King Kong (Monsterverse)
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King Kong (キングコング Kingu Kongu) is a giant ape Titan who first appeared in the 2017 Legendary Pictures film Kong: Skull Island. He is the largest incarnation of the character to date.
The last of a race of huge, gorilla-like apes who reigned over Skull Island, Kong was born in the midst of a battle between his parents and a horde of vicious Skullcrawlers. Kong's mother sealed him safely within a cave before the Skullcrawlers slaughtered her along with his father. The infant Kong witnessed the brutal demise of his parents from the cave and dedicated his life to avenging them by keeping the island's Skullcrawler population in check and defending the other creatures of the island. He was first witnessed by humans other than the island's Iwi tribe when fighter pilots Hank Marlow and Gunpei Ikari crashed on the island following a dogfight over the Pacific Ocean in 1944. Nearly three decades later in 1973, a survey expedition to the previously uncharted island organized by the scientific organization Monarch brought many more people to the island, who unintentionally drew more Skullcrawlers to the surface by dropping seismic charges to map the island. Kong destroyed the helicopter escort carrying the expedition members in a furious rage, causing Colonel Preston Packard to develop a burning hatred for the Titan. Some of the survivors encountered Marlow and the Iwi and learned Kong's true nature as a protector of the island. However, Packard and his surviving men salvaged heavy ordnance from a downed Sea Stallion and sprung a trap for Kong which succeeded in weakening him enough to the point the colossal Skull Devil emerged. Kong killed Packard before the evil creature attacked him, and Packard's men joined up with the other survivors to escape the island. The Skull Devil chose to pursue them, but Kong came to their rescue and slew the beast once and for all. The survivors were successfully extracted from the island, their experience kept a secret to everyone except Monarch. Roughly two decades later, Kong confronted and killed the Kraken that terrorized the island's shores.
In 1995, Aaron Brooks, the son of 1973 expedition member and Monarch scientist Houston Brooks, organized a covert return mission to the island out of a belief Kong could not be trusted to keep the volatile ecosystem under control. The mission became a disaster as the island's more malevolent fauna stranded the team and killed many members. Kong rescued them from a pack of attacking Death Jackals, and later from a Sirenjaw. One of the team members, Walter R. Riccio, lost his mind on the island and blasted open a hole in the wall surrounding the Iwi village, meant as a sort of "test" of whether the Iwi were worthy of Kong's protection. Kong quickly sprung into action and saved the Iwi from attacking Mother Longlegs, then killed Riccio once he realized he was the cause of the attack. Brooks, now the last survivor of the expedition, met Kong face-to-face and finally understood his pure intentions and capability to defend the island, and chose to remain behind and help the Iwi rebuild. In 2017, Kong was angered by the arrival of Scarabs on Skull Island, lashing out and destroying the joint Monarch–Apex Cybernetics base set up there. Later, after Cate Randa accidentally unleashed Titan X from Axis Mundi, Kong chased the Titan off of the island. When Titan X was lured back to Skull Island days later by Isabel Simmons and her crew, Kong was distracted with recordings of Skullcrawler sounds, but eventually located the Titan, who'd since been provoked into rage using neural implants. The Titans brawled for a time, but Titan X ultimately overrode her implants and was pacified, which Kong realized and allowed her to leave with her reclaimed egg. Two years later, Kong ignored King Ghidorah's alpha call but confronted Skullcrawlers that were awoken by it.
In 2024, after Kong drove Camazotz back to the Hollow Earth, Skull Island's climate became unstable due to a perpetual storm, forcing Kong to be contained in a dome-shaped facility that simulated the island's environment, with the sole surviving Iwi named Jia providing him company. After being convinced by Nathan Lind to bring Kong with them on a joint expedition between Monarch and Apex Cybernetics into the Hollow Earth in order to find a power source that could help build a weapon capable of stopping the rampaging Godzilla, Jia and her adoptive mother Ilene Andrews accompanied Kong as he was escorted by sea to an entrance in Antarctica. However, Godzilla arrived and attacked the fleet, battling Kong and nearly drowning him before they were separated by depth charges. Godzilla called off his attack after he no longer deemed Kong a threat and the remaining fleet "played dead" by shutting off their power. Kong was brought to the Antarctica entrance by air and, after some convincing from Jia, headed into the Hollow Earth. After battling a pair of Warbats, Kong made his way to a large throne room where he found an ancient axe that was charged by the same energy that powered the temple. Godzilla drilled a hole into the Hollow Earth with his atomic breath, causing the temple to collapse. Fighting off a swarm of Hellhawks and killing Apex executive Maia Simmons, the angered Kong then made his way to Hong Kong where he battled Godzilla. After a protracted battle, Kong was eventually defeated by Godzilla and collapsed to the ground unconscious. When Jia informed Andrews that Kong was dying, Lind landed the remaining HEAV onto Kong's chest and overloaded it, reviving him. Jia convinced Kong to help Godzilla against the newly unleashed Mechagodzilla, and the two Titans managed to destroy the mech with some human assistance. Kong and Godzilla acknowledged each other before Godzilla went back into the ocean and Kong made his permanent home in the Hollow Earth.
Three years later, Kong encountered a juvenille Great Ape named Suko when investigating a newly discovered chasm in the Hollow Earth. After a failed ambush from Suko's adult allies and spending time with the young ape, Kong was brought to the lair of the tyrannical Skar King. Seeing his cruel treatment to the other apes, an angered Kong challenged Skar King to single combat and the two briefly traded blows before Skar King sicced his secret weapon on him: The gigantic icy Titan Shimo. Kong managed to escape the other apes pursuing him with the help of Suko. An injured Kong had his frostbitten hand treated with Monarch's B.E.A.S.T. Glove before learning that Skar King is on the warpath. Kong traveled to Cairo and, after a brief scuffle with a newly evolved Godzilla, managed to enlist his help with some assistance from Mothra. The three returned to the Hollow Earth and confronted Skar King and Shimo, their fight eventually taking them back to the surface in Rio de Janeiro. After a protracted brawl, Suko broke the crystal on Skar King's whip with Kong's axe, freeing Shimo from his control. Shimo froze Skar King under Godzilla's order and Kong shattered his body to pieces. Kong returned to the Hollow Earth with Suko and Shimo, the Great Apes accepting him as their new leader.
Name
In general, this incarnation of the character is only referred to as Kong (コング Kongu) onscreen and in promotional materials. However, he is referred to by his full name of "King Kong" in Kong: Skull Island - The Official Movie Novelization, in the Japanese title and marketing for the film, in press releases for Skull Island: The Birth of Kong, in Funko's merchandise, in the packaging for a ceramic tiki mug made by Mondo,[21] and in a track from the film's soundtrack. His full name, spelled in katakana, is also seen briefly in the opening title sequence for Godzilla vs. Kong, and is also used in a promo image for Bandai's HG D+ Godzilla 06 gashapon figure wave.[22] The film's Chinese title also refers to Kong by his full name. In Godzilla: King of the Monsters, Monarch gives Kong the Titan classification Titanus Kong. His species' cryptozoological classification in the Monsterverse is Apus Giganticus.[10][a]
Design
The appearance of this incarnation of Kong is mostly based on the 1933 incarnation.[citation needed] Kong stands upright like a human, with his incredibly long arms held at his sides. Kong's fur is a light brown color and covers the majority of his body except for his face, chest, hands, and feet. Kong's skin is a dark gray color, and he has large scars running across his chest. Kong has small rounded ears on the sides of his head, one of which has a chunk taken out of it, and possesses many ape-like features on his face, such as a flat nose with rounded nostrils and large canine teeth in his mouth. Kong has a total of 32 teeth.[12][16]
In Godzilla vs. Kong, he possesses a pronounced human-like beard which covers the lower part of his head and chin, two scars on his nose and a scar on the right side of his belly. Kingdom Kong shows that Kong's legs have lengthened, giving him more human-like body proportions. He also has broader shoulders with much larger amounts of fur than before, almost looking like American football pads. His sclera now changes between white and black and his irises are brown.
In the series Skull Island, Kong possesses much larger forearms. He has a beard similar to the one seen in Godzilla vs. Kong, although it is smaller. His irises are yellow while his sclera is a light yellowish tan in color.
In Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, he has a long scar running across his back, his fur is grayer, his biceps possess less hair, and his beard is slightly longer than it was in Godzilla vs. Kong.[23] Monarch veterinarian Trapper replaces his infected right canine tooth with a titanium one. Later, Trapper equips him with a yellow mechanical glove on his right arm, dubbed the B.E.A.S.T. (Bio-Enhanced Anatomech Seismic Thunder) Glove.[24]
Personality
Kong is the guardian of Skull Island and is responsible for maintaining the natural order and defending the island's wildlife from threats. Monarch classifies Kong’s behavior as that of a "protector,"[13] along with fellow Titans Godzilla, Mothra, Behemoth, and Methuselah. While Kong appears to be highly territorial in Kong: Skull Island, he does demonstrate some degree of altruism, such as rescuing a trapped Sker Buffalo and saving Mason Weaver from drowning. Kong is not normally aggressive towards humans, and only attacks them when provoked. The native Iwi tribe reveres Kong and views him as their savior, as he and his family allegedly defended them from the Skullcrawlers in the past. Kong demonstrates an interest in Mason Weaver, as he at one point allows her to touch his face, and later admires her in his hand after he rescues her from the Skull Devil. Kong demonstrated visible sadness in Kingdom Kong when he sees a Sker Buffalo he rescued has been killed by a flock of Psychovultures. Kong has also shown a great deal of curiosity, as shown in Godzilla vs. Kong where he investigates his species' ancestral temple in the Hollow Earth and the battle axe found inside.
Skull Island: The Birth of Kong fully reveals Kong's driving motivations for keeping the order of the island. After witnessing his parents' deaths moments after he was born, Kong chose to avenge them and honor their memory by keeping the island's Skullcrawler population under control and actively defending the island's least malicious and most vulnerable life, including the Iwi people. He actively rescues members of Monarch's second off-the-books expedition to the island from Death Jackals and a Sirenjaw, and immediately comes to the aid of the Iwi village once it is besieged by Mother Longlegs allowed into the village by the deranged Walter R. Riccio. Kong recognizes individual humans and understands that they share his level of intelligence, and is shown to distinguish between those he judges as friendly and those who are not. As such, he defends or genially regards most humans but kills Preston Packard, Riccio, and Maia Simmons. In Godzilla vs. Kong, Kong took the Iwi girl Jia under his wing after the storm around Skull Island reached the island interior. This is further explored in the film's novelization, which shows that Kong saved Jia after her family was killed by a Sirenjaw. When Maia ordered her guards to aim their weapons at the girl, Kong roared angrily at them in her defense. Kong is also shown to be vengeful towards Godzilla after the latter’s atomic breath blasted through his ancient temple, which resulted in its collapse. After some reasoning from Jia, Kong accepted that Godzilla was not his true enemy and thus allied with him against Mechagodzilla. Despite such, Kong rearmed himself when Godzilla approached him. When Godzilla proposed a truce with facial gestures, Kong unhesitatingly dropped his axe as an expression of his peaceful acceptance. Returning to the Hollow Earth, Kong happily signed "home" to Jia before leaping off to assert his dominance over the interior world.
In Skull Island, Kong saved Charlie and Mike from a Galloping Crocodile by picking it up and eating it. Some time later, when the Kraken flung a whale at his temple to taunt him into a fight, Kong responded with a thunderous intimidation display consisting of bellowing, beating his chest, and slamming his fist on the ground. Despite his tendency to protect the island's docile inhabitants, Kong was not above consuming a live Grass Hedgehog offered to him by the Hawk Monster, with whom he had developed a rapport; he allowed the hawk to provide him food and inform him of disturbances on the island. In the flashback episode "You're Not a King, You're Just a Stupid Animal", set at some point between 1973 and 1993, Kong is shown to have befriended a young Skull Islander girl and comprehends her speech without trouble. Prior to a fight with a trio of Horncrest Chameleons, Kong pranked the island girl by surfacing beneath her boat while she fished, laughing even as he was scolded for it. His demeanor turned serious when the Hawk Monster informed him of the death of a Sker Buffalo, and he immediately leapt over to the carcass before resolving to track down the culprits. After they discovered the Chameleons to be responsible, Kong recklessly attacked them against the girl's wishes, setting off a battle that nearly killed her. Kong came to regret losing his composure, whining as he sat on a mountain that he and the girl used to stargaze. He tried to make amends the next morning, offering a fruit tree to the girl's village, but only caused destruction and irritated her. After she and her people were slaughtered by the Kraken, Kong buried her and kept her necklace as a memento. His attachment to the necklace was such that, years later, Annie, Charlie, and Dog were able to use it to lure him into the Kraken's territory, which he had previously avoided. Furthermore, upon chasing Annie and Dog to the shore, Kong nearly pummeled them over the necklace. He seemed to forgive them once they returned it, saving their lives during his battle against the Kraken.
In Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, Kong allowed Monarch and Apex Cybernetics to operate from a base on Skull Island for two years. It was only when Apex opened up an Axis Mundi portal that released Cate, May, and Keiko, and a horde of Scarabs that Kong immediately went on a rampage, killing numerous humans as he targeted the Scarabs. He continued to patrol around the island before resting. When Cate reopened the same portal to save Lee Shaw and unleashed Titan X onto the island, Kong immediately awakened. This time, he investigated the scene; determining that the Suzuki device was causing the reopening of the portal, he promptly smashed it, closing the portal for good. He chased Titan X into the water, then looked over to the humans responsible and roared at them angrily. When Titan X returned to Skull Island, Kong moved to confront her, but chose to prioritize an apparent Skullcrawler incursion. Once he reached the source of the roars, a recording played from a helicopter, he realized the deception and resumed course towards Titan X, who Isabel Simmons' forces had driven into a frenzy with neural implants. The Titans battled fiercely, though Kong had the presence of mind to punch Titan X away from Keiko driving around their fight, later working to keep her and Cate from getting crushed. Kong ceased fighting when Titan X broke off to retrieve her egg. When Titan X turned around to lower her head, her egg in tentacle, Kong happily climbed a mountain to remove himself from the mother's path home.
Kong puts the defense of Skull Island as his first priority, and his will is so strong he is willing to stand up to Titans of equal status to his own if necessary, as noted in Godzilla: King of the Monsters - The Official Movie Novelization. Kong's willpower renders him resistant to the Alpha call of King Ghidorah, which awakens most other Titans around the globe and bends them to his will, including the Leafwings and Skullcrawlers on the island. Kong actively chooses to remain on his island and ignore Ghidorah's call to "hunt together" with him, and his attention is immediately grabbed by the Skullcrawlers responding to Ghidorah. Only Godzilla and Mothra also proved immune to Ghidorah's call.
