For a reason that remains unclear, the MonsterVerse’s Kong isn’t “King Kong”, but there is a way that could change after Godzilla vs. Kong. In 2017, Legendary and Warner Bros. released the second installment in the MonsterVerse, Kong: Skull Island. The film’s title notably took away half of King Kong’s name, and though Kong: Skull Island alludes to his true name by referring to him as a “king”, the movie never specifically calls him “King Kong”.

If one doesn’t count Son of Kong (which wasn’t actually about King Kong himself), the character has appeared in seven live-action films, including the original 1933 classic, the 1976 and 2005 remakes, King Kong Lives, Toho’s King Kong vs. Godzilla and King Kong Escapes, and finally, Kong: Skull Island. Out of all them, the only film to change his name is, of course, Legendary’s big-screen adaptation, which may or may not be connected to rights issues regarding the name “King Kong”.

Godzilla vs. Kong provides an opportunity for the MonsterVerse’s interpretation of Kong to earn his trademark name. To take that title, Kong will need to defeat Godzilla. Though it’s true that Godzilla and Kong may ultimately team up to battle Mechagodzilla, the battle between Godzilla and Kong won’t end in a tie, as a definitive winner has been promised by Godzilla vs. Kong director Adam Wingard. If that “definitive winner” is Godzilla, then he will have succeeded in defending his crown from a rival alpha. But, if Kong wins, he’ll be the new alpha. Godzilla: King of the Monsters has already shown audiences that if a Titan manages to defeat the alpha, he will take his opponent’s place as the King of the Monsters.

If this scenario were to occur, one or more of the characters in Godzilla vs. Kong could label him “King Kong”, thus completing the process of passing the crown from one Titan to another. Later installments in the MonsterVerse could recognize Kong’s victory by finally assigning him his proper name.

However, it should be noted that beating Godzilla will be no easy task. King Kong defeated Godzilla in King Kong vs. Godzilla (according to Toho), but the 1962 King Kong had two added advantages: a massive size upgrade and electrical powers. The latter is what allowed Kong to come back from a beating and overpower Godzilla at the end of the movie. Like Toho’s version, the MonsterVerse’s Kong will also be receiving major growth spurt, but this time he’ll have to beat Godzilla with a more traditional set of abilities, which means no electrical powers. Also, King of the Monsters already indicated that he would be the underdog by discounting Kong as a challenger to King Ghidorah. Godzilla is the King of the Monsters in the MonsterVerse for a good reason, so if Kong somehow does triumph over the current champion, he’ll have more than earned the right to be “King Kong”.

More: Theory: Godzilla & Kong Team Up Against Mechagodzilla AND Mecha-King Ghidorah

  • Godzilla Vs Kong Release Date: 2021-03-31