Summary

  • Godzilla: King of the Monsters features iconic monsters from Godzilla's cinematic history as well as new beasts created for the film. The franchise has introduced numerous monsters over the years, but none are as popular or recognizable as Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra, and Ghidorah.
  • While Legendary only acquired the rights to Mothra, Rodan, and Ghidorah for King of the Monsters, other Titan names appear in the movie via screens within Monarch facilities. However, these creatures do not actually appear in the film. New Titans are introduced instead.
  • Godzilla, Mothra, Rodan, and Ghidorah each have unique characteristics and abilities. Godzilla is a gigantic reptilian creature with a bio-nuclear circulatory system and the devastating Atomic Breath. Mothra is an insect Titan with the ability to shoot silk thread and project a blinding light. Ghidorah is a three-headed Titan from space with electrical abilities. Rodan is a gigantic pteranodon Titan with a volcanic combustion system and the ability to create sonic thunderclaps.

Godzilla: King of the Monsters features a whopping eight Titans, including classic monsters from Godzilla's long cinematic history and new beasts created for the film. Godzilla: King of the Monsters is the first movie made outside of Japan to feature Toho's other famous kaiju. After the release of the original Godzilla in 1954, Toho quickly went to work on films starring other giant monsters like Mothra and Rodan. Soon, Toho began featuring multiple kaiju together in films, having them either battle one another or team up against a greater foe. Toho's Godzilla franchise has spanned decades, introducing dozens of monsters over the years, but none remain as popular or recognizable as Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra, and Ghidorah.

For Godzilla: King of the Monsters, Legendary only acquired the rights to Mothra, Rodan, and Ghidorah in addition to Godzilla. That means that no other official kaiju from the Toho Godzilla series appear in King of the Monsters. However, that doesn't mean that these four are the only Titans to appear. Several other Titan names appear in Godzilla: King of the Monsters via screens within Monarch facilities, including Typhon, Mokele Mbembe, and Leviathan. Sadly, those creatures don't actually appear in the movie, but other new Titans do.

Related
Godzilla: King of the Monsters - Rodan, Mothra & Ghidorah Explained
Godzilla: King of the Monsters introduces three classic Toho creatures. Here's everything you need to know about Rodan, Mothra & Ghidorah.

9 Godzilla

Godzilla (Titanus Gojira) is a gigantic reptilian creature and apex predator originating in the Permian period. He’s roughly 400ft tall (although over 550ft long with his tail) and weighs over 90,000 tons. Godzilla has a bio-nuclear circulatory system which allows him to emit a powerful energy attack (the devastating Atomic Breath) from the nucleosynthetic chambers found in his throat. Godzilla hibernated deep within the Earth’s core for millennia until a U.S. nuclear submarine awakened him in 1954. The American military even attempted to kill Godzilla, luring him to the surface and detonating a hydrogen bomb.

In Godzilla 2014, Godzilla reemerged to take on the MUTOs or Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism, an ancient parasitic species. Since then, he’s fought MUTO Prime (Titanus Jinshin-Mushi), which was responsible for killing predecessor of Godzilla’s and left him with broken dorsal spines along his back. In King of the Monsters, Godzilla’s position as the Titan alpha is challenged by Ghidorah, the three-headed dragon. Gojira is nearly killed by the U.S. military’s Oxygen Destroyer, but is rejuvenated by a nuclear bomb. He intercepts Ghidorah in Boston and, with a little help from Mothra, transforms into his burning form and beats the alien, becoming ruler of a new group of Titans.

8 Mothra

Mothra (Titanus Mosura) is an insect Titan that upon reaching adulthood resembles a gigantic moth. Hatching from an egg and into a larval form, Mothra is born capable of shooting a silk thread from her mouth that's strong enough to restrain even the most powerful Titans. Once in her imago form, Mothra is 52ft tall with a wingspan of roughly 800 ft. Though small, Mothra is a mighty Titan who can not only fly but project a beta-wave bioluminescence through the pattern on her wings, a blinding light dubbed "god rays". Luckily for humanity, Mothra is also one of the more benevolent Titans in the MonsterVerse; excavations in places like the mysterious Infant Island or the Yunnan Province in China have unearthed ancient illustrations that depict Mothra peacefully co-existing alongside humanity, even worshiped by early humans as a goddess.

Mothra is the first Titan on whom Dr. Russell uses the Orca in Godzilla: King of the Monsters, before cocooning herself. Unlike other Titans, Mothra is unaffected by Ghidorah's alpha call, which means she's able to save Godzilla from his near-death situation. Mothra fights Rodan while Godzilla fights Ghidorah and, despite getting the pteranodon with her stinger, is mortally wounded in the battle; she gives her energy to create Burning Godzilla. Although Mothra is dead by the end of the movie, there's many ways she could return.

7 Ghidorah

Codename Monster Zero aka Ghidorah (Titanus Ghidorah) is a three-headed Titan that originates from space, who's spent most of human history frozen in Antarctica. Ghidorah is over 500 feet tall with a massive wingspan of unknown proportions, the beating of which can create hurricane-force winds. Unlike Godzilla, Ghidorah is bio-electrical in nature and can conduct electrical currents throughout its body thanks to his electro-receptor molecular biology and trace amounts of gold in his scales. Ghidorah can also shoot gravity beams (concentrated electricity) from his three heads - all of which can act independently of each other, having different cognitive functions and thoughts; the middle head serves as the alpha with the other two acting like members of the pack. If one of Ghidorah's heads is severed, they can regrow in a very short amount of time.