Godzilla vs. Kong: The Official Movie Novelization explains that Kong has a dislike of things outside of his reach, including the Sun and the Moon.[25] He would throw trees at the sun in his youth, resuming this inside Monarch Outpost 236 due to a lack of more immediate adversaries.[25]
In Godzilla x Kong: The Hunted, now declaring the Hollow Earth his new home, Kong wonders around the place in awe and curiosity to better understand the inhabitants that live there and how certain things operate. When he fights the Spineprowler, he wasted no time in showing the Giant Feline Titan that he's not one to be easily messed with and made easy efforts to know her place although he would show concerns when he hears her cries of pain from her being captured and shocked. When Kong gets some alone time, he takes in the view of the floating rocks in front of him inside of the Hollow Earth until he saw something up top. When Kong discovers a cave and saw different sets of cave paintings, he gets shocked and surprised when he sees that there is more history in the Hollow Earth then he thought and a story being told in front of him. Just after eating a dead snake Titan, Kong would hear more cries of pain from a distance and would leap forward to investigate where it is coming from. After arriving, he hears human conversation and went towards it to find a group of humans dragging a dead Sker Buffalo away using a truck, Kong then sensed their true intentions and decided to put a stop to all of this by crushing everything around him. Kong would then find the main target that caused all this mess, Raymond Martin. He jumped in front of his Titan Hunter mech in time to prevent Martin from trying to kill the two infants of an adult Spineprolwer that tried and died from defending them. Kong, now knowing Martin's full intentions and motivation roared in pure rage and charged directly at him to do battle. The mech at first would get the upper hand until Kong managed to grab the mechs arm and dropkicked it into the ground, unleashing all of his fists to destroy the mech. The fight would continue until Kong suplexes the mech into a cliff and grabbed it by the arm in hopes of getting the human in it to change. When Kong realizes that Martin wasn't going to change, he dropped the mech all the way to the ground, resulting from the mech exploding and damaged as a result. Kong would then turn over to the infants to ensure them their safety before leaving Martin at their mercy, walking away while the screams of Martin is happening behind him.
In Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, Kong intimidates several Wart Dogs by tearing one of their dead comrades in half. Unable to find any others of his kind in Hollow Earth, he is particularly distressed when he searches for the source of a roar similar to his own and finds only a Parrot Frog who has been mimicking it. He is capable of utilizing portals within Hollow Earth to travel to the surface, although his truce with Godzilla is contingent on him not doing so, and takes a portal to the Monarch base in Barbados to seek help with his infected tooth. Upon discovering that his cave had been deprived of his kills, Kong took out his battle axe, which he had hidden, to investigate. When Kong found a chasm formed at his hunting grounds and discovered within it the skeletal remains of other apes, he was again visibly saddened. Upon coming into contact with Suko and realizing the ape's age, Kong reached his hand out, only for Suko to bite it and the other nearby Great Apes to launch an attack. Nonetheless, he saved one of the apes from falling to his death, only to be forced to drop him when the ape immediately continued attacking. After the fight's conclusion, Kong did Suko no harm, instead simply demanding to be lead to the other apes' origination. Even after Suko tricked him into entering the territory of a Drownviper, Kong left him untouched and even offered the juvenile ape some of the serpent's flesh later on. Kong develops a father-son bond with Suko over the course of the film, mutually coming to each other's aid when needed. Upon entering the Skar King's lair, Kong was shocked to see Great Apes laboring under the abuse of others of their kind. Despite Suko's insistent warning, he helped a worker back to his feet before enduring a guard's attempt at intimidation, retaliating with an almost lethal punch. Kong stood patiently as the Skar King revealed himself and examined him, displaying no irritation when the tyrant mocked him for his titanium tooth. After the Skar King kicked Gnarled Finger, Suko's guardian figure, into the nearby lava, Kong angrily roared. Without hesitation, Kong challenged the Skar King in a fight, which he persisted through even as he was overpowered. When Suko began to hide away due to it seeming that he was losing, Kong mustered the strength to break free of the Skar King's chokehold and slammed him down on the ground. Kong subsequently beat his chest and fiercely bellowed his willingness to keep fighting. As Shimo was unveiled, Kong stood without fear despite the other Titan's immense size and cryokinetic powers. At first, Kong unhesitatingly defended himself against her, only to flee after she disarmed him and froze over his arm. Even in his weakened state however, Kong remained courageous as he ran from the Great Apes sent to kill him. When he was cornered, Kong beared the will to face his pursuers if it came to that. When Suko saved his life by triggering his hunting traps, Kong visibly showed happiness before allowing the juvenile ape to help carry him to Malenka. There, Kong mustered the strength to touch fingers with Jia and allowed Trapper to provide him with the B.E.A.S.T. Glove. More than pleased by the device, Kong ferociously bellowed before punching the ground. After Suko warned him of the Skar King's forces, Kong signed to Dr. Ilene Andrews about the evil ape's ongoing approach. Adhering to Jia's advice to get help, Kong unhesitatingly travelled to Egypt via a Hollow Earth vortex to acquire Godzilla's aid. When the other Titan appeared, he attempted to communicate his intent with hand gestures, though his efforts proved futile. Forced to defend himself and fight back, Kong knocked Godzilla unconscious before attempting to drag him to the vortex. Before he could succeed however, Kong fled as Godzilla reawakened and fired his atomic breath, before finding himself pinned down. Even as it seemed that he was about to die, Kong showed no fear. When Mothra suddenly appeared with Jia and the two of them explained his motives to Godzilla, Kong gleefully watched before joining the other two Titans in a battle cry. As they took to battle against the Skar King and his forces, Kong personally engaged the former in combat after obliging a command from Godzilla to jump from him. When Suko aided in battling the Great Ape warriors guarding Skar King, Kong acknowledged the young ape. Kong displayed fuss both when the gravity in the Hollow Earth region turned off and when it returned, roaring as he fell into a vortex to the surface without his axe due to it getting stuck on the way down. Upon arriving on the surface world in Rio de Janeiro, Kong punched Skar King down onto his back, giving a snarky remark when his enemy spat out a tooth. After being tail-whipped by Shimo, Kong took a moment to notice nearby fleeing citizens before flinching as she charged at him. Later on after Godzilla saved him a second time, Kong made a break for the crystal Skar King used to control Shimo, preventing the tyrant from reacquainting it. When Suko arrived with his battle axe, Kong bit down on the Skar King's arm while the former destroyed the crystal. Following the subsequent shockwave, Kong immediately saved Suko from the Skar King before restraining his enemy. After a succession of individual attacks inflicted on the Skar King by himself, Godzilla, and Shimo, Kong took a moment to look into Skar King's eyes before pleasurably shattering the frozen tyrant to pieces. Exchanging acknowledgments with Godzilla, Kong smiled before he watched in astonishment as Godzilla dispersed the cloud Shimo generated. Returning to the subterranean realm in Hollow Earth with Suko and Shimo, Kong triumphantly stood before his newfound subjects and even gave Shimo affectionate pets before he, Suko, Shimo, and the tribe engaged in a victory battle cry celebrating the Skar King's defeat.
Origins
Kong is the last living member of a species of gigantic apes which dwelled on Skull Island, a place described by Monarch member Bill Randa as an "emergence point" for Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organisms. According to Hank Marlow, many years ago the indigenous Iwi tribe living on the island was terrorized by gigantic lizard-like creatures, which he named Skullcrawlers. Suddenly, Kong's species began fighting back against the Skullcrawlers and protecting the Iwi from them. Kong's species successfully drove the Skullcrawlers underground, but all of them except for Kong himself were killed. With his parents and the rest of his family dead, Kong assumed the duty of acting as the island's guardian and ensured that the Skullcrawlers remained underground.
The official prequel comic to Kong: Skull Island, Skull Island: The Birth of Kong, provides in-depth flashbacks showing Kong's ancestors and his birth. These glimpses into the past establish that Kong's species had been living on Skull Island for millions of years, and were mortal enemies of the Skullcrawlers. By the time the Iwi people first arrived on the island, all of Kong's species save for his mother and father had been killed. The two mates continued their war with the Skullcrawlers, protecting the Iwi from their wrath as they made Skull Island their home. When Kong's mother went into labor with her son, she and her mate were set upon by a large pack of fully-grown Skullcrawlers. Kong's father fought with all of his might to hold off the creatures as his mate gave birth to their son. Kong's mother sealed her newborn son in a cave before the Skullcrawlers overcame his father and got to her as well. The infant Kong watched from inside the cave as his parents were slaughtered by the monsters and died side-by-side. Following the battle, Kong emerged from the cave and knelt before the bodies of his parents, who died with their hands held together. Kong wept for the parents he never knew and devoted his life to continuing their war. In Kong: Skull Island Cinematic Adventure, Monarch determined this to have occurred in the late 17th century based on pictorial recreations of the event made by the Iwi, which were found in a wrecked Dutch trading vessel.[26] By the time he was an adolescent, Kong had successfully driven the Skullcrawlers underground and kept them from reaching maturity, save for one of the creatures who had killed his parents: the Skull Devil. In doing so, Kong actively took on the mission of protecting the island's peaceful and vulnerable inhabitants, including the Iwi, from the many large and violent predators that threatened them.
In Kingdom Kong, one of two comic prequels to Godzilla vs. Kong, Dr. Houston Brooks asserts that the now-adult Kong had reached a milestone of growth which his ancestors may not have lived long enough to reach. If they did achieve Kong's size, he rationalizes, Skull Island would not have been capable of providing for them, suggesting that the island is not their true home. This is confirmed in Godzilla vs. Kong, in which Kong is brought to the Hollow Earth and finds a temple there made by ancient members of his kind. These Kongs were said to have been at war with Godzilla's species, according to Ilene Andrews, and created axes using the monsters' dorsal fins. In the film's novelization, Iwi mythology instead states that Kong's species only waged war on Godzilla himself, referred to as "Zo-zla-halawa," a monster that "[ate] a star" in the Hollow Earth and turned wicked. Kong's species were proven to be no match against the beast, resulting in most of them being killed. Godzilla would eventually drive the survivors and the Iwi's ancestors toward the surface of Skull Island. It also briefly implies that the skeletons in the throne room may not belong to Godzilla's species, but rather close relatives.
Monarch's superspecies profile for Kong speculates that his species is "the primary template of all human life" due to its size compared with other primates.[10]
History
- Kong: Skull Island (2017)
- Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) [stock footage; cave painting]
- Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)
- Skull Island (TV 2023) [all 8 episodes; footprint in 1; heard in 2; mentioned in 6]
- Monarch: Legacy of Monsters (TV 2023–2026) [episodes 1, 10–13, 16, 19–20; stock footage in 13]
- Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024)
- Godzilla x Kong: Supernova (2027)
Monsterverse
Kong: Skull Island
After crash-landing on Skull Island in 1944, American fighter pilot Hank Marlow and Japanese pilot Gunpei Ikari engaged in a fight to the death. As Ikari gained the upper hand and prepared to fatally stab Marlow with a dagger, Kong appeared over a cliff, leading the two shocked men to end their struggle.
In 1973, the scientific organization Monarch organized an expedition to Skull Island, escorted by the Sky Devils helicopter squadron led by Lt. Colonel Preston Packard. One of the helicopters carrying the expedition members cleared the storm cell surrounding the island and began flying over land, they immediately began dropping seismic charges onto the ground below, allegedly to map the island. The explosions drew out Kong, who responded by throwing a tree through one of the choppers. The remaining choppers formed a perimeter around Kong and opened fire on him. The bullets did little more than irritate Kong, who proceeded to rip the helicopters out of the sky and smash them. After downing all of the choppers, Kong wandered back off into the jungle. Kong eventually reached a river, where he noticed the wounds he had sustained from the choppers' rotor blades. Kong winced in pain briefly before beginning to drink from the lake. Suddenly, Kong realized that a Mire Squid was in the water and grabbed one of the creature's tentacles. The Mire Squid then attacked Kong with all of its tentacles, trying to strangle him to death. Kong was able to crush the creature's head under his foot and kill it, then proceeded to eat several of its tentacles. Kong then grabbed the squid's carcass and dragged it away, presumably back to his lair.
After meeting Marlow, some of the surviving expedition members were brought back to the village of the island's indigenous tribe, the Iwis. There, Marlow explained that Kong was perceived as a god by the islanders, and generally acted as a guardian on the island that kept the most dangerous creatures there under control. He stated that the reason Kong attacked the helicopters was that the seismic charges they dropped had drawn creatures he called Skullcrawlers to the surface. According to Marlow, Skullcrawlers were the most vicious and dangerous animals on the island and were responsible for killing Kong's family. At this time, Kong was being attacked by two Skullcrawlers but was able to easily dispatch the two smaller creatures. One of the expedition members, Mason Weaver, found a Sker Buffalo pinned underneath a downed helicopter and tried to free it, only for Kong to arrive and free the buffalo himself. Kong gave Weaver an indifferent glance and simply wandered off.
After surviving an encounter with a Skullcrawler and several Leafwings, Weaver and James Conrad stood atop a cliff and looked out over the island, only to witness Kong approach them. To their surprise, Kong did not seem violent or aggressive at all and even allowed Weaver to place her hand on his face. Suddenly, explosions appeared over the distance, and Kong immediately raced toward them. Weaver and Conrad knew that Packard and his men were setting a trap for Kong, intending to kill him. The two of them, joined by Marlow, rushed to the scene to try and save Kong. When Kong arrived at the scene of the explosions, he saw Packard and his men in the distance. As Kong crossed a lake to reach them, Packard ignited the napalm he had dumped into the water, causing the entire lake to erupt into flames. Kong swung his arm angrily at the water, causing the flaming napalm to hit some of the soldiers, before collapsing onto the ground. Packard placed leftover seismic charges around Kong, preparing to finish him, but Weaver, Conrad, and Marlow arrived and aimed their guns at him, demanding for him to stop. Packard refused and was prepared to detonate the charges and blow them all sky-high when suddenly a gigantic Skullcrawler, known as the Skull Devil, erupted from the lake. Everyone except Packard fled, while Kong regained consciousness and promptly smashed Packard under his fist. The Skull Devil attacked Kong, and the humans were forced to leave the giant ape to his fate.
