Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire‘s ending sees the Monsterverse offer Kong something that’s been denied to him throughout his 83-year history in its universe. Although Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire features a lot of Titans, Kong was arguably its most important monster, as his arc was advanced by a significant degree in the movie. While a sequel to Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire isn’t confirmed, the box-office success of the creature feature bodes well for the franchise’s future – and Kong’s.
With new and returning characters in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, the potential for some characters to outshine others is considerable. However, the movie does a good job maintaining and even honoring the legacy of its most important character, Kong. Since Kong’s introduction to the Monsterverse back in 2017’s Kong: Skull Island, audiences have seen the iconic ape develop in ways not seen in previous movies. Moreover, with the well-written story and characterization of Kong in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, audiences have finally witnessed a moment that the franchise had been holding back for a long time.
Since Kong: Skull Island, the Monsterverse’s version of Kong has always referred to him as Kong. Additionally, with Godzilla beating Kong in many of their fights, it remained to be seen when he would finally have the honor of King bestowed on him. However, after seeing the level of character development that Legendary Pictures infused into Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire‘s version of Kong, his status as King Kong has finally been realized. From the beginning of the movie, Kong attempted to restore a sense of peace and balance to Hollow Earth.
Kong’s biggest obstacle toward that goal was a villain aptly named “The Skar King.“ Despite being a newcomer to the franchise, Skar King makes an unforgettable entry into the Monsterverse by demonstrating how cunning, ruthless, and evil a Kong can be. Audiences witness Skar King turn other Kongs against each other, brutally murder his own subordinates, and attempt to kill Baby Kong in the heat of battle. Nevertheless, with the help of Godzilla and Baby Kong, Kong is able to defeat Skar King and in doing so, symbolically take up the mantle of King Kong at the end of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.
It took the Monsterverse 83 years to debut its version of King Kong because that’s how long Kong has existed in its world. His earliest scene in the Monsterverse, as seen in Kong: Skull Island, is dated at 1944 in the timeline. Since then, he has undergone character growth and development well into 2024. In a subtle way, Legendary Pictures successfully demonstrated that Kong’s character arc took almost 100 years. By doing this, it highlighted the arduous journey Kong had to endure in order to evolve into King Kong in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.