This week began with some super-sized Godzilla-shaped news, offering up our first look at Toho’s Godzilla Minus One trailer, coming to Japan before the end of the year. Now it ends with another appearance from the big guy himself – this time in a different context and continuity – in the first trailer for Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters. This is Apple TV+’s upcoming small-screen series set in the cinematic MonsterVerse – that’s Warner Bros and Legendary’s current kaiju-franchise, which began with Gareth Edwards’ Godzilla, continued in Kong: Skull Island and Godzilla: King Of The Monsters, and most recently gave us the gloriously crashy-bashy Godzilla Vs Kong. On streaming, Legacy Of Monsters will primarily revolve around Monarch, the shady organisation linked to all the titan activity on Earth. But, fear not – the trailer confirms that there’ll be considerable kaiju action too. Check it out here:
There are some lovely epic monster shots here – not just Godzilla, but a big ol’ spider-guy (seemingly chasing John Goodman on Skull Island), plus another winged wonder. But it’s that big snarling ‘zilla shot that’s here to show you that Monarch won’t be be a poor relation to its big-screen cousins. Beyond the creatures, there are other reasons to be excited about Legacy Of Monsters – most notably, the extremely cool idea to have Kurt Russell and his actor son Wyatt Russell playing the same characters, Army Officer Lee Shaw, across time periods.
Here’s the official synopsis: “Following the thunderous battle between Godzilla and the Titans that leveled San Francisco, and the shocking revelation that monsters are real, Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters tracks two siblings following in their father’s footsteps to uncover their family’s connection to the secretive organization known as Monarch. Clues lead them into the world of monsters and ultimately down the rabbit hole to Army Officer Lee Shaw (played by Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell), taking place in the 1950s and half a century later where Monarch is threatened by what Shaw knows. The dramatic saga — spanning three generations — reveals buried secrets and the ways that epic, earth-shattering events can reverberate through our lives.”
Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters was created by Chris Black, who developed the show alongside Hawkeye comics favourite Matt Fraction – and the first episode is helmed by WandaVision alum Matt Shakman. And as this trailer reveals, the show begins streaming from 17 November, so there’s not long to wait. Fingers crossed it delivers on both monster mayhem and human heart.