Godzilla X Kong: That Huge Mothra Theory You Heard? It's True
Along with kaiju like Mechagodzilla and King Ghidorah, Mothra is one of the most famous and powerful monsters in the "Godzilla" franchise, so it was a big deal when she made her MonsterVerse debut in 2019's "Godzilla: King of the Monsters." By the end of that same film, however, Mothra dies valiantly while helping to save the world. Her subsequent return in "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire" was somewhat surprising as a result, sparking theories of how exactly it happened. One of those theories has now been confirmed by director Adam Wingard.
In a new art book for the film, Wingard explains that yes, the Mothra seen in "New Empire" is actually much older than the one in "King of the Monsters," though the two share a powerful familial bond. "This is essentially Mothra's mother," the director explained (via ComicBook.com). "The eggs that were laid on the surface were laid by ['The New Empire'] version of Mothra and this film establishes that she is the protector of the pathways to the surface which are vortexes. And so, theoretically, this Titan has access to these vortexes and laid eggs on the surface, which is what we saw in 'King of The Monsters.' She is the original one."
This explains why Mothra is still in egg form at the start of "King of the Monsters," and why awakening the older kaiju in "Godzilla x Kong" is a more in-depth process. It also pays homage to the origins of the character in a fun way.
Mothra's story has always been about family
Like the characters in the "Fast and Furious" movies, Mothra cares deeply about family. The 1961 Toho film bearing her name — her first appearance — follows her from egg to infant, then cocoon, and finally to her fully realized winged form. This arc has remained central to the character ever since. Mothra first encountered the King of the Monsters in 1964's "Mothra vs. Godzilla," in which a mother Mothra is killed by Godzilla near the end of the movie. Multiple Mothra eggs then hatch and ultimately avenge their mother's death.
In 1992's "Godzilla vs. Mothra," the Heisei-era iteration of the classic kaiju rivalry, the same life cycle takes place over the course of the film. As one of the only Toho monsters who consistently has children, Mothra ensures a sort of artificial immortality. There's always another egg somewhere waiting to be found and hatched. The unfortunate side effect of that fact, of course, is that Mothra dies far more often than most kaiju.
What's next for Mothra in the MonsterVerse?
Though she dies in many of the films she appears in, Mothra actually survives the ending of "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire." That means that she'll likely come back in the next MonsterVerse entry, which has already been confirmed to be in the works. In May 2024, Legendary Pictures announced that "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings" writer David Callaham will be writing the next Godzilla and Kong team-up movie. It was also announced the Adam Wingard, who's directed the last two MonsterVerse outings, won't be returning to the director's chair.
With names changing up behind the camera, there are a lot of possibilities for what could be coming. Whatever ends up happening, however, Mothra seems like a shoo-in. The trio of her, Godzilla, and Kong is a fun kaiju team, though of course they'll need an equally formidable foe to make the next entry exciting. Wingard previously expressed admiration for "Godzilla vs. Destoroyah," the acclaimed Heisei-era Toho film, and suggested the next MonsterVerse movie could take cues from it. But with Wingard now departing the franchise, there's no telling what's next. Battra, anyone?