Ghidorah is shown to have battled Godzilla in Kong: Skull Island's post-credits scene via cave paintings. As rival apex predators, Godzilla and Ghidorah can never peacefully co-exist and they clash repeatedly. At the end of King of the Monsters, Godzilla - now super-charged from Mothra's essence - kills Ghidorah by blasting him with powerful atomic pulses that rip the space invader apart. However, as revealed in Godzilla: King of the Monsters' post-credits scene, a fourth head survived in the hands of Charles Dance's Jonah Alan. It was later revealed to be the catalyst behind the creation of Mechagodzilla in Godzilla vs. Kong.

6 Rodan

Rodan and Argo Jet in Godzilla King of the Monsters

Rodan (Titanus Rodan) is a gigantic pteranodon Titan with a fiery exterior of scales that resemble molten rock and internal volcanic combustion system that allows him to breathe fire. He is 154ft tall with a wingspan of over 870ft - large enough that when in flight, he creates a sonic thunderclap. Much like Ghidorah, Rodan is a chaotic, destructive Titan feared by early humans as a demon, erupting from within volcanoes to wreak havoc.

In Godzilla: King of the Monsters, Rodan is awakened from his Isla de Mara volcano slumber by Dr. Russell's. After terrorizing the nearby area, he was soon subdued by Ghidorah, becoming a tool of the alpha. During Godzilla and Ghidorah's final rematch, Rodan fought Mothra, narrowly escaping her stinger with his life. He reemerged after Godzilla destroys Ghidorah, recognizing the new King of the Monsters and bowing along with the other gathered Titans.

5 The New MUTO

The male MUTO kneels down in the 2014 Godzilla movie

The MUTOs (Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism) were first seen in Godzilla 2014, where a pair - a male and female - traveled the world to reunite and reproduce. They were eventually stopped by Godzilla in San Francisco (footage of which plays in the sequel). Afterwards, in a spinoff comic, MUTO Prime, much larger and older specimen emerges also fought Gojira.

These weren't the last MUTOs, however, as revealed in Godzilla: King of the Monsters: another female MUTO is shown awakened by Ghidorah's call. There doesn't appear to be another male MUTO, however, which may imply that this female specimen truly is the last of her species. She seeks out her new alpha, but after Ghidorah's defeat, she recognizes Godzilla as the dominant predator of the ecosystem.

4 Scylla

Scylla (Titanus Scylla) is a gigantic Titan who resembles a spider and lies dormant under oil fields in Arizona where it's being monitored by Monarch. Scylla's design evokes an arachnid but it actually only has six legs that more resemble those of a crab more than they do those of a spider. Each of Scylla's jointed legs end in a sharp claw capable of tearing through solid rock. Scylla is awakened in Godzilla: King of the Monsters' by Ghidorah's call, leaving a path of destruction in its wake as it travels across the U.S. in search of its new alpha, where it finds Godzilla victorious. In the Godzilla: Dominion graphic novel, it's discovered that Godzilla and Scylla came to blows two years after the movie, with Godzilla easily winning.

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MonsterVerse: Godzilla/Kong Movie Timeline Explained
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3 Behemoth

Behemoth is a new Titan in Godzilla: King of the Monsters

Behemoth (Titanus Behemoth) is a Titan with the appearance of a large ape crossed with a woolly mammoth; its body looks like a primate, but it also has large, curled tusks protruding from its mouth and is covered in a thick, brown fur. Monarch most likely named this Titan, Behemoth, for its massive size. Following Ghidorah's call, Behemoth emerges from its resting place, causing mass destruction on its journey to Boston where it bows to new alpha Godzilla. In Godzilla: Dominion, Godzilla is shown saving Behemoth from Amhuluk during a fight in the Amazon rainforest

2 Methuselah

Mystery Mountain Titan Methuselah in Godzilla King of the Monsters

Methuselah (Titanus Methuselah) is a massive mountain Titan which resides underground in a dormant state near Munich, Germany. Monarch has been monitoring the Titan from Outpost 67 and its biblical name may imply that it is one of the oldest Titans they've studied. Methuselah is horned and its body appears to have plated sections of rock armor with spikes running along its back. It's unclear whether Methuselah is simply underneath a mountain or if its body actually is the mountain. Upon hearing Ghidorah's call, Methuselah rises from the Earth. Unlike the other reemerging Titans, though, Methuselah never appears to arrive at his destination. Still, he's presumably now also under the command of new alpha, Godzilla.

1 Kong

Although he doesn't appear in the flesh, Kong is mentioned multiple times in Godzilla: King of the Monsters. The King of the Apes is a 100 foot tall gorilla who resides on Skull Island, with immense strength and a similarly powerful heart. He was encountered by Monarch in 1973, as seen in Kong: Skull Island, and his legend travels far: in King of the Monsters, he's reported as one of the many known Titans, and Ghidorah's roar is said to have reached his secluded home. By ignoring Ghidorah's call, Kong avoided a meeting with Godzilla in Godzilla: King of the Monsters. But while Kong was content to stay on the island, it's no secret that he didn't stay. Forced to leave years later by the storm created by Ghidorah, Kong finally had his long-awaited showdown with his rival alpha in Godzilla vs. Kong.

Key Release Dates