The following morning, as the surviving expedition members neared the extraction point on the north side of the island, they were confronted by the giant Skullcrawler. Fortunately, Kong arrived and smashed the monster in the face with a boulder. Kong engaged in battle with the Skull Devil, buying time for the humans to get to safety. The weakened Kong simply was not a match for the Skull Devil and was knocked into an old shipwreck and entangled in its anchor chain. Weaver had managed to reach a vantage point and fired a flare into the Skull Devil's eye, enraging it. Kong finally broke free of the chain and managed to create a makeshift flail when it became entangled with the ship's propeller. Kong swung the flail at the Skull Devil, embedding the propeller into its back. Kong pulled the propeller out and slammed the Skull Devil into the same hill Weaver is standing on, causing her to fall into the water below. He then sliced the creature across its throat, seemingly killing it. Kong then pulled Weaver out of the water and took a second to stare at her in his hand, only for the Skull Devil to get back up and clamp its jaws onto his arm. Kong battled the Skull Devil again, trying to keep Weaver away from its mouth, but the beast used its prehensile tongue to pull Kong's hand, with Weaver held in it, down its throat. Mustering all his strength, Kong pulled his hand free of the Skull Devil's gullet, ripping out the beast's innards and killing it instantly. Kong gently set Weaver down on the ground, while Conrad immediately ran to her to ensure she was okay. As Weaver regained consciousness and embraced Conrad, Kong looked back at the two of them before walking away. Once the survivors were finally rescued from the island, Kong stood triumphantly in his domain, beating his chest and letting out a mighty roar.
Godzilla: King of the Monsters
Kong was on Skull Island, now the site of Monarch Outpost 33, when King Ghidorah emitted an alpha call which awakened the planet's dormant Titans and bent them to his will. While Kong did not comply with Ghidorah's call, he was shown to be leaving Skull Island on one of Monarch's computer monitors. After Godzilla defeated Ghidorah, humanity began uncovering many secrets from the ancient world regarding the Titans, including a cave painting of what appeared to be a member of Kong's species fighting Godzilla.
Godzilla vs. Kong
By 2024, a storm generated by King Ghidorah had combined with the storm cell perpetually surrounding Skull Island, causing the island to be consumed by a never-ending storm. Monarch constructed Outpost #236, a large dome-like structure with an artificial recreation of Skull Island's original environment, to contain Kong. One morning, Kong woke up as a flock of Leafwings flew overhead. He wandered into a nearby lake and stood under a waterfall, then uprooted a tree. Jia, a young orphaned Iwi girl with whom Kong shared a bond, approached him and showed him her doll of him. Kong leaned forward and inspected it, then reared back and threw the tree into the false sky over the containment unit. Dr. Ilene Andrews, an anthropological linguist who was assigned to watch over Kong, discussed the current situation with Ben, another Monarch member. It was clear that Kong was becoming too large for his surroundings, and that the containment unit wouldn't be able to hold him forever. Ben suggested they look into relocating the Titan, but Andrews believed this would be a death sentence. There could not be two alpha Titans, she said, and the moment Kong left the island, Godzilla would come for him.
Meanwhile, Godzilla unexpectedly attacked an Apex Cybernetics facility in Pensacola, Florida, causing mankind to turn against him. Apex CEO Walter Simmons and Chief Technology Officer Ren Serizawa approached ex-Monarch geologist Nathan Lind and proposed a joint Apex-Monarch expedition to the Hollow Earth in order to find an energy source which would allow Apex to create a weapon capable of standing up to Godzilla. Lind was convinced but further explained that due to all Titans sharing genetic memory which instinctively led them to their evolutionary source, a Titan could lead the way. Lind traveled to Outpost #236 and explained the plan to Andrews, who rejected it again on the basis that Godzilla would come for Kong as soon as he left the island. Lind stated that they needed to find this energy source in order to stop Godzilla and that in the process they could find Kong a new home. Andrews was finally convinced but accepted on the condition that she was in charge of Kong. Kong was sedated and placed on a ship, which was escorted by a naval fleet en route to Antarctica. One night, Kong became restless and began tugging at the chains restraining him. Jia came onto the deck and held out her finger to Kong, who responded by touching it with his finger. Andrews rushed onto the deck and asked Jia what she was doing, and Jia responded by signing to her that Kong was sad and angry. Andrews signed that Kong didn't understand that they were trying to help him, but Jia signed back that Kong didn't believe that. Andrews asked how she knew, and Jia signed that Kong told her. To Andrews' amazement, Kong proceeded to sign the word "home."
The next day, Andrews and Lind discussed what happened the night before. Andrews explained that she had spent years trying to establish communication with Kong, teaching him the alphabet and basic commands. Though Kong showed signs of recognition, he had never openly communicated with her. Lind asked if it was possible for Jia to give commands to Kong, but Andrews rejected the idea, saying Jia was just a child. When the storm wiped out most of the Iwi people, Jia's parents were killed, and she and Kong both took up the responsibility to protect her. Jia, meanwhile, felt something approaching the ship and ran to warn Andrews. Lind asked what was going on, and Andrews responded that Godzilla was coming. Battleships and fighter jets opened fire on Godzilla but did nothing to slow his approach. As Godzilla submerged near his ship, Kong roared into the sea below, only for Godzilla to burst up from underwater and capsize the ship. As the ship filled with water, Lind released Kong's chains, allowing him to fight back. He held back Godzilla as he snapped at him with his jaws, then freed himself as the ship righted itself. Kong stood on the ship and watched as Godzilla circled around the fleet. He then jumped on a destroyer then onto an aircraft carrier. As Godzilla approached, Kong grabbed a jet and threw it at him. Godzilla climbed aboard the carrier and was promptly greeted by a punch from Kong. Godzilla retaliated by slashing at Kong's face with his claws, knocking him down. Godzilla charged his atomic breath, but a fighter jet managed to interrupt him before he could fire it. Kong punched Godzilla, then got back to his feet and shoved him off the carrier. Godzilla fired his atomic breath at the carrier from underwater, with Kong leaping off just in time to avoid the blast. Godzilla grabbed Kong in the water and tried to pull him down, but Kong kicked himself free and tried to surface. Godzilla wrapped his tail around Kong and began pulling him down again. Andrews told the commander that they had to disorient Godzilla somehow before he drowned Kong, and suggested depth charges. The ships fired depth charges into the sea, which exploded. After a few moments, Kong pulled himself back onto the ship, coughing up water before falling onto his back. Lind told the commander to shut down all of the fleet's power in order to make Godzilla think he had won. The commander obliged, and Godzilla soon surfaced amidst the burning remnants of several ships. Kong scowled at Godzilla, who finally departed the area. Andrews told Lind that Godzilla would return the second they started moving again, so Lind suggested airlifting Kong instead.
Kong was transported in a net carried by numerous helicopters and Ospreys, then deposited in Antarctica. Kong inspected the snow surrounding him, then looked to see Jia and the others standing on a nearby ledge. Jia signed to Kong that his home was through the entrance to the Hollow Earth behind him, but Kong did not go through. Lind told Andrews to tell Kong there could be others like him down there, so Andrews asked Jia to sign this to Kong. Jia signed to Kong that his family could be down there, and Kong immediately charged through. Everyone else boarded Apex's HEAVs and followed Kong. Kong swung himself along the pipes on the ceiling of the tunnel before losing his grip and falling through a crater. Kong and the HEAVs passed through a vortex that eventually spits them out into the Hollow Earth. Kong ran across the terrain with the HEAVs in pursuit. Suddenly, one HEAV was destroyed by a Warbat. Before the creature could attack another HEAV, Kong grabbed it by its tail and slammed it on the ground, killing it. A second Warbat flew toward Kong, who swung the other's corpse into it. The Warbat recovered and roared at Kong, then proceeded to constrict its body around him. It pulled its wing over Kong's face in an attempt to suffocate him, but a HEAV interrupted it by firing missiles at it. Kong freed himself and began pummeling the Warbat into the dirt before tearing off its head and drinking the contents of its skull.
Kong continued moving across the Hollow Earth before reaching a cliff. Kong jumped off the cliff and floated through the air onto another surface. Kong eventually reached a gigantic temple, with the imprint of his species' hand on the door. Kong placed his hand over the imprint and pushed the door open, opening it into a huge chamber. Kong roared loudly, but his roar echoed through the temple unanswered. Kong began walking through the temple and picked up an axe he found lodged in the skull of a fallen Titan, beating his chest triumphantly as he wielded it. He then sat on a giant throne as the expedition members disembarked from the HEAVs. Apex's Maia Simmons asked where the energy source was, while the blade of Kong's axe began to glow blue. Kong found an indentation in the ground in the shape of the axe, and placed the axe into it. The ground around him began glowing blue; they had found the energy source. Apex deployed a drone to harvest the material and scan it, sending the data to Apex HQ in Hong Kong. The Monarch members objected to Apex mining the energy source, so Maia had her guards aim their weapons at them, causing Kong to roar angrily at the guards. Suddenly, the temple began to shake, causing the Hellhawks roosting on the ceiling to become active and attack. Maia and her guards boarded a HEAV and tried to escape, while a Hellhawk cornered the Monarch members. Just then, Godzilla's atomic breath burst into the temple, opening up a tunnel directly to Hong Kong. As her HEAV tried to escape, Maia ordered it to fire on Kong, who grabbed it in his hand and crushed it. Witnessing the temple collapsing, Kong, who was now furious at Godzilla, then grabbed his axe and leaped through the tunnel and climbed his way into Hong Kong.
The enraged Kong surfaced in Hong Kong to confront Godzilla. Both Titans exchanged roars before beginning to fight. Kong swung his axe at Godzilla, but it became lodged in a building. Kong then tried to fight Godzilla hand-to-hand. Godzilla tried to fire his atomic breath, but Kong stopped him. Godzilla freed himself from Kong's grip, only for Kong to bring down both of his fists onto Godzilla's head. Kong then jumped and kicked Godzilla to the ground, after which Godzilla tried to fire his atomic breath again. Thinking quickly, Kong grabbed his axe and shoved it into Godzilla's mouth, stopping him from firing it. Godzilla fired his atomic breath again, but Kong blocked it with the blade of his axe. Godzilla then tackled Kong, who stabbed his axe into Godzilla's leg. Godzilla retaliated by pushing Kong into the water, then tore the axe out of his leg with his mouth. Godzilla fired his atomic breath, forcing Kong to run through the city to avoid it. One blast did eventually hit Kong in the back, burning him and knocking him down. Kong got back up, only for Godzilla to fire his atomic breath again. Kong once more avoided the blast and climbed onto a skyscraper, which Godzilla knocked over with his atomic breath. The surviving HEAV, with Lind, Andrews, and Jia in tow, flew through the tunnel from the Hollow Earth and narrowly avoided crashing into Kong and then Godzilla's atomic breath. Kong tears off a radio dish from a surrounding building to utilize as a makeshift shield against the beam. Closing the distance, Kong grabbed his axe and jumped off the skyscraper, with Godzilla firing his atomic breath. Kong used the axe to block the blast and absorb its energy, then brought it down on Godzilla, creating a massive shockwave that blew both Titans back. The axe lost its charge as Lind remarked that it appeared Kong won the second round.
Both Titans got back to their feet, with Godzilla dropping onto all fours and hunting for Kong, angered following the impact of his axe. Kong climbed a building and threw a crane to distract Godzilla, then jumped off the building and pushed Godzilla headfirst through another building. The Titans exchanged blows again before Godzilla pulled Kong off his back and threw into a building, dislocating his shoulder. In a fit of primal rage, Godzilla dropped onto all fours again and aggressively pursued Kong, who kicked at his face as Godzilla snapped his jaws at his feet. Godzilla then jumped onto Kong, clawing into his chest repeatedly before stomping on it. Kong punched at Godzilla's leg, who roared in pain before bringing his foot down on Kong's chest again. Kong weakly tried to pull Godzilla's foot off of him but to no avail. Godzilla then roared in Kong's face, but Kong answered with a roar of his own. Godzilla finally took his foot off of Kong and began to walk away. Kong weakly got back to his feet and tried to pursue him, only to fall backward and pass out.
Meanwhile, Apex's ultimate weapon, Mechagodzilla, had gone out of control after being infused with the energy source from the Hollow Earth, prompting the consciousness of Ghidorah to possess the mecha. It killed its creators and freed itself from under Victoria Peak with its Proton Scream. Godzilla tried to battle Mechagodzilla alone but was severely outmatched by its physical strength, agility, and powerful weaponry. The HEAV landed near the fallen Kong as Godzilla and his mechanical duplicate fought. Jia placed her hand on the ground and reported that she could feel Kong's heart slowing down. Andrews said there was nothing they could do, as restarting his heart would require a huge electrical charge. Lind remembered that Maia told him earlier that the HEAVs possessed enough power to "light up Las Vegas for a week," and decided to use the HEAV to revive Kong. Lind flew the HEAV onto Kong's chest, then set it to self-destruct. He quickly escaped the craft and ran to safety just as the HEAV exploded. The electrical charge released by the explosion instantly revived Kong. Jia got Kong's attention and signed to him that Godzilla was not the enemy. Kong roared angrily, but Jia pointed to Mechagodzilla and signed that that was the enemy. Kong finally accepted this and got back to his feet. He then rammed his shoulder into a building, resetting his arm. As Mechagodzilla pried apart Godzilla's jaws and prepared to fire its Proton Scream down his throat, Kong leaped onto Mechagodzilla's back and forced it to fire the beam into the sky. Mechagodzilla threw Kong off of it, but Godzilla recovered and grabbed it by the arm. Kong grabbed the other arm, and both Titans proceeded to pull Mechagodzilla through a building. The mechanical Titan got back up and tried to punch the Titans, who interrupted its punches. Finally, Mechagodzilla overpowered Kong and Godzilla and knocked both aside. Kong saw his axe and ran to get it as the mecha focused its wrath on Godzilla. Kong reentered the battle and swung his axe into Mechagodzilla repeatedly. Mechagodzilla pinned Kong against a building and began spinning the blades on its tail and trying to shove them into Kong's face. Kong held back the spinning blades with all of his might, but couldn't hold on for long. When Josh Valentine, Madison Russell, and Bernie Hayes failed to stop Mechagodzilla from its control room, Bernie suggested they have one last drink before they died. This gave Josh an idea, as he grabbed Bernie's flask and poured its contents all over Mechagodzilla's control monitor. This caused Mechagodzilla to briefly stall, allowing Godzilla to fire his atomic breath at Kong's axe and charge it. Kong immediately hacked off Mechagodzilla's tail with the axe, then cut off both of its arms and one of its legs. Mechagodzilla fell to the ground but defiantly charged one last Proton Scream. Kong did not hesitate to bring the axe down on the mecha's neck, then proceeded to grab its head and tear it off. Kong held Mechagodzilla's head into the air and roared triumphantly before slumping down from exhaustion.
Godzilla roared and began approaching Kong, who weakly got back to his feet and picked up his axe again. The two Titans stared each other down before Kong finally dropped his axe. Godzilla roared in acknowledgment and turned to return to the sea. Kong and the gathered humans watched as Godzilla dove below the waves.
Sometime later, Andrews, Lind, and Jia watched from a monitoring station inside the Hollow Earth as Kong passed by on his morning walk. Kong signed "home" to Jia, who smiled back at him. Kong then swung from vines onto a cliff, then pounded his chest and roared triumphantly.
