How & Where to Watch the Godzilla and Kong MonsterVerse in Chronological Order

Rarely has the excitement surrounding Godzilla been as high as it has been over the past few months. Toho’s Godzilla Minus One was one of the best movies of 2023, surprising many people with its success. Longtime Godzilla fans knew it was going to be good, but even some of us were taken aback at just how good it is. With the Godzilla hype still going strong, the American version of the world’s most famous kaiju is about to be unleashed once more.

The fifth installment of Legendary Pictures’ MonsterVerse, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, releases in theaters on March 29, 2024. To prepare for this momentous occasion, you might want to go back and rewatch every movie and show that has led up to the new film. After all, the MonsterVerse turns a decade old this year, so it might have been a while since you’ve last seen some of the movies. Or maybe you’re new to the MonsterVerse and aren’t sure where to begin. Well, we’re here to help. Below is every movie and TV series in the MonsterVerse franchise, listed in chronological order rather than release order. Links are included for streaming or purchasing on physical media (when available).

If you want even more, the official MonsterVerse comic books are included in the timeline as well. So, watch and read everything listed below if you want the full effect. But if you’re just looking for the quickest way to get caught up, just watch the movies.

• Subscription Streaming: Max
• Digital Rental/Purchase: Amazon, Vudu/Fandango at Home
• Physical Media: Amazon

Kong: Skull Island takes place in 1973. The story is about an expedition to Skull Island in which Kong is discovered by the Monarch organization. The movie takes some inspiration from the Skull Island segments of earlier King Kong movies, but it spins that inspiration into an entirely original premise. It’s also the best place to start the journey into Legendary’s MonsterVerse. Kong: Skull Island plants seeds for story lines that are still being paid off in the most recent movies.

• Subscription Streaming: Netflix

Skull Island is an eight-episode animated series streaming exclusively on Netflix. The episodes range from only 20-26 minutes each, so the whole series is a quick and easy watch. The story takes place around 1993, setting it very close to the exact middle point between Kong: Skull Island and Godzilla (2014). In the show, a group of people are shipwrecked on Skull Island and encounter various monsters. The show isn’t vital to the ongoing saga of the films, but it’s still entertaining and can be enjoyed on its own as a spinoff.

• Subscription Streaming: Max, Netflix
• Digital Rental/Purchase: Amazon, Vudu/Fandango at Home
• Physical Media: Amazon

Set predominantly in 2014, Godzilla follows a Navy officer as his path takes him from his father’s research in Japan which is discovered to involve giant creatures, to the worldwide public’s first exposure to Godzilla and other Titans. It is a good introduction to Godzilla within the live-action MonsterVerse, treating the monster with a great deal of awe before the more battle-heavy sequels that would follow.

• Subscription Streaming: Apple TV+

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters is a ten-episode live-action series that focuses on Monarch, the organization within the MonsterVerse that was established in the mid-20th century to study MUTOs (massive unidentified terrestrial organisms). The main story line driving the series is about a sister and brother investigating their father’s connections to Monarch. The main story is set in 2015, but every episode shows pieces of the ongoing saga of Monarch dating back to the early 1950s.

• Subscription Streaming: Max
• Digital Rental/Purchase: Amazon, Vudu/Fandango at Home
• Physical Media: Amazon

Godzilla: King of the Monsters is set around 2019. In the five years since Godzilla, many more Titans have been discovered. However, the release of “Monster Zero” (aka King Ghodorah) sparks a planet-wide brawl for dominance among the Titans. Godzilla: King of the Monsters is an incredibly fun movie that touches on a lot of nostalgia for longtime Godzilla fans.

• Subscription Streaming: Max
• Digital Rental/Purchase: Amazon, VuduFandango at Home
• Physical Media: Amazon

In 2024, five years after Godzilla: King of the Monsters, Kong is taken out of an artificial habitat constructed by Monarch, with the hope that the beast can help guide a cybernetics company called Apex into Hollow Earth. Kong’s presence outside of his habitat attracts the reigning king of the monsters, Godzilla, and the two battle it out while a dangerous plot is developing in secret.

• Where to Watch: Only in theaters, beginning March 29, 2024.

It hasn’t yet been revealed exactly when Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire takes place, but it is definitely sometime after Godzilla vs. Kong. The movie promises to dig deeper into the origins of Kong and Godzilla while introducing a brand new simian threat in the form of the Skar King.