When it comes to a clash of monsters, no franchise does it better than Legendary Picture’s Monsterverse. As if the mighty kaiju, Godzilla, wasn’t enough on its own, Legendary Pictures introduced the epic Godzilla vs Kong film!
The Godzilla vs Kong movie was released in 2021 to great success, which only meant one thing—a sequel was inevitable. Three years later, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire was released in March 2024, which evoked different reactions.
After the film premiered in cinemas, a divided audience erupted, some praising it, while others saying it could be better. So, let’s set the record straight, was Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire a hit or a miss, and do the numbers add up?
A Must-Watch for Any Godzilla x Kong Fan
If you’ve watched any Godzilla or King Kong film before, you vividly remember being on the edge of your seat as the giants got into action. Well, this latest film offers you that action on a whole new level. The cinematography of the fight scenes is insane, especially the final battle when Kong and Godzilla join forces to take down the scarred and sadistic villain, Skar King.
You get to see Kong, with his new augmented mecha fist, which was pretty cool, team up with Godzilla in what one critic referred to as “a pro-wrestling match”. Another thing viewers enjoyed was the surprisingly funny moments, giving the audience a few giggles here and there. For that, part of the credit goes to Trapper, played by Dan Stevens, who had the right energy and humor for his scenes.
Lastly, props to the CGI team for giving us some breathtaking background scenes and fitting sound effects as the powerful Titans exchanged heavy blows. The crumbling city landscapes and Great Pyramids were designed to detail, but nothing came close to Kong’s journey to Hollow Earth which felt like a psychedelic trip to a world of bright and beautiful colors.
It Could Be Better Honestly
A contrary opinion came from Godzilla x Kong fans who believed the two Titans deserved better than a poorly scripted film that was all about some adrenaline-pumping fight scenes. One of the flaws that viewers were quick to pick was that the storyline was lacking and everything seemed to be all over the place.
As you follow a character’s story, many other events are introduced taking you on a roller coaster ride of everything. Aside from Dan Stevens' role, most of the other human characters contributed little to the overall plot and were not particularly engaging.
The film featured new relationships, like Kong and the younger ape, and introduced us to new characters who could have been explored further. It wasn’t necessary for the director, Adam Wingard, to pull a Zack Snyder with the film, but some additional time could have added more depth to the storyline.
Let’s Talk Numbers
So far, we only have two films that feature both Kong and Godzilla, and that’s Godzilla vs Kong and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. When it comes to IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes ratings, the former scored 6.3/10 and 76%, respectively, while the latter scored 6.1/10 and 54%. The final verdict when considering audience ratings shows that Godzilla vs Kong comes out on top.
However, the box office revenue paints a different picture. Godzilla vs Kong grossed about $470 million while the latest release, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire made over $560 million. In New Zealand, for instance, even though the film was released early in March 2024, it is still among the top 10 highest-grossing movies this year.
The Monsterverse films have not only made big money in terms of box office revenue but they have also been adopted in other creative money-making ways. There’s a lot of merchandise featuring the two titans, including toys and t-shirts, sold globally.
You will also find video and casino games that have adopted the Godzilla x Kong concept. MonsterVerse is a game by Everi that lets you experience the full power of Kong and Godzilla on a 6-reel game with the potential of winning cash prizes.
Another exciting title you can play is the Godzilla vs King Kong slot by Arrow’s Edge, which pits these two mighty giants against each other and rewards players with free spins. If you are based in New Zealand, and you want to extend the fun from the cinemas to your home, you can play MonsterVerse-themed games at the best online casinos NZ.
Will we have another Godzilla x Kong movie? Legendary Pictures mentioned that another release is in the works slated to come out in March 2027. One of the big changes mentioned so far is that they’ll hire a new director so we can only wait and see what they come up with.
The next Hollywood Godzilla movie is officially called Godzilla x Kong: Supernova and will hit theaters on March 26th, 2027! Visit the GxK: Supernova page for more information, production updates and everything we know so far!
From Toho, Takashi Yamazaki is directing a sequel to Godzilla Minus One and is currently in development! The next film will act as a direct follow-up and will even include more Monsters! The Godzilla Minus One sequel page is tracking all information on Toho's next Godzilla movie as it becomes available, don't miss an update!
There is also the next season of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters on the way, as well as other spin-off Godzilla series in the works at Apple TV!
Furthermore, while not Godzilla related, Legendary have also teamed up with Amazon to produce a live-action Pacific Rim TV series, which is also currently in the works! So many Kaiju-sized projects in the works - check back often for new information on them all!