Skull Island
"Maritime Pilot"
In the early 1990s, Charlie and Mike washed ashore on Skull Island after the Kraken destroyed their ship, Once Upon a Maritime. They found themselves in one of Kong's massive footprints as they wondered where they were.
"The Last Blank Space on the Map"
Kong's distant roar persuaded a group of Trapdoor Crabs menacing Charlie, Mike, and Annie to retreat.
"What's Up, Croc?"
Kong grabbed a Galloping Crocodile relentlessly pursuing Charlie and Mike out of a river and ate it in a single bite. As he walked away, Annie caught a glimpse of him and described him as a "big monkey."
"Breakfast Fit for a Kong"
While Annie and Mike were trying to help Charlie out of a pit, Kong took a tree and uprooted it before leaving.
"Doggone It"
The Hawk Monster abducted Charlie and Annie's monstrous pet Dog separately and deposited them in Kong's temple. As the pair descended a platform, Charlie noticed a mural of Kong battling monsters. Kong then swung past them in the flesh, nearly causing them to fall off the platform's side. Once they reached the ground, Charlie watched Kong sitting inside the temple with a melancholic expression, with Charlie wondering why he looked so sad. Kong fiddled with a blood-stained compass set on an alter. The Kraken soon threw a whale into Skull Island to goad Kong; it landed in front of his temple. Enraged, Kong pounded the ground.
"Terms of Endearment"
With no feasible way for his group to kill the Kraken themselves to escape Skull Island, Charlie suggested Kong as the solution.
"You're Not a King, You're Just a Stupid Animal"
In the past, a Skull Islander lured a Skullcrawler into a trap. Attacking from above, Kong impaled the beast through both jaws with a sharpened tree stump, killing it in a single blow, before beating his chest and roaring loudly. At the girl's insistence, he picked her up and she rode on his shoulder to the top of a tall mountain. They watched the stars as she speculated about the outside world, which she had only glimpsed from the men in their flying machines who once visited the island. She suggested they might be able to build mechanical versions of themselves who could replace them on occasion and give them time to rest and dream.
The Hawk Monster delivered a Grass Hedgehog to Kong at his temple. He picked it up and ate it before it could get its bearings, then gazed into the massive pit nearby.
As she fished, the girl was startled by a giant shape passing beneath her boat and lifting her up. It turned out to be Kong, who she scolded for the prank. The Hawk Monster interrupted, leading them to a dead Sker Buffalo inland. The bird then brought them to the culprits: three Horncrest Chameleons, now feasting on another creature's corpse. The girl wanted them to return to their village to form a plan with the others, but Kong, having the high ground, defiantly dropped a boulder on the monsters, pinning one's tail to the ground. After a fierce battle, the trio slayed the resilient reptiles, but Kong triggered a rock slide while finishing off the last one. He evaded several falling boulders to shield the girl just before they were buried. The Hawk Monster watched as he quickly broke free.
The girl was furious with Kong, who she said nearly killed all three of them by going on the offensive when he did. He roared at her, and she roared right back, calling him a "stupid animal," not a king. They left in separate directions. That evening, Kong washed his wounds in the ocean. Unbeknownst to him, a drop of his blood descended to the depths, awakening the Kraken. From her village, the girl spotted him sitting on top of the hill from before, morose, but declined to go to him. The next day, he tried to make amends by dropping an entire fruit tree into the village, crushing a cart, but she rejected it. Kong stomped away.
The Kraken launched an attack on the village, starting with the fishers. Kong rushed to their rescue when he heard the girl scream, but arrived too late. Many of the villagers were dead, and the girl trapped under debris. The Kraken waved its tentacles in the water, seeming to taunt him as he withdrew to his temple with the girl. Barely clinging to life, she called him her king and touched his face before passing away, leaving Kong devastated. He hung her compass-necklace in his temple, where Charlie would later see it, and buried her on the island’s highest mountain. As the Kraken continued to linger offshore, he bellowed a mighty roar.
In the present, Charlie explained his plan to his skeptical group: steal the necklace to lure an enraged Kong to the Kraken.
"You'll Never Catch a Monkey That Way"
Annie and Dog agreed to help Charlie with his plan. Kong appeared behind the trio as they entered the temple, watching them. They sidled over to the necklace and Annie grabbed it; as planned, Kong charged after them. Dog evaded several swings from the Titan, but was left clinging to a cliff face after Kong shook the bridge as he crossed it. He climbed out and kept going, barely avoiding Kong as he leapt across the gap. Noticing that Dog was injured and only used to riding with Annie, Charlie threw himself off the animal to allow them to escape. Kong passed over him.
Annie's mother Irene watched her and Dog draw Kong to the beach, evading Trapdoor Crabs along the way. Kong cut off Annie and Dog at the shoreline and prepared to smash them into the sand, but Annie held up the necklace and he stood down. She threw it to the ground; just before Kong could pick it up, the Kraken struck, restraining and electrocuting him with its tentacles. It finally surfaced, revealing itself to be much taller than him. Kong ripped off the tentacles, but it caught him in one of its claws and lifted him into the air, then threw him. Annie and Dog found themselves pulled out to sea amidst the battle.
Kong reached underwater and threw a Rock Bug at the Kraken, who intercepted it with a tentacle. He tried to tear off a chunk of rock from a nearby mountain, but the Kraken reached him first, dragging him underwater. Pinned to the ocean floor by the Kraken as it sank its beak into his neck, Kong appeared doomed until he spotted the wreck of the Once Upon a Martime resting nearby. He smashed the Kraken twice in the head with the improvised weapon, taking out two of its four eyes, then swam to the surface. Annie had made it to shore, but Dog was still floundering. She reached out to her pet, reminding Kong of when the dying Skull Islander girl reached out to him. A wave pulled Dog under, but Kong scooped him up and deposited him on the shore. After embracing Dog, Annie prepared to apologize to Kong, but was cut off by the Kraken’s return. It again tossed him into deeper water, but he caught one of its tentacles and threw it onto a small island. Kong unleashed a barrage of punches which left the water stained with the Kraken’s blood. Annie watched in awe as he pounded his chest in victory. The necklace washed ashore near her, and she held it out to Kong. Just then the Kraken lashed him with a tentacle, still alive—so he made sure it stayed dead by picking it up and ripping it in half. He carelessly threw it at the shore, causing a tidal wave that threatened to drown Dog and Annie. While Annie was knocked unconscious and woke up in a hospital two weeks later, Dog's fate was unknown.
Monarch: Legacy of Monsters
Bill Randa filmed Kong during the Monarch expedition to Skull Island in 1973 before recording a message to Hiroshi Randa, which would eventually come into the possession of the latter over forty years later. "Aftermath"
In 2015, on their mission to bring back Cate Randa, May Olowe-Hewitt, and Lee Shaw from Axis Mundi, father and son duo Hiroshi and Kentaro Randa, alongside Monarch employee Tim, teamed up with Apex Cybernetics to establish a base on Skull Island to open a rift and bring their family home. "Beyond Logic" Over the next two years, the humans tirelessly worked on the operation, with Kong largely allowing them to do so. On one instance where Kong was patrolling the island during this time, he encountered Kentaro Randa, who had been sketching the ape Titan alongside other Skull Island inhabitants. When the ape Titan took a closer look, Kentaro stepped into view and smiled weakly at him. Kong responded with a snarl that scared him off. "Requiem"
Shortly after this encounter, May, Cate, and Keiko Randa manage to escape from Axis Mundi and land in the Skull Island Apex facility in 2017, reuniting with Kentaro and Hiroshi. However, the moment was cut short when an agitated Kong arrived. "Beyond Logic" The king of Skull Island went on a rampage outside the facility, destroying and killing almost anything he saw throughout the night. Reviewing footage of the attack the following morning, Keiko discovered that he had been agitated by the Scarabs that had slipped through with the humans' pod. Kong scouted around the island before eventually lying down to rest. When Cate, May, Hiroshi, and Kentaro tried to walk past him, he rolled over when May stepped on a twig, nearly crushing Cate. He eventually woke up completely when Cate reopened the portal with a Suzuki device to retrieve Lee Shaw from Axis Mundi and the master of the Scarabs arrived through the rift with him: Titan X. Kong marched over to investigated the scene and smashed the device to close the portal before hastily chasing after Titan X. Once the latter entered the sea, however, she outpaced her pursuer. Thrashing in the water as he watched Titan X swim off, Kong angrily turned towards the helicopters escorting the Randas, Shaw, and Tim behind him and roared. "Cause and Effect"
After Titan X made landfall on Skull Island following her stolen egg, Kong quickly sensed her presence and took off to intercept her. However, he was quickly distracted by the sounds of Skullcrawlers and diverted his course. Once Kong reached the source of the roars, he found nothing more than a helicopter playing the noises over speakers, a ploy by Isabel Simmons to keep Kong away from Titan X while she set her plan in motion. Frustrated over being fooled, Kong's attention was once again diverted when he heard the roar of an angry and hurt Titan X, and resumed his path towards the other Titan. "Ends of the Earth" Kong quickly arrived to the location and the two Titans began to size each other up before engaging in battle. The two Titans traded blows in their drawn out conflict, Kong unleashing devastating punches on Titan X while Titan X tried to immobilize and lacerate Kong with her tentacles and jaws. Their battle would continue to keep escalating until Titan X managed to grapple into Kong, pinning him down and choking him on a hill. The fight would only come to an end when Titan X found her egg inside the abandoned outpost, letting go of Kong as the neural link employed by Isabel Simmons was overridden by her motherly instinct. Once she retrieved her egg, Kong was quick to realize Titan X's true intentions, and let her pass without further quarrel. Kong would later be seen climbing to the top of a mountain and roared victoriously. "Where We Belong"
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire
In 2027, three years after he and Godzilla destroyed Mechagodzilla and made an uneasy truce, Kong raced through a Hollow Earth plain, pursued by over two dozen ravenous Wart Dogs. He stopped and turned when he reached the edge of a cliff, roaring defiantly. The first Wart Dog to charge at him fell into a trapping pit of his own making and was impaled on massive spears. Next, he lifted a tree stump to activate a rock slide trap, crushing most of the others. Only three remained, and he convinced them to retreat by grabbing a Wart Dog's body and ripping it in half, showering himself in its blood, then roaring at them. After washing himself off, he prepared to dine on the carcass of the Wart Dog he ripped in half, but was struck with pain in an infected tooth. The reptilian Titan Doug tried dragging away one part of the carcass; he took notice and a brief struggle ensued, but he let it go after hearing what sounded like the roar of another of his kind. He followed the noise and was dejected to find that it was only a Parrot Frog mimicking him.
Soon after, Kong emerged from the Hollow Earth portal in Barbados, in even greater pain from his infected tooth. Though Godzilla appeared to be unaware of his presence on the surface, Monarch, which had built a base around the portal, rushed to respond. After they sedated Kong, fearless Titan veterinarian Trapper Beasley dropped down from an armored hovercraft called a M.U.L.E., removed the tooth, and replaced it with a titanium one. Jia, who lived on the island along with Dr. Ilene Andrews, urged Kong to rest.
A small Monarch team comprised of Andrews, Jia, Beasley, conspiracy podcaster Bernie Hayes, and pilot Mikael, followed Kong back into the Hollow Earth in a redesigned Hollow Earth Aerial Vehicle (HEAV) to investigate a distress call transmitting from somewhere in the mysterious realm. Wielding his battle axe, Kong explored a chasm that opened beneath his rock slide trap. He landed in a cavern with numerous mammoth crystals, skulls of other monstrous apes — and, behind a waterfall, an unexplored second layer of Hollow Earth. A massive form shrouded in mist approached him and he prepared for a fight, only to find Suko, a nervous young ape roughly a third his height. Setting his axe down, Kong extended a hand to Suko, and he appeared ready to accept it, only to lunge forward and bite Kong's finger. Kong chased after him, but was set upon by three larger apes. Two of them, Stone Fist and Catcher, held him down while another, known as One-Eye, approached with a club. Kong hit one with a rock and moved the other into the path of the club, then caught the club on its second swing and threw its wielder into another ape. He clubbed One-Eye, charging him with his axe. Before he could pick up the blade, Suko launched himself at his face. Kong grabbed the young ape and uses him to club two apes, then threw him at One-Eye. After beating one ape to death, he flipped another off a cliff, only to catch him before he could fall and pull him back up. The ape immediately grabbed a knife, forcing Kong to kick him off the cliff. One-Eye fled, with Kong hitting him on the head with a rock as he ran. After pulling Suko out of the foliage and roaring furiously at him, Kong gestured toward the dropped knife and demanded that Suko bring him to where the apes came from.
Kong and Suko watched a flock of Warbats hunt Hellhawks. Suko led Kong to a lake and splashed around to attract a Drownviper, who promptly attacked Kong. He kept its jaws at bay with the handle of his axe as Suko ran away. Its coils caught his hand before he could swing the axe and it briefly pulled him underwater before they surfaced. After killing the creature, Kong threw his axe into Suko's path, tripping him, then tossed its head in front of him. As evening fell, Kong feasted on the creature, offering one slice to a hungry but still wary Suko. The young ape initially rejected the food, before eventually accepting it and sitting closer to Kong.
Suko led Kong across a bridge, made from the bones of a monster far larger than any on record, towards a volcanic area. They arrived in a large cavern full of other apes toiling away. As they walked amongst them, Suko acknowledged an elderly ape, known as Gnarled Finger, who looked at him with concern. When a guard pummeled another ape, Boots, for dropping a stone, Kong intervened, helping him up and knocking out the guard with one punch. The apes' tyrannical leader, the Skar King, was soon alerted by One-Eye and emerged from his chamber to take stock of Kong. The other apes bowed before him and joined his laughter at Kong's titanium tooth, even a reluctant Suko. The Skar King nonetheless confronted the young ape, only for Gnarled Finger to defend Suko. The Skar King seemingly relented, then kicked Gnarled Finger into a lava lake. Suko cried out in sorrow, and the furious Kong bellowed a challenge to the dictator. The Skar King proved a nimble opponent, and his Whipslash had far greater range than Kong's axe. He disarmed Kong, then tried choking him out with the Whipslash. Kong flipped him over his shoulders and threw him back, prompting the Skar King to call upon his ultimate weapon: a chained reptilian Titan who towered over Kong, Shimo. He ordered her to attack Kong using the blue crystal at the end of his Whipslash, and though reluctant, she gave into the pain the device caused. Kong evaded her ice breath, then tried blocking it with his axe, but it failed to absorb the ray. With his right hand covered in ice, he was forced to drop the axe. Suko pointed out an exit, and he took it, dodging another blast. The Skar King hoisted Kong's axe in victory and ordered his apes to give chase. Kong led a group of them back to his hunting grounds, dispatching two with more of his traps — but the rest stepped over the vine that would activate another rock slide trap. Backed into a corner with his right hand frostbitten, Kong nonetheless prepared to fight, until the rocks suddenly fell on their own, crushing the apes. Kong looked up to see Suko, who beat his chest in triumph. As they walked away, Suko supporting Kong, One-Eye dug himself out of the rock pile, having used his companion Knob as a meat shield to survive.
