The franchise has received a generally positive critical reception and has grossed $2.525 billion worldwide at the box office.

[1] Legendary confirmed at the 2014 San Diego Comic-Con that it had acquired the licensing rights to Mothra, Rodan, and King Ghidorah from Toho Co., Ltd. and revealed concept footage with the closing title cards reading "Conflict: inevitable.

In October 2016, Legendary announced that Godzilla: King of the Monsters would be filmed at its parent company Wanda's Oriental Movie Metropolis facility in Qingdao, China, along with Pacific Rim: Uprising.

[9] In January 2017, Thomas Tull, founder of Legendary, resigned from the company but would remain as producer for the Godzilla–Kong series, which was revealed as the "Monsterverse".

[10] In March 2017, Legendary assembled a writers room led by Terry Rossio to develop the story for Godzilla vs.

[14] The film reimagines Godzilla's origins and is set 15 years after a nuclear meltdown in Japan which was caused by giant parasitic creatures, known as "MUTOs" (acronym for Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism).

As two MUTOs ravage the countryside in order to reproduce, they awaken an even larger ancient alpha predator, known as "Godzilla", whose existence has been kept secret by the U.S. government since 1954.

In 2004, director Yoshimitsu Banno acquired permission from Toho to produce a short IMAX Godzilla film which was in development for several years until the project was eventually turned over to Legendary Pictures.

[24] Set in 1973, the film follows a team of scientists and Vietnam War soldiers traveling to an uncharted island in the Pacific where they encounter terrifying creatures and the mighty Kong.

[28] In July 2014 at San Diego Comic-Con, Legendary announced a King Kong origin story, initially titled Skull Island, with a release date of November 4, 2016, and Universal Pictures distributing.

[37] Off-screen, the film introduces Baphomet, Typhon, Mokele-Mbembe, Tiamat, Abaddon, Leviathan, and Bunyip to the Monsterverse.

[60] The film received generally positive reviews and was a box office success, breaking pandemic records and grossing $470 million.

It was also a streaming hit, becoming the most successful launch item in HBO Max's history until it was overtaken by Mortal Kombat.

[61][62] Godzilla and Kong reunite against an undiscovered threat hidden deep within the Earth that challenges the existence of humans and Titans alike.

[74] Wingard added that the Monsterverse is at a "crossroads", stating, "It’s really at the point where audiences have to kind of step forward and vote for more of these things.

"[75] On April 4, 2021, following the release and successful response to Godzilla vs. Kong, Legendary's CEO Josh Grode commented on potential sequels, "we have a number of ideas for more movies.

"[76] That same month, the hashtag #ContinueTheMonsterverse began trending on Twitter, which was acknowledged by Legendary and garnered support from Vogt-Roberts.

[77][78] On April 27, 2021, The Hollywood Reporter stated that Legendary was "quietly taking steps to stretch the series into one or more installments," while negotiating with Wingard to potentially return to direct.

[80] Borenstein had also expressed interest in seeing Legendary produce a film with minimal human characters, stating, "I think it is possible.

"[83] That same month, Legendary announced that under their new contract with Apple TV+ they will proceed with a second season of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, as well as multiple spin-off series.

[89] In January 2021, Legendary Television and Netflix announced plans for animated series titled Skull Island.

Produced by Safehouse Pictures, Toho Co., Ltd., Mikfred Criminal Masterminds, Chris Black Broadcasting System and Legendary Television, the series premiered on November 17, 2023, on Apple TV+ and consists of 10 episodes.

He echoed the film's Japanese origins and influence by applying a shakuhachi bamboo flute and taiko drums throughout the score.

[134][135] For Kong: Skull Island (2017), Henry Jackman blended 1970s psychedelic guitars into the score, which was considered to be a combination of mixing electronic sounds with symphony orchestra.

[Director] Jordan Vogt-Roberts was happy to celebrate the gravity and history that comes with a full orchestra, but we also explored less traditional elements.

Vogt-Roberts also used rock music from the Vietnam-era and hits from the 70s, stating, "this provides a striking dichotomy, sets the tone and gives us great moments of fun".

[149] In October 2024, it was announced that a sequel to the cross-over comic series Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong would be released in 2025.

[157] For Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, Legendary and Warner Bros. collaborated with Roblox for an interactive trailer via the "obby" that users can interface with characters from the film.