saw Godzilla and Kong fighting one another under water. Oh, and China just recently revealed a poster of the two fighting under water. Destoroyah’s origin is all about the water. He hails from the ocean, was created in the ocean, and he was formed from crabs. Getting the monstrosity to appear in this film, would be a nice gift to fans of the lore, and to causal fans who just want a badass monster.
Allies
Godzilla has teamed up with a lot of allies during his near 80-year run in the movies. Everyone knows Mothra as being the most popular, but there are a few others who would serve as suitable members to help Godzilla fight either King Kong, Mecha-Godzilla or Ghidorah, Destoroyah, or someone else entirely.
King Caesar
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The plot of Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla revolved around the movie’s human characters trying to summon an ancient Okinawan guardian deity who possessed the power to appose Mecha-Godzilla. The completion of the ritual brought forth King Caesar, who aided Godzilla in destroying Mecha-Godzilla. He wasn’t seen again until 2004’s Godzilla: Final Wars, when he, Rodan, and Anguirus were mind-controlled and forced to fight Godzilla.
This movie will be going back to Skull Island, and a young native of the island Jia will be close to Kong. It’s highly possible that the people of the island could perform a ritual to help Godzilla and King Kong. In Kong: Skull Island the people of the island worshiped Kong. Maybe he wasn’t the only monster who was seen as a God by these people? Caesar is a good-guy who has helped Godzilla a number of times over the years. With Behemoth, who made his movie debut in King of the Monsters, returning for Godzilla vs. Kong, maybe a group of monsters will rise up to help Godzilla and company.
Manda
Manda is a gigantic sea serpent who first appeared as the guardian of an underwater kingdom in Toho’s Atragon. Later he was integrated into the Godzilla universe in Destroy all Monsters; it was in that film in which Manda was revealed to be a resident of Monster Island. He followed Godzilla into the final battle against Ghidorah.
Again, the trailer seems to really emphasize the idea of the ocean playing a big part of in this film as multiple battles seem to occur at sea. Whose to say that the Oxygen Destroyer didn’t unearth Manda? The fact that he hasn’t shown up yet, due to the fact that Godzilla travels by water, is a little confusing. Especially in King of the Monsters as that movie had a good amount of scenes that were water-centric.
Minilla
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To increase the appeal of the Godzilla franchise to younger audiences, Toho introduced Minilla in the 1967 film Son of Godzilla. Godzilla’s son, who didn’t resemble his father at all, was known for blowing loops of smoke out of his mouth, rather than having atomic breath. He often attempted to assist Godzilla in fights, but due to his small stature and lack of strength, he wasn’t of much help at all. He was more comedic than anything else really.
While Minilla showing up would be quite the stretch, and wouldn’t make much sense based on what’s been going on in the first three films, who wouldn’t want this!? It’s been confirmed that Madison Russell believes that something is bothering Godzilla and causing him to act out. Godzilla being on the lookout for his long lost son, would be a good reason.
Godzilla vs. Kong is gearing up to be one of the biggest blockbusters of the year, let alone since the Coronavirus pandemic began nearly a year ago. Hopefully it won’t be the final film in the Warner Bros. franchise, but if it is, it was quite the enjoyable ride. You can watch Godzilla vs. Kong on HBO Max and you can see it in theaters on March 31, 2021.
UPDATE: Godzilla vs. Kong producer Alex Garcia has said that Legendary studios wants to keep making movies in the “monster-verse.” In a recent interview Garcia had this to say, “it’s one brick at a time, each piece has to be as good as it can be, so right now it’s all focused on Godzilla vs. Kong. But could there be [more films]? Yeah, that’s the hope if the movie turns out really well.”
Toho has planned their own Godzilla cinematic universe that would be put into production as soon as Godzilla vs. Kong finished its theatrical run. So time will tell if this is the case or not. The first three films made at least $550 million at the worldwide box office, so if you want more films… Get HBO Max and watch Godzilla vs. Kong!