Meanwhile, the Monarch expedition discovered a group of Iwi who had been living in a Hollow Earth city called Malenka: the source of the distress call. The Iwi shared with them ancient writings on the Skar King and his ape army, who once challenged Godzilla for control of the surface world and lost, with the Titan sealing them away deep in Hollow Earth. They also revealed a prophecy that at the end of the world, an Iwi from Skull Island, like Jia, would come to her people's defense by summoning Godzilla's steadfast ally, Mothra. The Iwi opened their barrier to let in Kong and Suko, allowing One-Eye to glimpse their realm and its portals to the surface. Kong collapsed from exhaustion, but sat up to touch a finger to Jia's hand. He signed to her that he lost his home. Inspecting Kong's frostbite, Beasley proposed returning to Monarch Outpost One in Hollow Earth to bring back the prototype from Project Powerhouse. Andrews explained to Hayes that the project was a post-Mechagodzilla effort to empower Kong against any other malevolent Titan who might arise. Beasley flew the prototype B.E.A.S.T. Glove over to Kong in a M.U.L.E. and it fit itself around his damaged hand. After receiving injections from the glove to heal his frostbite, Kong struggled to climb up a hillside, but soon adjusted to the device, testing its electrical capabilities by pounding the ground. Suko returned with a warning that the Skar King's army was on the way. Jia asked Kong to seek out Godzilla for help, and he headed for a portal.
Kong emerged next to the Giza pyramids near Cairo, Egypt. Godzilla senses his presence immediately, leaping off the Rock of Gibraltar and swimming towards him. Aware of the Skar King's impending return, he had been accumulating power and evolved into a new form. Godzilla soon made landfall in Cairo, tackling Kong into the Great Pyramid as he tried gesturing towards the vortex. Kong threw sand in Godzilla's eyes, only to be slammed into the pyramid again and suplexed. Fed up, he dodged a stomp and unleashed a flurry of blows with the aid of the glove. He dragged a dazed Godzilla towards the portal, but was forced to let him go as he unleashed his atomic breath, which sliced through a pyramid. Godzilla pinned Kong and prepared to finish him with another blast. Just in time, Mothra intervened, knocking Godzilla off him with an energy pulse. Jia, having fulfilled the prophecy by awakening her, stood atop the Great Sphinx, stood face-to-face with Godzilla, and the pair calmed him. The three monsters all released their battle cries.
The Iwi released a liquid metal to force together the two largest electromagnetic pyramids near Malenka, which would unleash a brief antigravity shock wave when they collided. Beasley briefly holds off the Skar King's army by luring a flock of Vertacines into conflict with them, but Shimo dispatched the flying creatures with her ice breath. Godzilla and Kong launched from the vortex and charged towards the army. Kong hopped on Godzilla's back, then launched himself at the Skar King while Godzilla pounced toward Shimo. The Skar King leapt off Shimo's back to meet Kong mid-air, while Shimo lunged at Godzilla. Before they could reach each other, the pyramids collided, and the ensuing shock wave sent all the monsters floating through the air. Kong blocked a strike from the Skar King's axe with the B.E.A.S.T. Glove. One-Eye attacked Kong from behind, but Suko repelled him with a pair of boulders. The antigravity wave started to wear off, sending all the monsters falling. The Skar King launched himself towards a vortex, followed by Godzilla, Shimo, and Kong, who lost his axe in the process.
The Titans emerged in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with Shimo's arrival freezing an incoming wave. The Skar King roared hatefully at the humans below, then ordered Shimo to attack the city. As she began to freeze the buildings on the shoreline, Kong and Godzilla attacked their counterparts in unison. The Skar King spat out a tooth from Kong's blow; Kong smiled smugly in response. He delivered a flying kick to the Skar King, but Shimo blocked his next blow with a swing of her tail. Godzilla blocked her charge in turn. The Skar King threw the top of a building at Kong with the Whipslash, but he destroys it with the glove. The ape tyrant then kicked Kong into Shimo, who dragged him through the city before firing her frost bite blast at him, his glove barely managing to block it. Godzilla interrupts the Skar King's gloating, severing the crystal at the tip of the Whipslash during the battle. clattering to the ground. Godzilla fired at Shimo, while the Skar King tried to stop Kong from reaching the crystal, choking him from behind. But he was unable to stop Suko, who had followed them through the portal, from shattering it with a wide swing of Kong's axe, the ensuing shockwave staggering all five combatants. The Skar King tried taking Suko hostage, but Kong punched him while he was looking at Shimo, freeing the young ape. Kong threws the Skar King to Godzilla, who tail-whipped him back into Kong's waiting glove. The Skar King tried to command Shimo, but with the crystal gone, she looked to Godzilla instead. On his signal, she froze the Skar King solid. Still alive, he could only watch as Kong slammed him into the ground, shattering him into pieces.
Kong and Suko, now riding atop Shimo, returned to the Skar King's cave to declare the apes' freedom, and the jubilant apes roared along with them, accepting Kong as their new leader.
Abilities
Strength
Kong possesses immense physical strength, allowing him to go toe-to-toe with all of the most dangerous creatures on Skull Island even as an adolescent. In Kong: Skull Island, he possessed a crushing force of up to 150 tons.[11] In the film, Kong was able to lift and carry extremely heavy objects, such as UH-1 Iroquois helicopters and large boulders, with relative ease. He even threw a large tree through the air with such accuracy as to skewer a chopper. Kong was strong enough to knock a UH-1 Iroquois out of the air simply by smashing it with his fists. Kong also demonstrated his strength when he breaks free of an anchor chain that was restraining him. Kong was able to physically overpower most of his enemies, such as the Mire Squid and smaller Skullcrawlers. While the Skull Devil was a formidable challenge for him, he was able to rely on his impressive strength to rip out the beast's innards and kill it.
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Kong has developed an epic brawler fight-style, using quick feet, aerial traversal and sheer feral strength to confuse and disorient his opponents.
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— Excerpt from a still card included in Toho's Godzilla vs. Kong SPECIAL SET blu-ray release.[27] |
In Skull Island, Kong easily threw around Horncrest Chameleons during his fight against a trio of them. At one point, he slammed one into a canyon wall with enough force to cause the wall to crumble and collapse. Years later, Kong tore off four of the Kraken's tentacles when it was constricting him, pummeled it relentlessly with his fists after forcing it on land, and finished it off by ripping it in half.
In Skull Island: The Birth of Kong, Kong killed a Sirenjaw off-panel and killed a group of Mother Longlegs attacking an Iwi village with little difficulty, starting with the queen.
In Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, Kong delivered quick and powerful punches that was proven to be effective to stagger and disorient Titan X on the spot, even pushing her back easily.
In Kingdom Kong, Kong threw Camazotz twice and held him in a chokehold that was only broken by the Titan's sonic screech. After Captain Audrey Burns stunned Camazotz with a sonic boom, Kong hammered his foe with his fists, a final punch sending Camazotz falling into the Hollow Earth unconscious.
In Godzilla vs. Kong, while Kong is no match for Godzilla in terms of strength even when the latter has expended most of his energy, he proves himself a worthy opponent. He is able to unleash 4.2-magnitude punches[15] in an attack called the Quake Slam (クェークスラム Kwēku Suramu),[13][18] and can swing his arms at speeds up to 62 miles per hour, or roughly 100 kilometers per hour.[16] With help from a group of humans and their HEAVs, he was able to overpower two Warbats without much trouble. Kong was able to hold his own against Godzilla in their battles in the ocean and in Hong Kong, effortlessly moving the larger Titan around with mere punches and shoves, and even hurling the 99,634-ton monster a considerable distance. He also floored Godzilla with a dropkick. During the final fight with Mechagodzilla, he was able to rip the mech's head off, spinal cord included, after dismantling it with his axe. Outside of combat, Kong launched large trees at the roof of his enclosure on Skull Island at least twice. Kong is also able to perform an unspecified attack called the Fin Breaker (フィンブレイカー Fin Bureikā).[13][18]
In Godzilla x Kong: The Hunted, when going up against the Spineprowler, Kong threw punches so powerful that he effectively threw her around and even made her skids over a few mountains. When confronting Raymond Martin's Titan Hunter mech, he used just one arm to get up and floored the mech with a dropkick, pinning it down and was able to deal great damage with his fury of punches to the mech before being punched in the face. He was powerful enough to grab and suplex the mech into a cliff.
In Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, Kong singlehandedly fought off a group of Great Apes, and easily dispatched a Drownviper. He also held his own in a brief fight against the Skar King. With the aid of the B.E.A.S.T. Glove, Kong knocked Godzilla unconscious with an onslaught of punches, and was able to drag the other Titan by the tail to the Hollow Earth portal in Cairo before the King of the Monsters attacked him again.
Dexterity
Kong is heavily defined by his skills with using foreign objects in the surrounding environment as weapons and tools. He yields so much subtly that he can safely handle a human in one hand even while traveling or fighting another monster.
In Kong: Skull Island, Kong easily skewed a chopper in mid-flight with a tree and moments later defeated the other nearby aircraft making up Preston Packard's squadron by throwing and slamming into each other. When he was lit aflame in a napalm-doused lake, Kong used his massive hands to splash the flaming water onto some of the humans fighting him. In the final battle against the Skull Devil, Kong slammed down his enemy with a massive rock, knocked the amphibian aside with a tree as tall as himself, and flung a ship propeller like a flail with enough accuracy to effectively hit the Skull Devil's back. Subsequently, Kong used the chain of the propeller to pull the Skull Devil closer to himself and later slit its throat with such.
In Skull Island episode 7 "You're Not a King, You're Just a Stupid Animal", Kong effortlessly forced a handmade spear through a mature Skullcrawler's head. He safely carried the island girl in one hand while performing massive leaps, traveling on three limbs, and even while scaling a canyon wall. Kong skillfully utilized two bones as blades against a trio of Horncrest Chameleons, throwing said bones at one swiftly climbing up a canyon wall and nearly hitting it. After carefully burying his friend following her sad demise, Kong casually put away her necklace on two makeshift hooks on a column next to his bed in his temple. In the present day, Kong threw a Rock Bug at the Kraken with incredible precision and later stabbed it in the eye with a rock when the fight moved underwater.
In Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, During the battle, Kong managed to grab a boulder from the ground and uses it to smash onto Titan X's head, pushing her back and disorientating her.
In Godzilla vs. Kong, Kong slammed a Warbat's head onto a rock, killing it before flailing its corpse at its companion. In his second battle with Godzilla, Kong shoved his axe down his enemy's throat to prevent him from firing his atomic breath. After being disarmed, Kong utilized a piece of a tower to block Godzilla's breath attack. As their final duel started, Kong threw a crane at a building behind Godzilla to divert his attention away. When their team-up against Mechagodzilla reached its turning point, Kong chopped off the mech's forelimbs before slicing at its underside and legs to prevent it from escaping. With one final chop to the neck, Kong prevented Mechagodzilla from firing its proton scream as well as damaging it enough to decapitate it without further resistance.
In Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, Kong created various traps to use when hunting other Hollow Earth inhabitants. In his fight against Suko and three other Great Apes, Kong utilized a stone to knock aside one of the soldiers pinning him down and eventually came to using One-Eye's bludgeon and Suko himself as weapons. In the end, Kong flung a rock at One-Eye in the back of his head with pristine accuracy and timing despite the elderly ape's distance away from him.
While facing against the Drownviper, Kong used his battle axe to aide against the serpent underwater, succeeding in decapitating his foe inferably with the axe off-screen. Not long afterwards, Kong threw his axe in front of Suko to trip him, stopping the juvenile in his tracks before tossing the Drownviper's head nearby to gesture his triumph. After stopping his and Suko's travels to feed on the Drownviper's remains, Kong chopped up his kill to consume its innards and flesh, eventually tearing a chunk in half with his bare hands to offer to Suko. After witnessing the Skar King kick Gnarled-fingers into a nearby lava lake, Kong immediately armed himself with his axe to challenge the Skar King, managing to stand his ground against the more dexterous warmonger despite being occasionally caught off guard by his foe's skill with his Whipslash. Faced with death at hands of the Skar King in a chokehold, Kong broke free by flinging the lighter ape over his head. After Shimo was unveiled and commanded to kill him, Kong swiftly reacquired his axe in time to block her frost bite blast. During his brief skirmish with Godzilla in Cairo, Kong threw sand in Godzilla's face to avoid a second charge from the larger Titan. Following the destruction of the Skar King's crystal permitting his control over Shimo, Kong accurately threw the tyrant at Godzilla for him to inflict a tail-whip before catching him again.
Agility
Kong is incredibly agile, especially for a creature of his size. Kong is capable of leaping to great heights across great distances, shown when he knocks a UH-1 Iroquois out of the sky and later when he takes the Skull Devil by surprise by leaping from a cliff and striking it with a boulder. Kong makes use of his agility while in battle, allowing him to anticipate enemy attacks and counter them. This is demonstrated when Kong is ambushed by two Skullcrawlers and manages to grab and restrain them as they attempt to pounce on him. Kong's agility allows him to scale the cliffs of Skull Island so he can travel across the terrain with ease or reach his mountain lair.
In Skull Island, Kong performs incredible feats of speed and agility when traversing Skull Island, covering distances within moments via leaping or running on all fours. He was able to keep up with Dog, eventually cornering him and Annie at the edge of the ocean.
In Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, Kong's speed and agility remained sharp as he effortlessly traveled from mountain to mountain to get into places from such a short amount of time, especially when going after Titan X to confront her and face her head on. When he fought Titan X, his reflexes were on point were he managed to catch one of her tentacles to stop her on the spot and to deliver his counterattacks. When Titan X was pushing around Kong, his reaction speed was so high that he effectively dodged and blocked her attacks and bites many times.
Throughout Godzilla vs. Kong, Kong can leap to great heights and over great distances. In his first fight with Godzilla, he was able to jump from the cargo hauler onto a nearby destroyer and then an aircraft carrier in only two bounds. After the fleet was decimated by Godzilla and Kong was transported to Antarctica, he swung on the pipes inside of the entrance to the Hollow Earth with considerable speed. In their second fight in Hong Kong, Kong showcased his agility by climbing and swinging around buildings despite his large size. With his agility, he was able to avoid Godzilla's atomic breath for a time, only being hit once in both of their fights.
