The Next MonsterVerse Movie Could Introduce The Kaiju That Killed A Godzilla
Now that "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire" has blown up at the box office and "Monarch: Legacy of Monsters" has been renewed for a second season, another big screen entry in the MonsterVerse seems all but guaranteed. Going back to the 2019 release of "Godzilla: King of the Monsters" — a film that flopped both critically and commercially – it would have been hard to predict that the franchise would be two movies and an acclaimed series deeper just five years later, and doing better than ever.
Director Adam Wingard has already said that he's interested in another team-up between the two famous movie monsters, this time focusing more on Godzilla since Kong has been the focus of so much attention in the last couple of films. But he's also got ideas involving another Titan. In a recent interview with Discussing Film, Wingard teased a potential connection between the next MonsterVerse installment and one of Godzilla's most acclaimed films, "Godzilla vs. Destoroyah."
"I'll say this, one of my top Godzilla movies is 'Godzilla vs. Destoroyah,'" the director told the outlet. "The reason it's one of my favorite films is I don't think any other Godzilla movie, maybe outside of Minus One and the 1954 original, has ever hit such emotional highs." "Godzilla vs. Destoroyah" is certainly one of the Kaiju's most emotional films, in part because — famously — Godzilla dies at the end and also because it ties back to the events of the original 1954 film in some cool ways. But fans are probably more excited by the idea of Destoroyah himself making an appearance, as the popular villain hasn't been seen in a movie since his eponymous debut in 1995.
Who is Destoroyah?
Though Destoroyah is a favorite among kaiju superfans, he's not a monster that more casual moviegoers may know. Unlike the rest of Godzilla's most famous allies and adversaries — Mothra, King Ghidorah, Mechagodzilla, Rodan, Anguirus, etc. — Destoroyah only appeared in a single film. And though he's certainly the biggest name on the franchise's long list of one-hit wonders, he's also one of the strangest Kaiju Godzilla has ever fought.
Destoroyah is actually many creatures — at least at first. The plot of the film revolves around a species of Precambrian crab-like organisms that are mutated into dangerous monsters by the oxygen destroyer. Yes, that's the same oxygen destroyer used to kill the first Godzilla in the 1954 film. The creatures eventually become larger than humans, leading to a series of confrontations with the military that intentionally evoke James Cameron's "Aliens." It's only in the film's final act that the ultimate form of Destoroyah, who stands tall over one of the biggest incarnations of Godzilla ever, takes the stage.
Destoroyah nearly defeats Godzilla, but he ultimately falls thanks to some help from the Japanese Self-Defense Forces and an experimental aircraft called the Super X3. Still, Godzilla does die at the end of the film, falling victim to a nuclear meltdown within his own body. To this day, Destoroyah remains one of the most powerful monsters ever featured in a Godzilla movie.
Could Destoroyah be coming back in the MonsterVerse?
So is the deadly Kaiju actually coming to the MonsterVerse? It's too soon to know, but Adam Wingard's recent references to "Godzilla vs. Destoroyah" mostly involve the emotional subject matter of the film. "The first time I saw it, it brought tears to my eyes. And part of that is thanks to Akira Ifukube's grand score that plays in that scene," the director told Discussing Film. "But that's the thing for me, if I were going to do another one of these films, I would want to hit that kind of emotional resonance with Godzilla as a character this time."
If Wingard does make another MonsterVerse movie, it will form a Godzilla and Kong trilogy. There would be room to work in some big emotional payoffs, though it seems unlikely that Legendary or Toho would let him kill Godzilla.
As for Destoroyah, there's certainly a possibility the big kaiju could appear down the line. He's the most dangerous enemy Kaiju who has yet to appear in the MonsterVerse, and he's also probably the one that fans would most like to see. Incorporating him into the current story of the franchise, however, is easier said than done. Destoroyrah was conceived as a symbol of his film's overall message — an example of how destruction ultimately only ever breeds more destruction. The MonsterVerse has gone down a different path of presenting fans with goofy but lovable Kaiju antics, and it might cheapen the monster's legacy to bring him in as a final boss. But hey, there has been an oxygen destroyer used in the MonsterVerse, so anything could happen.