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The Monsterverse (also stylized as MonsterVerse) is an American multimedia franchise and shared universe featuring Godzilla and other sister characters owned and created by Toho Co., Ltd, as well as King Kong. The franchise consists of five films and two television series that have been produced by Legendary Pictures, with Warner Bros. Pictures distributing the films and the series being released for streaming on Netflix and Apple TV+. The franchise has received a generally positive critical reception and has grossed $2.525 billion worldwide at the box office.

Writer Max Borenstein stated that the Monsterverse did not begin as a franchise but as an American reboot of Godzilla. Borenstein credits Legendary Entertainment's founder and then CEO Thomas Tull as the one responsible for the Monsterverse, having acquired the rights to Godzilla and negotiated the complicated rights to King Kong. Tull had offered Borenstein the opportunity to write the first draft for Kong: Skull Island, with the goal to establish Kong in the same universe as Legendary's Godzilla film. Tull's vision was for the films to one day lead to Godzilla vs. Kong.[1]

Legendary confirmed at the 2014 San Diego Comic-Con that it had acquired the licensing rights to Mothra, Rodan, and King Ghidorah from Toho Co., Ltd. and revealed concept footage with the closing title cards reading "Conflict: inevitable. Let them fight".[2] In September 2015, Legendary announced that the film Kong: Skull Island would not be developed with Universal Studios. Instead, it would be developed with Warner Bros., which sparked media speculation that Godzilla and Kong would appear in a film together.[3][4]

Legendary's license to Godzilla expired in 2020.[12] However it has since been renewed, as Toho announced in July 2022 that Godzilla would be featured in a sequel to Godzilla vs. Kong.[13] In January 2022, Legendary announced plans for a live-action TV series centered on Godzilla and other Titans.[14]

The film reimagines Godzilla's origins and is set 15 years after a nuclear meltdown in Japan which was caused by giant parasitic creatures, known as "MUTOs" (acronym for Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism). As two MUTOs ravage the countryside in order to reproduce, they awaken a larger ancient alpha predator, known as "Godzilla", whose existence has been kept secret by the U.S. government since 1954. The film introduces Godzilla, the MUTOs, and the Monarch organization to the Monsterverse.

In 2004, director Yoshimitsu Banno acquired permission from Toho to produce a short IMAX Godzilla film which was in development for several years until the project was eventually turned over to Legendary Pictures.[17][18] In March 2010, Legendary announced to have acquired the rights to Godzilla for a feature film reboot.[19] In January 2011, Gareth Edwards was announced as the director for the film.[20] The film was co-produced with Warner Bros. Pictures with filming completed in 2013 in Canada and the United States for release in 2014.[21] Godzilla was released on May 16, 2014, to positive reviews,[22][23] and was a box office success, grossing $529 million worldwide against a budget of $160 million.[24]

Set in 1973, the film follows a team of scientists and Vietnam War soldiers traveling to an uncharted island in the Pacific where they encounter terrifying creatures and the mighty Kong. The film introduces Kong, the Mother Longlegs,[25] the Sker Buffalo,[25] the Mire Squid,[25] the Leafwing,[25] the Psychovulture,[25] the Spore Mantis,[25] the Skull Devil,[26] and the Skullcrawlers to the Monsterverse and a post-credits scene introduces Rodan, Mothra, and King Ghidorah to the Monsterverse.[27] The Skull Devil was originally trademarked as "Ramarak the Skullcrawler" until it was abandoned in September 2017.[28]

In July 2014 at San Diego Comic-Con, Legendary announced a King Kong origin story, initially titled Skull Island, with a release date of November 4, 2016, and Universal Pictures distributing.[29] In September 2014, Jordan Vogt-Roberts was announced as the film's director.[30] In September 2015, Legendary moved development of the film from Universal Pictures to Warner Bros. to create an expanded cinematic universe.[31] Principal photography began on October 19, 2015, in Hawaii and Vietnam. Kong: Skull Island was released on March 10, 2017, to positive reviews,[32][33] and was a box office success, grossing $566 million worldwide against a budget of $185 million.[34] The film received a nomination for Best Visual Effects at the 90th Academy Awards.[35]

In the film, eco-terrorists release King Ghidorah, who awakens other monsters known as "Titans" across the world, forcing Godzilla and Mothra to surface and engage Ghidorah and Rodan in a decisive battle. The film changes the monsters' designation from "MUTOs" to "Titans".[36] The film introduces Scylla, Methuselah, Behemoth, and the Queen MUTO to the Monsterverse.[37] Off-screen, the film introduces Baphomet, Typhon, Mokele-Mbembe, Sargon, Tiamat, Abaddon, Leviathan, and Bunyip to the Monsterverse.[37][38]

In the film, Kong clashes with Godzilla as humans lure the ape into the Hollow Earth to retrieve a power source for a weapon to stop Godzilla's mysterious rampages. The film introduces Mechagodzilla,[54] the Warbat,[55] the Hellhawk,[56] and Titanus Doug[57] to the Monsterverse.