During their first fight in Hong Kong, Kong was able to perceive Godzilla’s atomic breath exiting his mouth and reacted fast enough to pick up his axe and block the attack, a very notable achievement of speed and reflexes given that Godzilla’s atomic breath is composed of Cherenkov Radiation.
Once he enters the Hollow Earth, Kong travels much of the considerable distance to the temple that houses his axe by both leaping off of mountains and running on all fours, something he also showed once he woke up in Antarctica. In a bipedal stance, the fully grown Kong can reach speeds of up to 78 miles per hour (or approximately 126 kilometers per hour), increasing to 104 mph (or ~167 kph) when taking on a quadrupedal stance.[16]
In Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, now making the Hollow Earth his new home, Kong managed to gain mere distances in his leaps when being chased by a pack of Wart Dogs. He jumped through vines to navigate the terrain when he heard the Parrot Frog mimicking him. When going up against One-Eye, Suko, Stone Fist, and Catcher, he managed to take on all four of them with his quick movements and was able to dodge most of their attacks and delivered his own in response. Going up against the Drownviper, despite being on the water, he was able to react fast enough to block the water serpents bite attack and retaliate fast enough to hit and parry it with his axe. When facing off against the Skar King one on one, despite the latter's superior speed and agility, Kong was able to dodge his first whip attack and was able to slightly keep up with the red ape. When he faced off against Shimo, he dodged her first frost breath attack before using the axe to block more of her breath. When that attempt failed, he took a quick note of Suko telling him an exit and got on his feet fast to head towards it, avoiding her breath in the process. Despite only running with one arm, he still managed to gain a quite few distances when being chased by an army of apes. In Egypt during his brief rematch with Godzilla, he still dodged most of Godzilla's tackle attacks, blocked his bite attack with the glove, dodged his stomp and charged up his glove fast enough to attack. Like the last time he still managed to perceive and avoid his atomic breath although he couldn't avoid his ambush since he was blinded by the sand. In his second battle in the Hollow Earth, He was able to get around the floating rocks to confront Skar King. He reacted fast enough by blocking Skar's attempted attack from his axe and used his glove to quickly prevent himself from getting hit by the red apes whip. In his final battle in Rio de Janeiro with Godzilla against Skar King and Shimo, he was able to easily move around from building to building to not only face Skar King head on, he was able to deliver his dropkick attack before Skar could even use his whip. When Skar tried to hit him with a building he thrown at him, Kong managed to parry the attack by using the glove to break through. Despite being outmatched in a 2v1, he slightly managed to anticipate both of their attacks at times and was even fast enough to block the ice Titan's breath with his glove.
Intelligence
As an ape, Kong is relatively intelligent compared to the other creatures on Skull Island. In Kong: Skull Island, Kong makes use of environmental objects as weapons, such as boulders and trees. Kong also fashions a makeshift flail from an anchor chain and a ship's propeller, which he uses to gain the upper hand in his battle against the Skull Devil. Kong's intelligence allows him to distinguish between friends and enemies, as he clearly recognizes Preston Packard and his men as enemies but does not attempt to harm any other humans he comes across, even going out of his way to rescue Mason Weaver from drowning. Kong's intelligence allows him to anticipate enemy attacks, such as when he realizes the Mire Squid is lurking near him while he is drinking from a lake.
In Skull Island, he has a long-running standoff with the Kraken due to his unwillingness to engage it in the water, where it would have the upper hand, even when it taunts him by throwing a whale into his temple. Annie, Charlie, and Dog force the two Titans together by stealing a necklace precious to Kong and leading him to the shore. At the conclusion of the battle, he throws the Kraken onto land, where he is able to take advantage of the terrain and kill it.
In Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, his intelligence remains impressive as when Kong first arrived to the Apex facility base, he immediately notices Apex releasing a Scarab out of an opened Axis Mundi portal and quickly used his fists to crush it. As the Suzuki device opened up the same portal again, Kong went over to investigate the scene, looked over the area and immediately concluded that the device was causing the chaos so he closed his fist to crush the device. During his fight with Titan X, Kong quickly caught on that Titan X was acting unnaturally and tried to fight her to wear her off, when the fight ended, Kong was confused at first until he notices her egg and immediately understood her intentions, having him climb on top of a mountain to clear a path for Titan X to let her go home with her egg.
In Godzilla vs. Kong, he demonstrates the ability to communicate using a form of sign language. Kong proves himself a tactical fighter in all of his fights against Godzilla. In his first fight he recognizes Godzilla's superiority in the water and moves to an aircraft carrier to get Godzilla to fight on equal footing. In their second fight he recognizes Godzilla's advantage at range with his atomic breath and keeps preventing him from using it effectively by closing the distance and re-directing his head away from him. When the distance has been widened, giving Godzilla a chance to use the atomic breath, Kong is able to use the surrounding buildings to his advantage, even using a radio dish as a makeshift shield against the beam when he attempts to close the distance and use his axe. He is able to trick Godzilla into turning around when he throws a crane to distract him before pouncing on him from behind. After being overwhelmed by Mechagodzilla, despite fighting alongside Godzilla, Kong recognizes the need of using the axe against the mechanical Titan. When approached by Godzilla after the destruction of Mechagodzilla, Kong came to an understanding with his former enemy, dropping his axe after recognizing the other Titan's lack of aggressive intentions.
In Godzilla x Kong: The Hunted, Kong's intelligence is at further display when he tried to drink water before immediately noticing that something was off and anticipated the Spineprowler's ambush attack. When he heard disturbances in his new home and went over to investigate, he sees the humans dragging a dead Sker Buffalo corpse into a truck and quickly sensed their intentions on what they're doing to these Titans and attacks them to prevent further killings. When he met Raymond Martin inside of his Titan Hunter mech, Kong immediately sensed Martin's true motivation on trying to kill as many Titans as he can for revenge and roared at him for battle. After Kong defeated the mech, he hoped Raymond Martin would change his way and mindset about Titans until he sensed that he wasn't going to change because of him making threatening comments to the ape. As a result, dropped the mech down further to the ground to leave him at the mercy of the two cubs.
Kong's intelligence is further foreshown throughout the events of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, effectively countering more powerful Titans with his wits and skill set. He had set up traps to utilize for hunting other Hollow Earth inhabitants, which he would later use on the Great Apes sent to kill him, though the latter case only succeeded under Suko's intervention. In his first fight with the Skar King, Kong picked up on his opponent’s reliance on his respective weapon as well as his size disadvantage, flipping over his enemy before he could succumb to asphyxiation. In his fight with Godzilla, he attempts to reason with Godzilla to no avail before he was forced to fight where Kong utilized the surrounding sand to trick Godzilla, and would later pummel the Monster King's head with his fists before attempting to drag him into the Hollow Earth vortex. Throughout the extensive final battle, Kong effectively coordinated with Godzilla as the two of them fought Skar King and Shimo interchangeably. Kong would ultimately be the one to kill Skar King, smashing his entire being to pieces after Godzilla and Shimo landed their respective attacks onto the tyrant.
Durability
Kong boasts impressive durability, which allows him to withstand a great deal of punishment without suffering severe injuries. Kong easily shrugs off machine gun rounds fired by the UH-1 Iroquois and survives being set ablaze in a lake filled with napalm. Even after Kong is badly burned by napalm and attacked by the Skull Devil, he resumes his battle with the creature only hours later with no visible lasting injuries.
In Skull Island, the Kraken's smaller red tentacles cut Kong's skin, but proved incapable of poisoning him. Kong also survived the Kraken's attempt to drown him. In the flashback episode "You're Not a King, You're Just a Stupid Animal", Kong endured being bit on the shoulder and clawed elsewhere by a Horncrest Chameleon before being buried beneath a canyon wall he caused to collapse. He emerged from the rubble relatively unharmed, with only a bleeding bite mark on his shoulder and a few smaller scratches on his face and right pectoral.
In Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, Kong withstood many bites from Titan X along with being pounced, rammed, grappled and strikes from her tentacles save for the blood stains he gained after his fight with the Titan ended.
In Kingdom Kong, despite having his ears busted from Camazotz's sonic screech and getting dropped by him, he still somewhat managed to get up and continue his fighting with the flying Titan.
In Godzilla vs. Kong, Kong's durability is put on full display. In his first fight with Godzilla at the Tasman Sea, he endured a slap in the face by the King of the Monsters before falling into the ship, in the ocean, he withstood Godzilla's claws striking him and biting him. He survives a gravitational inversion to enter the Hollow Earth, which Dr. Nathan Lind describes as "a whole planet’s worth of gravity reversed in a split second." When battling a Warbat, he took a bite from the flying creature's mouth in the arm before being strangled by the beast. In his second fight with Godzilla at Hong Kong, he withstood being bitten by the neck, shoved into buildings, and rammed by the latter Titan. He got his back scorched by Godzilla's atomic breath yet despite that, he still managed to quickly get up, dissipate the fire and continue moving to avoid getting hit again. In his final battle with Godzilla, he has his left arm dislocated and his chest scratched repeatedly and crushed by Godzilla's full weight, he is still able to roar back into Godzilla's face in defiance. After being revived by a HEAV, he is able to immediately get back into the fight with Godzilla against Mechagodzilla, but not before relocating his shoulder. When going up against Mechagodzilla, He withstood two tail strikes, being thrown into the ground and endured a kick to the chest by the Mecha Titan.
In PUBG Mobile, Kong withstood Mechagodzilla's Proton Scream without damage, though it did knock him back.
In Godzilla x Kong: The Hunted: Kong withstood many hits from the Spineprowler and even withstood her tail attack. When going up against the Titan Hunter, he endured a slam to the ground and took a full on punch to the face.
In Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, Kong's ability to take damage and pain peaked as he faced various foes that nearly kill him. Kong was merely agitated throughout his scuffle with Suko and a few Great Ape warriors. When he dueled with the Skar King, he sustained a mere cut from the tip of his opponent's whipslash and later endured a painful chokehold that prolonged until Suko inadvertently motivated him enough to flip Skar King over his shoulder. When faced with Shimo's ice breath for the first time, Kong's arm took the full blast and received a lethal case of frostbite that he endured long enough to receive aid from Monarch. When he called upon Godzilla in an attempt to acquire his help with facing the Skar King in Hollow Earth, Kong survived being rammed through the Great Pyramid of Giza and sent sliding back into a second pyramid. When Godzilla regained the upper hand, Kong was knocked off his feet and endured multiple stomps to the chest. Additionally, Mothra's God Ray attack inflicted no harm upon him when she used it to prevent Godzilla from killing him. In the extensive final battle as it took to Rio de Janeiro, Kong survived various physical attacks from Shimo whenever Skar King commanded her to do so, including a tail-whip and being swung around into multiple buildings.
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Kong withstanding Mechagodzilla's Proton Scream
Swimming
Kong is capable of swimming, though he cannot breathe underwater, and has fought his fair share of enemies while partially or completely submerged in water. In Kong: Skull Island, he overpowered a Mire Squid in a leg-deep lake and later stood his ground against the Skull Devil in a marshland on the northern side of Skull Island. In Skull Island, he overcame the Kraken in battle off the coast of the island. In Godzilla vs. Kong, Kong survived sustained underwater combat with Godzilla, though the King of the Monsters emerged victorious. In Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, Kong killed a Drownviper off-screen with his battle axe despite being dragged underwater.
Weapons
Battle axe
- Main article: Kong's battle axe.
In Godzilla vs. Kong, Kong discovers a 207.4-foot battle axe,[28] also called a scepter,[4][29] its blade made from what appears to be a Godzilla dorsal plate, that can absorb energy from the Hollow Earth as well as Godzilla's atomic breath. In Godzilla vs. Kong, the uncharged axe could cut through stone and bedrock, as shown when he uses it to slide down and eventually climb up the opening Godzilla made in Hong Kong.
Once the axe is charged with energy, it can seemingly cut through almost any material. After absorbing Godzilla's atomic breath, it is shown to be able to slash into Godzilla's thick hide, causing him to audibly roar out in pain. In their final battle, Kong attempted to bring the axe down onto Godzilla's head in a maneuver called the Aerial Axe Slash (空中戦斧 Kūchū Senpu, lit. "Aerial Battle Axe").[13][18]. At the same time, it continuously absorbed his atomic breath to the point where the axe overloaded and the shockwave sent both monsters back, and in doing so, the axe lost its charge.
During their fight with Mechagodzilla, the uncharged axe forced the machine back, but it was unable to cause serious damage. Only after Godzilla voluntarily charged the axe did allow the ape Titan to quickly dismantle the machine. Kong can swing the axe at a top speed of 62 miles per hour.[28] In PUBG Mobile and in the Minecraft: Bedrock Edition Godzilla DLC, it is also able to absorb Mechagodzilla's Proton Scream.[30]
In the mobile game Godzilla Battle Line, Kong's special attack as a leader is Earth Break, in which he slams his axe into the ground to damage nearby enemies.
In Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, the axe was briefly able to hold back Shimo's Frost Bite Blast, but was knocked out of his hands. During Godzilla's and Kong's final battle with the Skar King and Shimo in Rio de Janeiro, Suko brought Kong's axe to the surface and used it to destroy the crystal that controlled the ancient Titan.
B.E.A.S.T. Glove
- Main article: B.E.A.S.T. Glove.
In Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, after Kong's right hand was frostbitten by Shimo, Trapper outfitted him with a yellow gauntlet called the B.E.A.S.T. Glove. The Glove serves multiple purposes: injecting his arm with medical serums to help heal it, enhancing his punches, and providing enhanced durability. A punch to the head managed to floor both the evolved Godzilla and Skar King, while the gauntlet's metal surface resisted bites from both Godzilla and Shimo as well as the latter's freezing beam for a prolonged period of time before Godzilla intervened.
Suko
- Main article: Suko.
Whilst fighting the Great Apes, Kong used Suko as a blunt weapon to defend himself.
Green Lantern Ring
In Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong, after the death of the Green Lantern Guy Gardner, his ring chose Kong as its new wielder. It allowed him to recreate a Green Lantern construct of his axe, which he used to kill an adult Skullcrawler and cut off the Skullspawn's tail. After Godzilla and Superman showed up and tag teamed the beast, Kong finally killed it with a single blow to the head. After the Skullspawn was defeated, the Ring departed from Kong to find a new bearer.
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Kong using the Green Lantern Ring to recreate a copy of his axe
Weaknesses
In Kong: Skull Island, Kong was irritated by conventional gunfire from helicopters and received scarring from an attempt to handle one by the propeller. Kong sustained very critical injuries when he was doused in flames, resultant of Packard and his men filling a lake with napalm and lighting it. Though he stood his ground against the Skull Devil, the very Skullcrawler that finished off his parents, Kong needed assistance from the surviving human personnel in order to defeat the two-legged amphibian.
