When it comes to movie stars, they don’t get much bigger than Kong. King Kong kicked off the giant monster genre in 1933 with the original groundbreaking film and nearly 100 years later, Kong remains one of cinema's biggest stars, co-leading Legendary’s MonsterVerse alongside Godzilla. With the release of Godzilla x Kong: Supernova in 2027, Kong’s legacy remains strong. If you’re ready to explore Kong’s cinematic journey, check out our ultimate King Kong watch order guide.

How to watch King Kong in release order

• King Kong (1933 film)
• Son of Kong (1933 film)
• King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962 film)
• The King Kong Show (1966-1967 animated series)
• King Kong Escapes (1967 film)
• King Kong (1976 film)
• King Kong Lives (1986 film)
• The Mighty Kong (1998 animated film)
• Kong: The Animated Series (2001-2002 animated series)
• King Kong (2005 film)
• Kong: King of the Apes (2016-2018 animated series)
• Kong: Skull Island (2017 film)
• Godzilla vs. Kong (2021 film)
• Skull Island (2023 animated series)
• Monarch: Legacy of Monsters (2023-ongoing live-action series)
• Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024 film)
• Godzilla x Kong: Supernova (2027 film)

King Kong has starred in numerous films and television shows over the years, with three of them having exactly the same name. The big ape made his debut in 1933’s King Kong, which has inspired numerous remakes such as Dino De Laurentiis’s 1976 film (also called King Kong) and Peter Jackson’s 2005 epic... which is also called King Kong. There have also been sequels, and quite a few outings with Godzilla. Don’t worry, our next section of the guide breaks down how each of these movies are connected. In the meantime, if you want to watch King Kong in order, here’s how to do it.

How to watch King Kong in chronological order

There are quite a few King Kong movies and television shows, and not all of them are connected. This section of the guide breaks down the various universes within the Kong franchise and how to watch them in order. Think of it as a Kong multiverse atlas.

RKO’s Kong

• King Kong (1933 film)
• Son of Kong (1933 film)

The original version of the character. This incarnation of Kong was found on Skull Island by Carl Denham’s film crew, taken to New York City, kidnapped Ann Darrow, and met his end after falling from the Empire State Building. A sequel, Son of Kong, was rushed into production, which found filmmaker Carl Denham returning to Skull Island and meeting Kong’s son, a young albino ape named Kiko, also referred to as Little Kong. Song of Kong ends with Skull Island sinking into the ocean.

It’s worth noting that the name Skull Island comes from promotional material and it’s never referred to as such in the movie. Throughout Son of Kong, Denham refers to it as Kong Island. 

Toho’s Kong

• King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962 film)
• King Kong Escapes (1967 film)

This version of Kong was introduced in King Kong vs. Godzilla. Kong is found on Faro Island by a group of a television advertising executives, taken to Japan, and fights Godzilla. This version doesn’t have Ann Darrow, but Kong does kidnap a girl named Fumiko and takes her to the top of Tokyo’s National Diet Building.

King Kong Escapes doesn’t entirely match the continuity of King Kong vs. Godzilla, but that was normal for monster films of that era. This time Kong is living on Mondo Island and is far smaller than he was in the previous film. This has caused some fans to speculate that this is either a different Kong or that the film is set in an alternate universe. This film borrowed numerous elements from the 1966 King Kong Show, including the villain Dr. Who (yes, you read that correctly).

Dino De Laurentiis’s Kong

• King Kong (1976 film)
• King Kong Lives (1986 film)

The 1976 King Kong film is a remake of the original 1933 movie with certain plot elements updated to reflect the 1970s. Filmmaker Carl Denham is replaced by an oil tycoon named Fred Wilson, who travels to Skull Island (unnamed in the film) to find oil. When he finds Kong, he decides to take him back to New York City as an advertising mascot. From there the rest of the story plays out as you expect. Kong escapes, grabs a woman named Dwan (not a misspelling), and takes her to the top of the Twin Towers.

Kong seemingly dies after being shot by helicopters, but the 1986 film King Kong Lives reveals that he slipped into a coma. Kong recovers after receiving an artificial heart and escapes. He soon finds a female Kong, the two mate, and a baby Kong is born, but not before Kong is killed by military gunfire. 

Peter Jackson’s Kong

• King Kong (2005 film)

Peter Jackson’s King Kong is a remake of the 1933 film with a longer runtime to flesh out the story. The film is set in 1933 in order to make it more faithful to the original film. It’s worth noting that this film is the first time Skull Island is named outside of merchandise tie-in material and promotional items.

The MonsterVerse

• Kong: Skull Island (2017 film)
• Skull Island (2023 animated series)
• Monarch: Legacy of Monsters (2023-ongoing live-action series)
• Godzilla vs. Kong (2021 film)
• Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024 film)
• Godzilla x Kong: Supernova (2027 film)

The MonsterVerse is Legendary Pictures’ cinematic universe of monster films, which began with the 2014 Godzilla film. Kong was introduced in Kong: Skull Island before co-headlining two films with Godzilla and appearing in the Monarch: Legacy of Monsters streaming series.

The following is a chronological watch list of Kong’s appearances in the MonsterVerse. Please note, this only covers MonsterVerse projects that Kong appears in, which is why the 2014 Godzilla film is absent. For more on the MonsterVerse, check out our guide.