The project was announced in October 2015 when Legendary announced plans for a shared cinematic universe between Godzilla and King Kong. The film's writers room was assembled in March 2017 and Adam Wingard was announced as the director in May 2017. Principal photography began in November 2018 in Hawaii and Australia and concluded in April 2019. After being delayed from a November 2020 release date due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the film was theatrically released internationally on March 24, 2021,[58][59] and was released in the United States on March 31, 2021, where it was released simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max.[60] The film received generally positive reviews and was a box office success, breaking pandemic records and grossing $470 million. It was also a streaming hit, becoming the most successful launch item in HBO Max's history until it was overtaken by Mortal Kombat.[61][62]

Godzilla and Kong reunite against an undiscovered threat hidden deep within the Earth that challenges the existence of humans and Titans alike.[63] The film introduces the Skar King,[64] Suko,[65] and Shimo[66] to the Monsterverse.

In March 2022, it was announced that a sequel to Godzilla vs. Kong is scheduled to commence filming later in the year in Gold Coast, Queensland and other locations in South East Queensland.[67] In May 2022, it was announced that Wingard would return to direct and that Dan Stevens had been cast as the lead. Wingard and Stevens had previously worked together on The Guest.[68] The film was theatrically released internationally on March 27, 2024, and in the United States on March 29, 2024.[69][70]

In October 2017, Steven S. DeKnight (director and co-writer of Pacific Rim: Uprising) noted that there have been discussions about a cross-over between the Monsterverse and Pacific Rim franchise, however, he iterated it was all hypothetical possibilities.[71] Guillermo del Toro (director and co-writer of Pacific Rim) had also expressed interest in Pacific Rim crossing over with the Monsterverse.[72] In March 2019, when asked about the future of the Monsterverse, Garcia stated, "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 this [Godzilla: King of the Monsters and Godzilla vs. Kong]. But could there be? Yeah, that's the hope if the movies turn out really well."[73]

On April 4, 2021, following the release and successful response to Godzilla vs. Kong, Legendary's CEO Josh Grode commented on potential sequels, "we have a number of ideas for more movies."[76] That same month, the hashtag #ContinueTheMonsterverse began trending on Twitter, which was acknowledged by Legendary and garnered support from Vogt-Roberts.[77][78] On April 27, 2021, The Hollywood Reporter stated that Legendary was "quietly taking steps to stretch the series into one or more installments," while negotiating with Wingard to potentially return to direct. Various ideas were considered, including Son of Kong as one potential title.[79]

In August 2021, Borenstein stated that "there will be some new, interesting installments coming" due to the success of Godzilla vs. Kong.[80] Borenstein had also expressed interest in seeing Legendary produce a film with minimal human characters, stating, "I think it is possible. It would be very ambitious. I think ambitious in that Mad Max: Fury Road way. I think it's totally possible to do that with the absolute minimum amount of human characters and really characterize the creatures."[81]

On May 10, 2024, Legendary announced that David Callaham, who wrote the early drafts to Godzilla (2014), will write a follow-up to Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.[85] The following week, Legendary announced that Wingard would not return to direct due to scheduling conflicts, but had expressed interest in having Wingard return.[86] In June 2024, Legendary announced Grant Sputore (director of I Am Mother) as the new director and that the film would be released on March 26th, 2027.[87][88]

In January 2021, Legendary Television and Netflix announced plans for animated series titled Skull Island. The project is developed and written by Brian Duffield, who also serves as co-executive producer with Jacob Robinson. Produced by Powerhouse Animation, JP and Legendary Television, the series was released worldwide on Netflix on June 22, 2023.[89][90] The series introduces Annie's Dog and the Kraken to the Monsterverse, as well as other unnamed monsters.[91]

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