It is vividly made clear in Godzilla vs. Kong that Kong is no match for Godzilla, only surviving his fights with the Monster King because of human interference. In their battle in the Tasman Sea, Kong was at a critical battlefield disadvantage and was nearly killed by Godzilla on three occasions. In their fight in Hong Kong, his blows only did so much against Godzilla, and his attempt to cleave open Godzilla's skull with his battle axe failed. Once Godzilla became enraged, Kong was put on the brink of death quickly and would've died had it not been for Dr. Nathan Lind's successful attempt at restarting his heart via overloading a HEAV. Kong was easily harmed by Mechagodzilla's attacks and would've died to the machine's scythe tail had it not been for Josh Valentine's actions buying enough time for Godzilla to charge up his axe. It has been stated that had Kong and Mechagodzilla fought one on one with each other, Kong would have lost.[31] After defeating Mechagodzilla, Kong was exhausted to the point that he lacked the strength to see through a potential follow-up battle with Godzilla.
As established in Kingdom Kong, Kong has difficulty fighting flying opponents, with Camazotz's maneuverability being a critical challenge. Human assistance was needed for Kong to defeat him. In Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong 2 this would be shown again where he struggled against King Ghidorah and Rodan in the air.
In Skull Island, he struggled against the Kraken, initially overwhelmed by the aquatic Titan's numerous limbs and comparable strength. In the first round, Kong faced imminent danger of drowning until an underwater gas vent distracted the Kraken and gave him an opening to exploit a nearby sunken ship as a makeshift weapon, only escaping death because of such. By the end of the third round, Kong sustained a few scars and was left critically weakened by the Kraken's poisonous blood.
In Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong, a strong punch from Supergirl was able to knock out Kong, where Gorilla Grodd would mind control him. It wasn't until Grodd was defeated where he was finally freed. He struggled against the much larger Skullspawn, requiring Beast Boy's Kong-form and later the Axe Construct made from the Green Lantern Ring.
In Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, despite Kong's superior speed, agility and reflexes, Titan X's faster maneuverability and slight higher durability proved to be a challenge. Primarily, Kong's punches would be effective to stagger her but her tanking his punches and using the environment to pounce onto him along with her using her tentacles to strike, strangle and choke Kong left him unable to catch any breathing room. When the neural link was kicked into maximum overdrive, her aggression and attack speed was so high that Kong would get rammed and knocked around by Titan X due to how fast and nimble she has suddenly gotten. When the fight ended, Kong left out a huge exhale and was left with blood on his fur.
As demonstrated in Godzilla x Kong: The Hunted, Kong can be quickly thrown off by opponents way faster than him as shown when a Spineprowler managed to completely catch him off guard by her ambush. When he is fighting the Spineprowler, she quickly outmaneuvered him with her agility, dodging his attacks and even using its tail to quickly escape his grip. While the Titan Hunter mech is less powerful then Mechagodzilla, the mech's speed and slightly powerful punches disorientated the ape, enough to grab him by the neck and threw him into the ground when it gained the upper hand although it only lasted mere seconds before Kong quickly got up and turned the tides against the Mech.
In Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, the Skar King's Whipslash was able to leave cuts on Kong. Kong's hand was frozen by Shimo's frostbite blast and the ape contracted frostbite despite blocking the beam with his battle axe. Ilene Andrews stated that Kong wouldn't survive a day in Hollow Earth had the B.E.A.S.T. Glove not restored Kong's ability to use both of his arms. Even with the B.E.A.S.T. Glove, Kong struggled in his battle with the recently evolved Godzilla in Cairo, though this can be partially attributed to his initial unwillingness to fight. He was eventually pinned down and faced death by Godzilla's atomic breath, only being saved by the intervention of Mothra. The B.E.A.S.T. Glove also failed to provide an advantage against Shimo, being frozen over by her ice breath and requiring Godzilla's aid.
Attractions
- Kong x Godzilla: The Ride – Lotte World (to be opened in 2026)
Video games
- MOBA Legends (2016; added in 2017) - Android and iOS [icon artwork]
- Monsterverse (2020) - Empire DCX slot machine
- Roblox (2006; added in 2021) - Microsoft Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Xbox One
- PUBG Mobile (2018; added in 2021) - Android and iOS
- Magic Domain (2006[d]; added in 2021) - iOS, Google Play, Android
- Godzilla Destruction (2021) - Android and iOS [game files only; never implemented][32]
- Godzilla Battle Line (2021) - Android, iOS, and PC
- World of Warships (2015; added in 2021) - iOS, Google Play, Android
- LifeAfter/Day After Tomorrow (2018; added in 2021) - iOS, Google Play, Android
- Funko Pop! Blitz (2019; added in 2021) - iOS, Android
- Go Big! (2021) - iOS, Google Play, Android
- Call of Duty: Vanguard (2021; added in 2022) - Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
- Call of Duty: Warzone (2020; added in 2022) - Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
- Evony: The King's Return (2016; added in 2022) - Android, iOS
- Pinball FX (2023) - PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Steam, Epic Games
- Minecraft: Bedrock Edition (2011; added in 2024) - Windows 10, Windows 11, Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Fire OS/TV, Android, iOS, Windows Mobile, Samsung Gear VR
- Godzilla x Kong: Titan Chasers (2024) - Android, iOS, and PC
- Lords Mobile (2016; added in 2024) - Android, iOS, Microsoft Windows, iPadOS, Fire OS
- Kong: Survivor Instinct (2024) - Steam, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5
- Fortnite (2017; added in 2025) - PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Windows, ChromeOS, macOS, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android
- Doomsday: Last Survivors (2021; added in 2025) - Android, iOS, and PC
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Kong in the MOBA Legends icon -
Kong in the Monsterverse slot machine -
Kong in Funko Pop! Blitz -
Kong's model in Go Big! -
Antarctic Kong skin in Go Big! -
Inferno Kong skin in Go Big! -
Jungle Kong skin in Go Big! -
Unused Kong (2021) icon from Godzilla Destruction -
Kong in Evony: The King's Return -
Kong in Lords Mobile -
"Show of Power" photo and "Kong I" avatar in Lords Mobile -
"Tactical Obsevation" photo and "Ferocious Kong" emote in Lords Mobile -
"Roaring Kong" emote in Lords Mobile -
Kong Castle Skin in Lords Mobile -
Kong in the Discover a New Empire event in Lords Mobile -
"Speechless Kong" emote in Lords Mobile -
"Kong II" avatar in Lords Mobile
Godzilla Battle Line
- Kong 2021
- As Unit
- Stars: ★★★★
- Energy cost: 5
- Attack speed: 2.1 seconds
- Target: Leader/Ground/Facility
- Movement speed: 14
- Search range: 60
- Reach: 50
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An offensive unit with high HP and powerful ranged attacks. |
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- As Leader
- Reach: 70
- Search range: 70
- Attack speed: 2.4 seconds
- Special move: Earth Break
- Energy cost: 1
- Cooldown: 90 seconds
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Deals [...] damage in a fan cicler, and increases damage dealt by allied units with an energy cost of 4+ on the battlefield by 50% for 15 seconds. |
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- Kong(B.E.A.S.T. GLOVE ver.)
- Stars: ★★★★
- Energy cost: 6
- Attack speed: 2.8 seconds
- Target: Leader/Ground/Facility
- Movement speed: 16
- Search range: 90
- Reach: 30
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On Deployment |
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Battle piece -
Battle piece -
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Icon -
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Fragment -
Artwork
Kong: Survivor Instinct
Shortly after the events of Godzilla vs. Kong, Kong returned to the surface, attacking a coastal American city. His behavior was erratic, sometimes purposeful and sometimes purely destructive. Oil rig worker David Martin, who traveled into the ruined city to rescue his daughter Stacy, drove off the road when he first saw Kong astride the skyline. He continued on foot, witnessing Kong's attack on two Hyenas, mercenaries working for Alan Jonah. David recovered the ORCA Σ from the wreckage of their cars. He witnesses Kong punch a bell tower, narrowly dodging flying debris, and uses the bioacoustic fragments collected by the ORCA Σ to summon Kong over to clear away derailed train cars blocking his path. As David travels across Riverside Road, Kong briefly returns to menace him, chasing him through a building before losing interest and wandering off. Soon after, David watches Kong look into a building, then carelessly knock away a V-22 Osprey that flies too close. On High Street, he calls Kong again to topple a building in his path.
David found the downtown area taken over by the spider Titan Abaddon, who was antagonized by Kong's return to the surface and preparing for a battle against him. He saw on TV that Kong was now calm and heading towards the bay, appearing more focused. When Abaddon attacked David in a park, Kong intervened, greeting Abaddon with a punch to the face. It retaliated by biting his shoulder as David fled via sewer.
During his travels through the Inner Harbor, David discovered a research log on the serpent Titan Tiamat, who can imitate the cries of other species, and wondered if she summoned Kong. David himself soon lured Kong over to help him cross a waterway. To his surprise and awe, the ape Titan extended a hand and carried him to the other side. He called on Kong a final time to remove a truck blocking his path, but just as Kong did so, Tiamat attacked him from behind. David raced across the bridge as the Titans clashed. Tiamat bit Kong's arm; he picked her up and slammed her into the bridge; she kept him at bay with a spray of ink; he slammed her into the bridge again; she tail-whipped and constricted him. Kong missed a punch, nearly hitting David. As he and Tiamat continued grappling, David reached the end of the bridge and entered the Hyenas' underground facility.
Godzilla x Kong: Titan Chasers
In an alternate timeline, Kong made his way to the Siren Isles, an island which arose from the sea sometime after Godzilla vs. Kong.
Kong roams about the overworld map with his axe in hand, occasionally putting it down to beat his chest and roar. He is purely aesthetic and does not affect gameplay.
Tabletop games
Books
- Kong: Skull Island - The Official Movie Novelization (2017)
- Godzilla: King of the Monsters - The Official Movie Novelization (2019)
- Kong and Me (2021)
- Godzilla vs. Kong: The Official Movie Novelization (2021)
- Godzilla vs. Kong: Sometimes Friends Fight (But They Always Make Up) (2021)
- Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire - The Official Movie Novelization (2024)
Godzilla: King of the Monsters - The Official Movie Novelization
While on Skull Island, Kong overheard King Ghidorah's call which awakened other Titans around the world. Interpreting this as a call to "hunt together," Kong chose to ignore the call, content with keeping order on his island and not interfering with the outside world. He recalled how another Titan of his status once drew close to the island, but the two never came to blows as they had no interest in conflict and the other Titan left. However, the Skullcrawlers still dwelling underneath the island did respond to Ghidorah's call, and Kong prepared to do battle with the evil creatures who killed his parents and still haunted his dreams.
Kong and Me
The Iwi girl Jia tells of her unusual friendship with Kong, the Titan ruler of Skull Island. On the beach, Kong built Jia a huge sand castle and created a pool by cupping his hands together. Further inland, they explored the woods, watched clouds, and tried to play hide-and-seek, though Kong's footprints made him easy to find. Kong uprooted a tree trying to mimic Jia's flower-picking, and she convinced him to replant it. As the day ended, they tried seeing the world from each other's perspective: Kong lying in a field watching butterflies, Jia sitting on his head watching the sunset.
Godzilla vs. Kong: Sometimes Friends Fight (But They Always Make Up)
Traveling the world, Godzilla and Kong demonstrated tenets of friendship. They played with the Eiffel Tower and various military vehicles, met up with Mechagodzilla near a playground, and used a forest for hide-and-seek and the Gateway Arch as a swing set. Kong helped Godzilla climb the Empire State Building and defused a fight with a peace sign. Godzilla pulled a tree out of Kong's foot and lit his way with his dorsal fins at night. Holding hands, they walked into the sunset.
Comics
- Skull Island: The Birth of Kong #1, 3–4 (2017)
- Godzilla Dominion (2019) [name on monitor]
- Kingdom Kong (2021)
- Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong #1, 3–7 (2023-2024)
- Godzilla x Kong: The Hunted (2024)
- Which is Stronger!? Godzilla x Kong (2024)
- Monsterverse Declassified (2024) ["Abaddon", mentioned indirectly]
- Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong 2 #1–7 (2025-2026)
- Return to Skull Island #1–4 (2025)
- Escape from Skull Island #1–4 (2026)
- Monarch: The Lost Adventures (2026) ["Kentaro, Hiroshi, and Kong"]
Skull Island: The Birth of Kong
"The People Who Came from the Sky"
In 1995, Aaron Brooks, the son of Houston Brooks and Lin San, learned that Monarch had chosen to leave the huge MUTO ecosystem on Skull Island under the sole protection of Kong. Aaron was outraged at the concept of trusting a Titan to keep the island's volatile ecosystem under control and organized a covert mission to the island with other members of Monarch, under the guise of traveling to study a MUTO fossil bed in Antarctica. When the Osprey carrying the team was struck down by a flock of Psychovultures almost immediately upon entering the island's airspace, Aaron and the others found themselves stranded on the island. They were set upon by a pack of Death Jackals and retreated into a cave, only for Kong to emerge and crush the smaller beasts under his massive fist. The party was then greeted by Ato of the native Iwi tribe, who welcomed them and stated that their arrival was foreseen.
"The Mountain who Thunders Death"
In the Iwi village, Ato explained the significance of Kong for his people to Aaron and his comrades. He maintained that Kong was a benevolent god whose goal was to defend the Iwi and the other vulnerable creatures on the island from more violent predators. Many of the party were skeptical, but mythographer Walter R. Riccio claimed to witness visions of the island's past after consuming large amounts of an Iwi shamic beverage. He saw members of Kong's species at war with Skullcrawlers on the island millions of years ago, as well as the arrival of the Iwi on the island where they encountered the last two surviving members of the species. Ato showed the Monarch team members some of the Iwi holy sites related to Kong, promising to ultimately grant them communion with Kong himself. However, they were attacked by a Sirenjaw, though the beast's attention was subsequently captured by a distant roar from Kong.
"Valley of the Fallen Gods"
After salvaging weapons left behind by the Monarch 1973 expedition to the island, Aaron's party followed the Sirenjaw to Kong's location, only to discover the Sirenjaw's carcass. As the smaller predators of the island descended to feed on the body, Ato expressed the urgency of getting away now. Aaron and his team wanted to reach the downed Osprey located on the other side of the huge boneyard containing the skeletons of Kong's parents. Ato referred to this location as the "Valley of the Fallen Gods," and warned that immature Skullcrawlers still dwelt under the thermal vents in this area. The group traveled through a cave system to evade the Skullcrawlers, where Riccio experienced a powerful vision of Kong's birth. He saw Kong's parents locked in battle with Skullcrawlers as his mother went into labor. Kong's father tried to fend off the Skullcrawlers long enough for his mate to give birth to their son. Knowing she and her mate were doomed, Kong's mother placed Kong within a cave, where the infant was subjected to the brutal slaughter of his parents by the Skullcrawlers. When the young Kong finally emerged from the cave, he found the lifeless bodies of his parents lying together, their hands held together in death. Kong knelt before and wept for the parents he had never known, vowing to avenge their memory for the rest of his life. When Riccio's vision ceased, he understood that this same cave in which they were hiding was Kong's "womb," the cave his mother had sealed him in. With the Skullcrawlers apparently gone, Aaron, Ato, and all the others exited the cave and encountered their pilot Cejudo with the Osprey, which was still airworthy. However, Riccio's overconsumption of the Iwi's "Monkey juice" and repeated hallucinations had driven him insane, and he proceeded to destroy the Osprey with a rocket launcher, also killing Cejudo in the process. He then held the others at gunpoint, promising to test their worthiness of Kong's protection. When Evelyn Matemavi tried to stop Riccio, he responded by shooting her dead in cold blood.
