Warning: This post contains spoilers for Godzilla vs Kong.
HBO Max's release of Godzilla vs. Kong brought epic clashes between the two iconic Monsterverse creatures, finally answering the question of what would happen in such a legendary battle of the titans. In order to level the playing field between the two, Kong uses a slew of weapons against Godzilla (and in other fights). Kong’s weapons added diversity to the fights and also ended up being pivotal in the surprising final battle against Mechagodzilla that concluded the film.
Godzilla vs. Kong is a follow-up to Godzilla: King of the Monsters and Kong: Skull Island, bringing the titular Titans into conflict five years after Godzilla’s defeat of the alien Titan Ghidorah and three years after the last Titan sighting. Godzilla initially went after Kong because he was the only Titan who didn’t bow to Godzilla and acknowledge him as the Apex Titan as Monarch hid Kong on Skull Island but Kong outgrew his containment zone, bringing him into conflict with Godzilla and other Titans.
The question of how Kong could possibly manage to stand up to Godzilla was a big part of the pre-release conversation, but along with a size change, Kong employed a variety of weapons throughout the film to aid him in his fights. Some of these weapons appeared briefly, while others stole the show and gave the King of Skull Island a clear upper hand. Here’s all the weapons Kong used in Godzilla vs. Kong.
Warbats
As confirmed by the trailers, two Warbats appear in Godzilla vs. Kong. These serpentine, winged Titans appeared when Kong and his Monarch escort entered Hollow Earth, trying to make a snack of Kong’s companions. Kong pulls one right out of the air, then briefly uses it as a weapon to bring the other Warbat down to Hollow Earth.
Kong's Skyscraper Discus/Shield
During his final battle with Godzilla, Kong tears the round top off a skyscraper to use as a weapon. He initially holds it like a discus, suggesting he wants to use the building as a throwing weapon, but Godzilla pressures Kong with a blast of his radioactive breath, forcing the great ape to use it as a shield instead, which destroys the weapon.
Kong's Throwing Spears
Kong uses spears early in the film while he’s still in the Monarch containment center. The weapons are handcrafted by the King himself as he uproots entire trees, then tears the root system off to create a sharpened point. Kong has grown since his last appearance in Kong Island, and expresses his displeasure at outgrowing his containment zone with these spears, hurling them through The Truman Show-like dome Monarch has constructed around him.
Kong Throws A Fighter Jet
Kong’s fists are his simplest weapon, yet also his weapon of choice as was clear from the trailer's reveal of the battle at sea, but Kong also calls on another weapon. While Godzilla has historically proven himself unperturbed by puny fighter jets - as in 1966's Godzilla vs The Sea Monster (AKAK Ebirah, Horror of the Deep), Kong catches and hurls a jet at him as they face off over the water.
Kong’s Axe
Perhaps the most important weapon in the film is Kong’s axe. Discovered in Hollow Earth, the behemoth was left behind by Kong’s ancestors before they left ascended to Skull Island. Perfectly sized for Kong, the axe has a massive bone for a handle and one of the dorsal fins of a Godzilla-like creature as a blade, potentially the source of the rivalry between Kong's censors and Godzilla hinted at in Godzilla vs. Kong.
Constructing the blade from a Godzilla-like creature's scale allows it to absorb radioactivity from the Earth’s core and even Godzilla’s beam attack. The axe is also pivotal to the final battle against Mechagodzilla as it allows the two to combine their might as Godzilla charges the axe with his atomic breath and Kong uses it to destroy the mechanical monstrosity.