The showrunner and cast of Apple TV+’s Monarch: Legacy of Monsters teased Kong’s role in Season 2 of the series.
While the first season very much leaned on the involvement of the iconic movie monster, Godzilla, the final scene of the finale teased the arrival of another kaiju superstar. After rescuing the time-displaced Keiko, the cast find themselves stationed on Skull Island.
An alarm starts blaring, leading everyone to take cover in a hangar. The camera then pans to the forest, where audiences get the money shot of Kong. As exciting as this is, some are worried it could take the spotlight from Godzilla going forward.
[ Monarch: Legacy of Monsters: Cast, Characters, Actors ]
Cast and Showrunner Comment on Kong's Presence In Monarch Season 2
The cast and filmmakers of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters spoke with The Direct’s Russ Milheim at an FYC (For Your Consideration) event, where they talked about Kong’s potential role on the show for Season 2.
With many worried that Kong might take Godzilla’s spotlight in Season 2, showrunner Chris Black attempted to comment on the matter as vaguely as he could.
While avoiding specific details, Black was quick to point to the MonsterVerse’s long list of previous Titans who have all managed to share the spotlight with Godzilla:
"In the MonsterVerse, there is a pantheon of great iconic characters. I mean, Godzilla, obviously, first and foremost, but there's Kong, Rodan Mothra, Ghidorah... We want - if we have the opportunity - to surface the whole pantheon. And I think the fact that you get to the end of the season, you get to the climax of the season finale, and you get a little taste of someone new stepping onto the stage. I don't think we would put that out there if we didn't plan to do something with it."
Actress Anna Sawai, who plays Cate Randa in the show, was also asked how she feels her character would handle Kong—especially given her previous trauma with Godzilla.
Sawai explained that Cate saw some notable development over Season 1, so she hopes "that maybe she finds a connection with Kong:"
"That's a difficult question to answer because I feel like she also made a connection with Godzilla in that one scene in the desert. And after that, I don't know if she's the same person. She's not Kate, who was traumatized by G-Day and period. There's a little more to that. So I hope that maybe she finds a connection with Kong as well."
The actress added how she personally "love[s] animals:"
"I love animals. And if I met Kong, I would happily like jump on his back. So, we'll see."
As for Joe Tippett, who plays Monarch Agent Tim, he admitted he has "no idea" how his character is going to handle Kong:
"I have no idea. Like, tripping on a curb, I guess. I feel like that's how my character handled everything."
When asked if there’s any particular monster he would like to see show up in Monarch, Tippett rebutted how he’d like to see "all of them at some point:"
"Tthat's tough. I guess my wish is that we just get enough seasons to see all of them at some point. Do you know what I mean? Hopefully, we will get to do this for a long time. And we keep getting enough time to, like, I don't want to just wedge them all into one season... I think it'd be cool if we got to draw it out a little bit."
The Direct then asked star Kurt Russell how he thinks his character of Lee Shaw would handle Kong if he had survived the finale (which he still might!).
The actor mostly sidestepped the question but did suggest that Kurt would have an entirely new perspective while dealing with it thanks to his recent experiences:
"I think that what's interesting about this show is that when you go back in time, you flashback to how these people got together and where this whole thing started. It's the human aspect of it that you are focused on. And I think all his life; he's, you know, there were certain things that he was waiting for, and setting up that sort of mysterious way that you finally begin to understand towards the end. To me, you would carry on with that and understand mysteries work in different ways, with different people, different scenarios. So they’d… have to lean into those scenarios."
Elisa Lasowski, the actress behind Monarch Agent Duvall, joked how her character would "stand on [Kong’s] shoulders and walk around," adding how she hopes there will be "some good fights involving Kong and Godzilla."
She went on to note how she would like to explore some of Duvall’s more mysterious side in future Seasons.
Alongside the Season 2 announcement of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, it was revealed that multiple spin-off shows are in development for the franchise.
When asked if fans can expect Monarch to start laying the foundation for those eventual shows, Showrunner Chris Black admitted that he "hope[s] so" but that it is still "very early in those conversations" about what the spin-offs will be:
"I hope so. It's still very preliminary. You know, it's very early in those conversations. I think everyone was so excited that the response to the show was so positive. And it seemed like there was a hunger for more stories in that world, that there's an opportunity to expand the mythology. The Monsterverse is a big world to play in across multiple timelines, you know, as we showed in the show. Nothing's been decided yet, but I'm excited for the possibilities."
As for when production starts up, the cast and filmmakers were quiet on the matter, with Sawai noting that they "don't have a specific date yet."
Monarch Casting Director Ronna Kress added a glimmer of hope, however, that fans won't have to wait too long for the show’s return, which will be "hopefully next year."
Can Godzilla and Kong Even Mean In Season 2?
When it comes to the future of Godzilla and Kong in Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, one thing seems certain. In theory, the two cannot meet until the events of Godzilla vs. Kong. So, with whatever narrative balance is struck between those titans, they’ll have to be somewhat distanced from each other.
With the main characters currently stationed on Skull Island with Apex, it is difficult to see how Kong would not be center stage in a big way. With how much attention Godzilla got in Season 1, it only seems fair to share the love a little bit.
Timeline-wise, it is also important to consider that the narrative is only two years away from the events of Godzilla: King of Monsters. So, when it comes to possible Titans to explore, the show has plenty of options.
Monarch: Legacy of Monsters is now streaming on Apple TV+.
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