A scrapped King Kong idea from 58 years ago finally made it to the big screen via his big team-up scene in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. One of Godzilla x Kong’s biggest moments came in the Egypt sequence in the midst of Godzilla’s rematch with Kong. Before victory could be claimed, Mothra arrived on the scene, resulting in a team-up between three of the monster movie genre’s biggest icons.
As a monster who was only brought into Godzilla’s world once prior to 2021’s Godzilla vs. Kong crossover, Kong doesn’t have a long history of kaiju encounters. In his movies, it’s unusual for him to share the screen with another monster with anything that’s close to his size. So while Godzilla has been fighting and allying with other giant monsters for decades, this is all still a bit new for the Kong character. However, the Monsterverse has done much to integrate him further into Godzilla’s universe. Godzilla vs. Kong made Mechagodzilla the third Toho kiaju to meet Kong, with Godzilla x Kong’s ending making Mothra the fourth to do so.
Kong coming face-to-face with Mothra in Godzilla x Kong was a first in movie history, though it wasn’t the first time such a meeting was entertained. The original script for Ebirah, Horror of the Deep, a 1965 movie that pitted Godzilla against a giant lobster, included a sequence that would have marked King Kong’s first encounter with Mothra. After fighting the villain of the film, Kong would have had a brief fight with Mothra at the end, and would have lost. However, the movie – then titled Operation Robinson Crusoe: King Kong vs. Ebirah – never saw the light of day and was retooled into Ebirah, Horror of the Deep.
While Ebirah, Horror of the Deep is a Godzilla movie through and through, that’s not what the studio originally intended it to be. After the success of their collaboration with RKO for King Kong vs. Godzilla, Toho decided to use the giant ape in a second feature. In addition to having him fight Ebirah, Toho also wanted him to meet a familiar monster from its library, Mothra. But when Rankin-Bass, the studio that was co-financing the project with Toho, changed their minds about the film, Toho rewrote the story to replace King Kong with Godzilla, hence why Kong has no role in a film that was originally about him.
While King Kong crossing paths with Mothra was always an idea with potential, that’s not to say audiences were denied a thrilling experience when Operation Robinson Crusoe: King Kong vs. Ebirah was abandoned. Ebirah, Horror of the Deep’s reputation as a middling Godzilla film that suffered considerably from its low budget goes to show that the meeting of the two monsters was unlikely to have been a memorable one. With that in mind, it may be for the best that it was saved for Godzilla x Kong. The fact that the two had never met before on the big screen helped make the scene of the three Titans standing united in Egypt all the more epic.
Not only that, but an alliance between the two – as opposed to a fight – makes more sense than what Toho had in mind for its movie. Whereas Godzilla and Kong can work as enemies and allies interchangeably, the situation with Kong and Mothra is a bit different. Both are traditionally regarded as defenders of humanity and have less reasons for fighting each other. Kong and Mothra’s very natures dictate that they belong on the same side in any conflict. That’s not the case with Godzilla, whose history as an anti-hero easily justifies fights with other heroic monsters.
Now that Mothra and Kong have finally been brought together, the Monsterverse has the tools it needs to make the most of this combination. Though Mothra and Kong share a common enemy in the Monsterverse’s Skar King in Godzilla x Kong, the movie doesn’t get an opportunity to develop a dynamic between the two. Similar to how the Monsterverse has given Godzilla unique relationships with both Kong and Mothra, the Monsterverse can do the same for the latter two monsters. A chance for that could come in a potential Godzilla vs. Kong 3, especially Adam Wingard has been open to make his Monsterverse films a trilogy.
Audiences seeing more of Kong and Mothra together would seem like an appropriate move for a sequel in light of what Godzilla x Kong revealed about the two Titans. Kong: Skull Island introduced Kong as a guardian figure for the Iwi, and now Godzilla x Kong has indicated that Mothra fills a similar role, albeit for the Iwi that reside in the Monsterverse’s Hollow Earth world. This naturally raises new questions about what relationship Kong’s ancestors had with Mothra. It’s likely that they shared some sort of connection given that they’re both linked to the Iwi.
While it could be argued that the Monsterverse has separate Iwi tribes in its lore, it’s important to note that Godzilla x Kong called attention to Mothra’s connection to the Skull Island group. The prophecy noted that Mothra could only be revived by an Iwi from Skull Island, which proves that regardless of where they live, they’re still one people. And if both Kong and Mothra are expected to protect them, it stands to reason that they’re bound together in some way as well. Whatever that is, it deserves to be expanded on when Kong’s Monsterverse story continues.
Contrary to what happens in many of her previous movies, there was no need for Mothra to make the ultimate sacrifice or die in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, which should create an easy avenue for her return. And the monster appearing again would seem necessary, considering that a Godzilla vs. Kong 3 happening at all would mean that a massive new Titan threat is coming. Since Mothra always takes it upon herself to defend the planet, there’ll be an expectation to see her lend her aid to Godzilla and Kong once more.