"Over the Rainbow"
Riccio's insane tirade toward his hostages was interrupted by the arrival of a pack of Death Jackals, buying time for Aaron and the others to escape. By the time they reached the Iwi village, they discovered that Riccio had arrived first and blown open the protective wall with explosives he had salvaged. This caused a trio of Mother Longlegs to storm into the village and terrorize the innocent populace. Riccio, clad in a makeshift ceremonial robe called forth to Kong, asking him to come and save his people if they were actually worthy of his protection. Kong soon arrived and easily killed the Mother Longlegs, prompting Riccio to approach Kong and rejoice at his mercifulness. Realizing Riccio was responsible for the attack, Kong crushed him under his fist. Kong approached Aaron, the last survivor of the Monarch expedition, and the two shared a brief moment of communion between man and god. At this moment, Aaron truly understood that Kong's intentions were noble and that he had taken it upon himself to defend this island and those who inhabit it. Content knowing Kong was capable of keeping the island under control as his father had believed, Aaron chose to remain on the island and live among the Iwi, helping them rebuild the damage to their village. Aaron recorded a record of the events that had transpired and set it adrift on the off chance his father would find it one day. It was recovered by Monarch in 2012 and given to Houston, who was on the eve of retirement.
Kingdom Kong
After discovering a sealed Vile Vortex leading to the Hollow Earth on Skull Island in 2012, Monarch established a base on the island. By 2021, the organization was on the verge of unearthing the Vortex and brought a team of pilots on-site to train for the expedition. At the same time, a perpetual superstorm that appeared in the Pacific Ocean after King Ghidorah left Mexico in 2019 began to move towards the island. Kong, now fully grown, continued to defend the helpless against Skull Island's deadliest creatures. As an earthquake struck the island, a Spirit Tiger attacked two Monarch guards, killing one. Kong seized it before it could kill the other man, snapping its neck after it bit his hand. Watching from a helicopter, Dr. Houston Brooks mused that Kong was the only being on the island who could survive the merging of the oncoming storm with the storm already surrounding Skull Island. Soon after, Brooks watched Kong eat a Mire Squid and rescue a Sker Buffalo pinned under a fallen tree. A swarm of Psychovultures suddenly attacked him, one trying to gouge out his eye. Kong fended them off with the tree, only to find that the Sker Buffalo had been killed during the battle.
Brooks realized that both the earthquakes and merging storms were the result of one of the Titans Ghidorah summoned, Camazotz, trying to enter Skull Island through the Vile Vortex. His realization came too late to stop Monarch's excavation of the Vortex, and a supersonic scream burst from the cavern. As Kong entered a cave beneath an ancient tree and was about to pull back some roots to reveal a painting, the scream reached him, leaving him in agony. He reached the excavation site as Camazotz and his hell swarm burst out of the earth. The bat Titan's sonic attacks and aerial prowess quickly gave him the advantage, and with the storms now merged, the nocturnal creature could operate without fear of the sun. Kong briefly turned the tide by grabbing Camazotz's horns and slamming him into the ground, but he grabbed Kong's arm with his prehensile tail and dragged him across the ground. Monarch's pilots, led by Captain Audrey Burns, distracted Camazotz with a barrage of missiles. Kong put the Titan into a chokehold; Camazotz retaliated with another sonic scream, causing his ears to bleed. As the hell swarm descended on Kong, Camazotz prepared to dive-bomb him. Burns steered her F-35 in front of Camazotz, generating a sonic boom that sent him crashing to the ground. Kong saw his chance, battering Camazotz with his fists and hurling him back into the Vile Vortex. Her plane was damaged, Burns ejected, and Kong caught her. He snorted as she promised to have his back.
With no end to the storm in sight, Monarch began evacuating the Iwi from Skull Island. Brooks decided to retire from Monarch for good, leaving Dr. Ilene Andrews to monitor Kong in his place. She shared a theory with him that Camazotz challenged Kong to cement himself as an alpha Titan. If Kong ever left Skull Island, he would have to face the only other alpha on Earth: Godzilla. Kong returned to the cave in the jungle and finally pulled aside the vines obscuring the rest of the painting. He scowled as he saw that the entire painting depicted his ancestor locked in battle with Godzilla.
Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong
During a battle between the Justice League and the Legion of Doom in the Fortress of Solitude, the Toyman accidentally activated the Mother Box, transporting him and the rest of the villains to Skull Island in the Monsterverse. The Legion was quickly confronted by a large Skullcrawler, who was in turn attacked by Kong. They fled to a nearby facility as Captain Cold built an ice wall between them and the battling monsters. Gorilla Grodd remained behind, astonished by the presence of an "ape god." He tried to telepathically communicate with Kong as the Titan killed the Skullcrawler by slamming its head into the ice wall. The Toyman was dismissed by the rest of the Legion when he announced a plan to unleash the Titans of this Earth against the Justice League, so he angrily used the Dreamstone he had stolen from the Fortress to transport his team, Skull Island, and several Titans back to the DC Universe.
On their way to confront Behemoth in Themyscira, Wonder Woman and Green Lantern spotted Skull Island, much to their confusion. Green Arrow offered to investigate the island, soon finding himself on the run from a pair of giant rhinos stampeding away from Kong and a Warbat. He escaped by grappling to a tree, but when Kong killed the Warbat by slamming it to the ground, the impact shook him out of the tree. As Kong loomed over Green Arrow, Supergirl responded to his distress call, telling the giant ape to stand away from him and that she meant no harm. Kong tried to grab her, only for Supergirl to punch him in the face. Before Kong could retaliate, he heard a noise that began irritating him.
Staring each other down, Kong was able to sense Supergirl's concerns for what had happened to Superman and started to calm down. When Supergirl left Skull Island to check on what had happened to Superman, Kong's aggression flared up again as he noticed the approach of the League of Assassins, who had been waiting to make their move. As Green Arrow and Kong battled the ninjas, with Kong sending many of them dropping off a cliff into the sea below, Green Arrow ended up jumping aboard their ship below, which was carrying the Skull Devil's cranium.
After Mercy Graves leaked the Monarch files Lex Luthor obtained in the other universe to the Justice League, Supergirl returned to Skull Island to try obtaining Kong's help. However, Gorilla Grodd and his army had come to pay homage to the ape god and recruit him to their cause. When Supergirl dismissed their superstitions, Grodd used his mind control abilities to force Supergirl to knock Kong over with a punch.
Grodd would then put Kong until his mind control where he would assist Mechagodzilla (Under Lex Luther's control) where he would help double team Batman's Bat-Mech. However Beast Boy would transfork into Grern Replica of him to assist where Supergirl knocks him out. However it buy the time needed for the Justice League to defeat Grodd and free him and Supergirl from Grodd's control where then a revived Skull Devil would show up in battle.
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Kong vs. Beast Boy after turning into him
Godzilla x Kong: The Hunted
In 2027, Kong approached to a waterfall and starts drinking the water before noticing that something is off. Out of nowhere, a massive adult Spineprowler jumps out of the water to ambush Kong. Kong then proceeds to grab the Spineprowler by the neck and slams the creature to the ground. Kong attempted to groundpound the creature with both of his fists but the massive Titan dodged and used its tail to escape Kong's grip. It attempted to attack Kong again, but he swatted the giant feline Titan into nearby trees and mountains. He stared down at the Titan before it retreated and ran away from the great ape. Victorious, Kong roared, pounded his chest and walked away. Moments after, Kong slightly looks back to hear distant cries from the Spineprowler from an unknown source.
Later on, Kong is seen sitting on top of a mountain looking over the view of the Hollow Earth with the floating rocks above him until something catches his attention. He climbed up the mountain and jumped into the anti gravity field where he landed into a cave. He roared inside for a response, but none came. The great ape went inside the cave to only find bones of dead Titans. Kong drops his axe when the axe suddenly started to glow. He looks up and sees various cave paintings depicting familiar Titans, with one cave painting depicting Godzilla fighting against a massive reptilian like Titan in the ancient past. Unbeknownst to Kong, someone is lurking around his territory, hunting down Titans. After Kong left the cave, he eats a massive snake-like creature before he hears distant agonizing cries. He looks over to see where it was coming from before leaping over into the air and heading straight to the direction.
When Kong landed on the ground, he overheard human conversation coming from nearby trees and makes his way to the location of where the disturbance is coming from. When he arrived, he looks down and sees a group of humans taking away a dead Sker Buffalo into a loaded truck, sensing their intentions, Kong proceeds to attack by slamming the truck into bits, he then picks up the front of the truck before throwing it back down at another truck, causing a massive explosion with the humans running away from the scene. Now Kong needs to find the culprit responsible for this mess.
Just in time, Kong intervened by protecting the two cubs from the invader in front of him, Raymond Martin, now full of sheer determination to ensure humanity's domination and sees Kong as nothing more than just another primitive Titan standing in his way. Kong roared and charged at Martin's Titan Hunter mech to do battle. The Titan Hunter mech first grabbed the ape Titan by the neck before throwing him into the ground, the ape retaliated by grabbing the mech's arm with one arm and proceeding to dropkick the mech onto the ground. With the mech pinned down, Kong begins repeatedly slamming the mech on its chest with both of his fists before Raymond retaliated by punching the ape in the face. Kong then suplexes the mech into a nearby cliff before grabbing the mech's hand in hopes of getting the human to change. Now stuck and dangling on the edge of the cliff, Raymond Martin starts to express his anger at Kong, telling him that Titans like Kong made him this way because they took away everything he cared for and starts making threatening comments to Kong. Kong, sensing that Martin isn't going to change drops the mech down below with each fall tearing the mech apart one by one before it violently crashed into the ground, resulting in a massive explosion. Kong then returns to the cubs that were hiding in the trees that Martin almost killed and stared down at them before walking away.
Now destroyed, Raymond climbs out of the mech and is immediately confronted by the cubs that he attempted to kill. Now defenseless, became their meal for killing their mother earlier. Kong then walks away with the screams of Martin being eaten by the two cubs he almost killed behind him.
Gallery
- Main article: King Kong (Monsterverse)/Gallery.
In other languages
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Roar
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[citation(s) needed] — This section is missing references. Please improve this section by including relevant citations. As a reader, exercise caution when encountering unsourced statements. |
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Kong's roars in Kong: Skull Island were created by sound designer Al Nelson and adapted from the sounds of lions, leopards, gorillas, and monkeys.[citation needed] The use of lion roars was inspired by how sound editor Murray Spivak created Kong's roars in the original film.
In Godzilla vs. Kong, Kong's roars were created by Erik Aadahl and were adapted from lions, leopards, bears, tigers, gorillas, boars and elephants.[citation needed] Kong often uses one of Dragon's grunts from Shrek Forever After. Some of Kong's roars, adjusted to sound robotic, were reused for Optimus Primal in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts.[33] In Godzilla vs. Kong, Kong occasionally emits shrill sounds similar to those heard in the 1976 King Kong. When Kong lifted his axe to strike Godzilla on the head, he made a sound that was recycled from a video of an elephant roaring in pain while undergoing medical treatment.[34] Kong occasionally emits a shrill scream taken from a video of a zoo gorilla charging at its enclosure's window.[35] When Kong grabs one of the HEAVs, he bellows another stock grunt that has also been used by other Hollywood and television monsters, including King Kong from the 2005 film.[citation needed]
In the second season of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, Kong's roars are a mix between his roars from Kong: Skull Island and from Godzilla vs. Kong.
In-universe, Kong's roar is loud enough for the Kraken to hear from the waters surrounding Skull Island, as shown in the Skull Island episodes "Doggone It" and "You're Not a King, You're Just a Stupid Animal".
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Trivia
- The Monsterverse King Kong is the tallest version of the character to date, surpassing his 1962 incarnation by approximately 189 feet, or 57.6 meters.
- This incarnation of Kong is the second to appear alongside Godzilla, and the first to become his ally; Kong previously faced off against the King of the Monsters in King Kong vs. Godzilla.
- Kong and Mothra were originally intended to meet in the Toho film Operation Robinson Crusoe: King Kong vs. Ebirah; Kong was ultimately replaced with Godzilla as the project evolved into Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966).
- King Kong has possessed a beard previously in a manga adaptation for The King Kong Show.[36]
- Concept art shows Kong holding a giant bone as a weapon instead of an axe.[37] An illustration used in tie-in media shows Kong with his battle axe and a torch made with a bone; it is unclear if the latter was ever considered for Godzilla vs. Kong.[38]
- Kong originally had a scar on the left side of his face throughout Godzilla vs. Kong, as seen in early concepts[39] and on the model used for pre-visualization scenes.[40] It still appears in a Chinese poster, tie-in Instagram stickers, an illustration used in tie-in media, in the bust made by Prime 1 Studio,[41] and on cover artwork of Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong #2.[42]
- This Kong is the first incarnation of the character to visit one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, namely the Great Pyramid of Giza in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, evoking his traditional title of "Eighth Wonder of the World". The pyramid is the only of the Seven Wonders to still exist; ironically, Kong played a part in destroying it when Godzilla tackled him into it.
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Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Hidden text only accessible in the revised PDF of the collection.
- ↑ The series is set in 2017; it is unknown whether this weight applies to his later appearances in Godzilla vs. Kong (2021, set in 2024) and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024, set in 2027). The only source that provides a weight stat for the Godzilla vs. Kong version is a booklet included with EZHobi's Shin Godzilla Furious Red figure, which miswrites it as "90,63 tons" (p. 27).
- ↑ Measured at the widest point of the foot.
- ↑ Release year of the game's open beta; the year of its full release is unknown.
References
This is a list of references for King Kong (Monsterverse). These citations are used to identify the reliable sources on which this article is based. These references appear inside articles in the form of superscript numbers, which look like this: [1]
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Bibliography
- Trent, Sigfried; Bramnik, Michael; Flanagan, Ivis (2023). Kong: Skull Island Cinematic Adventure. Evil Genius Games. ISBN 979-8-9865552-8-7.
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