A brief index of other Kong projects

• The King Kong Show (1966-1967 animated series) – An animated series where Kong travels with a family of adventurers, helping them when they run into supervillains and other oddities. Elements from this series were adapted in the 1967 film King Kong Escapes.
• The Mighty Kong (1998 animated film) – A direct-to-video animated musical that adapts the 1933 King Kong movie. The animation is crude, and Kong survives his Empire State Building fall, but despite the cheesiness, the film has its charm.
• Kong: The Animated Series (2001-2002 animated series) – Animated series where Kong shared DNA with a teenage boy named Jason. Using their psychic link, Jason could control Kong’s movements, allowing the ape to act as a guardian beast. Yeah, it was strange.
• Kong: King of the Apes (2016-2018 animated series) – Netflix animated series set in 2050. Kong and a group of kids work together to take down a mad scientist.

Are all the King Kong films connected?

No, not all the King Kong films are connected. The King Kong film franchise isn’t like Star Wars or Lord of the Rings where the movies are part of a larger storyline. Most of the Kong films are standalone projects set in their own universe. There are exceptions, like the MonsterVerse franchise and a few sequels. For a deeper breakdown on the Kong multiverse, please refer to the chronological section of this guide.

Is King Kong in the same universe as Godzilla?

Sometimes.

Both Godzilla and King Kong have multiple incarnations set in different continuities. In other words, there is multiverse of Godzillas and Kongs. Sometimes they share the same universe, and sometimes they don’t.

As of this writing, there are two versions of Godzilla and Kong that are set in the same continuity. The Toho version of Kong (seen in King Kong vs. Godzilla and King Kong Escapes) is part of Godzilla’s Showa era continuity. The MonsterVerse version of King Kong (seen in Godzilla vs. Kong and various other projects) is in the same universe as the modern version of Godzilla.

All other versions of King Kong live in a world without Godzilla…as far as we know. For more on Godzilla’s various continuities, check out this guide.

How big is King Kong?

King Kong’s size is inconsistent from film to film. It’s not even consistent within some of the individual movies, with Kong’s size changing depending on the scene, and what action he needs to perform. However, each film has its own baseline size (even if they don’t stick to it in every scene). It would be too exhaustive to track Kong’s size in EVERY television and film project, but this list covers his most important media appearances.

• King Kong (1933) – 24 feet tall
• King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962) – 148 feet tall
• King Kong (1976) – 55 feet tall
• King Kong Lives (1986) – 60 feet tall
• King Kong (2005) – 25 feet tall
• Kong: Skull Island (2017) – 104 feet tall
• Godzilla vs. Kong (2021) – 337 feet tall
• Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024) – 337 feet tall
  
  

Who wins in King Kong vs. Godzilla?

King Kong beats Godzilla in the 1962 film King Kong vs. Godzilla. The two titans have a lengthy battle which ends with them both rolling into the sea. Seconds later Kong emerges, with the human onlookers remarking that Godzilla has been defeated. Godzilla would return in other Showa era films, but in terms of this battle, Kong was the clear winner.

There is a longstanding urban myth that Godzilla won the battle in the Japanese version of the film, while Kong was the victor in the American dub. Before the internet, it was easy for rumors like this to take on a life of their own. Today it’s easy to watch both versions of the film, and we can confirm that Kong wins in all versions.

Who wins in Godzilla vs. Kong?

Godzilla beats King Kong in the 2021 film Godzilla vs. Kong. The two monsters have their final showdown in Hong Kong, and despite Kong yielding a giant axe, Godzilla overpowers him. Godzilla pins Kong down and prepares to finish the creature off with his atomic breath before deciding to spare him. Neither monster has much time to recover, as they’re forced to team up against Mechagodzilla.

Is King Kong in the public domain?

Yes and no. In short, Kong as a character is partially in the public domain, but his movies aren’t. Confused? Don’t feel bad, it’s a very complicated matter that has confused studio heads and lawyers.

As it stands now Universal Pictures owns the rights to the character, story, and name, but some elements of the character and his story are in the public domain. Here’s how it happened…

Director Merian C. Cooper came up with the idea for King Kong and developed the original 1933 film for RKO Pictures. A novelization was published in 1932 shortly before the film’s release. Cooper and RKO both thought they owned the full rights to the character. This resulted in several legal battles, which eventually resulted in Merian C. Cooper’s estate regaining the rights to the character, while RKO retained the rights to the original film. Cooper’s estate then sold their rights to Universal Pictures in 1976.

To complicate matters further, it turned out that the original 1932 novelization never had its copyright renewed, and it was now in the public domain. Turner Broadcasting purchased RKO’s catalog, which included the original King Kong, in 1987. Time Warner (Warner Bros. parent company) purchased Turner Broadcasting in 1996, which means WB owns the original Kong film.

This means Universal Pictures and Warner Bros. are both able to make Kong films. Oh, and so can various other studios if they’re within the parameters of the aspects of the character in public domain (no copying scenes or designs from previous films).

Where can I watch King Kong?

You don’t need to travel to Skull Island to see King Kong. You just need a few streaming services. Kong: Skull Island and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire can be streamed on HBO Max (oddly enough, Godzilla vs Kong is currently missing). The 1976 King Kong film and its sequel King Kong Lives are available to watch for free on Pluto TV.

The original 1933 film, its sequel Son of Kong, the original King Kong vs. Godzilla film, King Kong Escapes, and Peter Jackson’s 2005 remake are not currently on any streaming services. However, they can be rented or purchased digitally on a variety of video-on-demand platforms, including Amazon Prime Video, Fandango at Home, and Apple TV. Keep in mind, the availability of these films may change as streaming licenses expire and new deals are made.

Whichever giant monster is your favorite, Popverse has you covered. We have a guide to Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire's ending (and what it means for the broader MonsterVerse), as well as watch orders for both Legendary's MonsterVerse and Godzilla's overall movies, as well as why Godzilla Minus One left theaters early (and why New Empire could be to blame!), and if you're a Popverse premium member, a New York Comic Con-exclusive interview with the cast and crew of Legendary's kaiju-hunting drama Monarch: Legacy of Monsters.