Phosphera
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Phosphera is a mostly-unused monster created for the 2024 Monsterverse film Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. It was intended as a fail-safe, with plans for it to take the place of Mothra in the film should her rights prove unobtainable. Ultimately, Mothra appeared in the final film, though Phosphera survived in the form of a wall carving inside the Iwi temple in the Hollow Earth.
Name
Phosphera's name appears to have been derived from the Greek Phōsphoros (Φωσφόρος), which translates to "light bringer". This word also refers to the god of the planet Venus in Greek mythology, as well as a name for the planet itself, and is similarly the origin for the name of the chemical element phosphorus. Following accounts of the monster's appearance in test screenings of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, Phosphera's name was misspelled as Fosphera by fans; the proper spelling was confirmed in a March 2024 interview with Adam Wingard.
Development
According to Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire director Adam Wingard, Phosphera was "briefly" used in place of Mothra during the film's production, as it was uncertain whether Mothra's license could be secured. Phosphera was present during some test screenings, and an image of it leaked online; once Mothra's inclusion in the film was confirmed, rumors began to circulate that Phosphera was poorly received by test audiences and so was hastily replaced by Mothra. However, Wingard later clarified, "The plan was always Mothra. But we weren't sure if we were going to be able to get Mothra. [...] I don't like that some people think it wasn't the plan all along. If you look at the very first draft of the script, it always says Mothra."[2]
Despite Wingard's phrasing that Phosphera's use was "brief," the monster was physically incorporated into the design of the Iwi temple set in the form of a wall carving. Furthermore, all utterances of Mothra's name in the finished film are spoken by characters off-camera, suggesting that the on-set reads of these lines may have referred to Phosphera instead and were redone during post-production.
Design
In its depiction on the wall carving in the Hollow Earth, Phosphera is shown to be humanoid with avian influences, with a crest on its head, feathered wings, and a large, triangular tail.
History
- Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024) [mural engraving]
Monsterverse
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire
When Ilene Andrews' team entered the Iwi temple, several murals of different monsters were seen, including one of Phosphera. However, this mural went unacknowledged by the characters.
Trivia
- The bioluminescent dragonfly that appears in the film utilizes one of Jared Krichevsky's designs for Phosphera.[1]
- Phosphera's iconography, design as a bird-winged humanoid, and association with pyramids resembles the ancient Egyptian goddess of magic, Isis. Given Phosphera was to appear at an Iwi settlement with a Hollow Earth portal leading to Egypt, where they were to appear on the surface at Cairo, this may have been intentional.
References
This is a list of references for Phosphera. 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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