In the years following the defeat of Mechagodzilla, Godzilla has taken over the Roman Coliseum as his bed and Kong has taken up residence in Hollow Earth hoping to find remnants of his tribe. Jia (Kaylee Hottle), the last of her Skull Island Iwi tribe, is the adopted daughter of Ilene Andrews (Rebecca Hall). Ilene works for Monarch trying to keep the peace between Kong and Godzilla and monitoring any Titan activity.
When an unidentified signal is detected by one of the Hollow Earth’s observation posts, Jia begins having dreams that match the signature of the signal. Ilene, thinking that the signal may be some kind of distress signal, decides that she needs help in deciphering it, so she enlists the help of former Monarch employee and conspiracy podcaster, Bernie Hayes (Brian Tyree Henry). Ilene, along with Bernie and Jia team up with Kong’s veterinarian, Trapper (Dan Stevens), and pilot Mikael (Alex Ferns), decide to take a trip to Hollow Earth to find out what’s up.
In the meantime, the signal awakens Godzilla, who goes to the closest power plant to suck up some energy. From there he travels to the Arctic and the home of Titan Tiamat and sucks up more energy which changes Godzilla into a mega powerhouse. As he is powering up, Kong, in Hollow Earth, discovers a sinkhole that takes him down into an uncharted subterranean realm. Here he finds a tribe of vicious apes. Kong is led to their home by a young ape named Suko. The tribe is ruled by an ape named Skar King who uses a crystal to control a titan called Shimo who helps him keep a tight rein on his tribe.
The team from Monarch finds that the outpost was destroyed. They follow the signal into the subterranean realm and find a clan of Iwi who are being threatened by the ape kaiju Skar King, the same creature that destroyed the observation post. Through telepathy they tell Jia that they were responsible for sending the signal to Monarch, Godzilla and Jia. The team also finds out that Skar King plans on trying to conquer the surface world. Jia awakens Mothra who convinces Kong and Godzilla to once again work together to save the world.
“Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” was released in 2024 and was directed by Adam Wingard. It is an American kaiju film, produced by Legendary Pictures in cooperation with Toho. It is a direct sequel to “Godzilla vs Kong” 2021. It is the thirty-eighth film in the Godzilla franchise as well as the fourteenth in the King Kong franchise. It is also the fifth movie in the American MonsterVerse franchise and fourth in the Legendary Pictures sequence.
Goddzilla’s mannerisms are supposedly based on those of Director Wingard’s pet cat, Mischief. According to Director Wingard, the x in ‘Godzilla x Kong’ stands for collaboration. Kong’s yellow mechanical glove is called B.E.A.S.T. which stands for Bio Enhanced Anatomic Seismic Thunder. Titan Kaijus represented in the film are, Godzilla, Kong, Mothra, Skar King, Shimo, Suko (Baby Kong), Scylla, Tiamat, and the rest of the Kong tribe.
The movie is fluffier and fancier than “Godzilla Minus One” 2023 and follows a similar feel to its predecessor “Godzilla vs Kong”. Even though Kong and Godzilla don’t have any more screen time than previously, there are still plenty of other kaijus and action sequences to keep you entertained.