Summary

• King Kong nearly appeared in Destroy All Monsters 55 years ago, but licensing rights issues prevented it from happening.
• Had King Kong appeared, it's likely he would have helped Godzilla, Anguirus, Rodan, Gorosaurus, and all the others beat King Ghidorah.
• The potential for a large-scale kaiju team-up like Destroy All Monsters still exists in the future of the MonsterVerse, specifically with Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.

53 years before putting aside their differences to stop Mechagodzilla in Godzilla vs. Kong, the American pop culture icon nearly shared a team-up with Godzilla. The 2021 MonsterVerse crossover was marketed as an epic showdown between the two titular Titans. But as many had already theorized prior to the film’s release, the movie ultimately culminated in an alliance between the monsters.

Albeit only briefly, Godzilla and Kong briefly had their interests aligned in Godzilla vs. Kong after Mechagodzilla finally emerged. In spite of his beef with Godzilla, Kong used his axe to save his rival and destroy Mechagodzilla. Godzilla even helped out, using his atomic breath to help Kong execute the finishing move. This differed greatly from Toho’s original crossover movie, which never saw the two ever become anything more than enemies. Interestingly, though, there was a time when a team-up between the two was a realistic scenario. In fact, it nearly happened on the big screen 55 years ago.

King Kong Was Supposed To Appear In Destroy All Monsters

After fighting Godzilla (and apparently winning), King Kong never did reunite with Toho’s Godzilla. That said, he did make one more movie with the Japanese studio. A few years after the release of the highly successful 1962 film, Toho endeavored to bring back its interpretation of the giant ape. Toho featured him as the starring kaiju in King Kong Escapes, where he engaged in battle with two completely new monsters, Gorosaurus and Mechani-Kong. Of the three kaiju from King Kong Escapes, it intended to put two of them – King Kong and Gorosaurus - in the 1968 film, Destroy All Monsters.

Envisioned as a large-scale crossover that would include every major monster from its library, Destroy All Monsters was to be its biggest project to date. And ultimately, it was indeed that, considering that it boasted a stacked kaiju roster complete with Godzilla, Rodan, Anguirus, Mothra, King Ghidorah, and more. But, it’s worth noting that not every monster the studio originally wanted for the film made the cut. Gorosaurus, for his part, made it into the film, but King Kong, along with a few others, wasn’t included. According to The Big Book of Japanese Giant Monster Movies by John LeMay, the licensing rights Toho purchased from RKO (then-owners of the King King character) to use Kong expired shortly before production. As a result, King Kong Escapes became his last Toho feature.

What King Kong’s Destroy All Monsters Role Would Have Been

Had Toho managed to hold on to its King Kong rights, the scene of the ape helping Godzilla beat Mechagodzilla wouldn’t have been quite so unprecedented. Godzilla vs. Kong made cinematic history by having the two share a common foe for the first time, but that distinction very easily could have belonged to Destroy All Monsters. After all, it’s important to note that the premise of Destroy All Monsters called for every kaiju in the movie, save for one, to be on the same side. Its only villain was King Ghidorah. Everyone else, even monsters like Gorosaurus and Kumonga who had previously been utilized as villains, were heroes.

Since King Kong already had a reputation as a heroic kaiju in Toho’s movies, there’s little doubt he would have been one of Godzilla’s monster allies. The fact that he had an existing rivalry with Godzilla probably wouldn’t have mattered since Kumonga’s history of being at odds with Godzilla in Son of Godzilla was similarly forgotten in Destroy All Monsters. Presumably, King Kong would have been reimagined as one of the many residents of Monster Island the aliens tried to enslave in their plot to take over the Earth. If so, he more than likely would have been freed toward the end, allowing him to Godzilla, Rodan, Anguirus, and the others in taking down King Ghidorah in the movie’s finale.

Of course, such a scenario would have been inherently different from what the MonsterVerse offered in 2021. In Godzilla vs. Kong, the two were essentially the stars, whereas in Destroy All Monsters, the only monster to have that role was Godzilla himself. Since the movie featured so many kaiju as heroes, it was difficult for Destroy All Monsters to balance all of them, which was why the action leaned heavily on certain ones, like Rodan and Anguirus, for instance. Since King Kong was a popular monster at the time, even in Japan, it stands to reason he would have gotten in some blows on Ghidorah, but chances are, he wouldn’t have had any more importance to the story than Godzilla’s sidekicks, much less serve as an equal partner to Godzilla.

How Godzilla & Kong Can Still Get Their “Destroy All Monsters” Team-Up

Unfortunately, what Toho once had in mind for King Kong in Destroy All Monsters never came to . And though he did get to help Godzilla save the world in Godzilla vs. Kong, a massive kaiju team-up ala Destroy All Monsters remains something he’s never been a part of in all his years of big-screen appearances. However, the window for that hasn’t closed altogether. An opportunity for King Kong to get what he was denied in Destroy All Monsters will come again in 2024 when the ape reunites with Godzilla for Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.

Just the title alone creates the impression that multiple monsters will be on hand in the fifth MonsterVerse installment. The phrase “New Empire” strongly implies that Godzilla and Kong will be up against a legion of Titans – not just one. Thus far, the movie has only teased one villain, the evil MonsterVerse Kong seen in the Godzilla vs. Kong 2 teaser trailer, but it could be that he’ll have a lot of company if there’s an “empire” for Godzilla and Kong to deal with. That, combined with the synopsis identifying the villain as a “world-ending threat,” would justify Godzilla and Kong seeking out the aid of additional allies.

Exactly who they’d be isn’t clear, but there’s certainly no shortage of options. When Godzilla became the alpha of the Titans in Godzilla: King of the Monsters, he acquired the tools to lead a Destroy All Monsters-style team-up in the MonsterVerse’s future. Rodan, Behemoth, Scylla, the third MUTO, and the monsters awoken by Ghidorah off-screen have become his minions, meaning that theoretically, they could be summoned to help him. If the need arises, Godzilla could head in that direction and in turn pave the way for a kaiju team-up on a scale that hasn’t been seen since Destroy All Monsters, with the big difference being that this time, King Kong can actually play a role in it.