9 Years Ago Today, This Sci-Fi Icon Made a $560M Comeback — And His Story Isn’t Over

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The 2010s really became known as the era of interconnected movie universes. While the idea of linking films together had been around before, it was difficult to pull off successfully. That all changed with the success of 2008’s Iron Man, which launched the Marvel Cinematic Universe and proved the concept could work. Soon, every movie studio wanted to create their own shared universe.

It’s now obvious that most studios couldn’t successfully create shared cinematic universes (and even Marvel has faced challenges lately). Many projects never even got started – Sony’s attempt with a Robin Hood universe immediately failed, and Will Smith’s vision for an After Earth franchise ended after the movie flopped. However, one shared universe has surprisingly thrived, and a crucial part of its story unfolded nine years ago with the return of a Hollywood icon.

The Monsterverse’s Kong: Skull Island Helped Make the Monsterverse a Hit

Thomas Tull, the founder of Legendary Entertainment and its former CEO, envisioned a shared universe for monsters – later known as the “Monsterverse” – after securing the rights to both Godzilla and King Kong. He then collaborated with Warner Bros. to build towards a massive showdown between the two titans, hinted at even in early concept art from 2014 with the simple phrase, “Let them fight.” While the 2014 Godzilla film did well, the next movie needed to successfully introduce Kong as a powerful rival.

Released on March 10, 2017, Jordan Vogt-Roberts’ Kong: Skull Island didn’t receive rave reviews from critics, but it was still a financial success. The film earned an impressive $568.7 million worldwide on a budget of only $185 million. Starring actors like Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, and Brie Larson, Skull Island helped introduce the world to the Monsterverse, and importantly, established the organization known as Monarch as central to this shared cinematic universe.

In retrospect, the Monsterverse clearly took a page from the Avengers‘ playbook: building up individual monsters with their own films before bringing them together in one massive showdown. The Monarch organization functioned much like SHIELD from the Marvel Cinematic Universe – monitoring these powerful creatures and ultimately assembling a team (a later TV series even reinforced this connection with a character very similar to Agent Coulson). However, because Kong hadn’t appeared in a film since 2005, Kong: Skull Island needed to remind audiences of his impressive size and power, and reintroduce him to a new generation.

The film’s box office success speaks for itself. While critics weren’t thrilled with the story of Kong: Skull Island, the movie delivered amazing visuals and established Skull Island as a standout location within the Monsterverse. This success paved the way for Godzilla vs. Kong in 2021, which performed well financially despite challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic. It also became a popular streaming hit on HBO Max and was the most illegally downloaded movie that year. Ultimately, Kong has made a triumphant return and remains a popular character.

Kong: Skull Island’s Story Continues

Many shared cinematic universes are facing challenges – even Marvel’s Kevin Feige recently brought back Robert Downey Jr. as a villain to boost interest. However, the Monsterverse continues to thrive. The second season of Monarch is now available on HBO Max, and the first episode returns to Skull Island, hinting at a significant storyline for Kong. Plus, the visual effects and overall scale of the films are consistently improving.

Creating shared universes—where stories connect across different films, TV shows, and other media—can be risky. It demands careful planning and coordination. However, Legendary and Warner Bros. have done a good job with their MonsterVerse, successfully using each new installment to build towards the next. Kong: Skull Island was particularly important, laying the groundwork for the organization Monarch and its stories, which are now being expanded upon in a fantastic TV series. The film also led to a spin-off anime series available on Netflix.

Godzilla and Kong faced off again in 2024’s Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, but their adventures aren’t stopping there. They’ll team up again in 2025’s Godzilla x Kong: Supernova, which will introduce the villain SpaceGodzilla. The Monsterverse is clearly expanding beyond Earth, and it all started with the discovery of Skull Island.

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2026-03-10 21:42