The MonsterVerse has become a popular shared universe franchise running alongside the likes of Marvel and DC. Having started back in 2014 with the Godzillareboot film, the MonsterVerse expanded into two separate film franchises focused on Godzilla and Kong, before bringing the two iconic Kaiju (or “Titans”) together for the 2021 crossover film, Godzilla vs. Kong. That crossover is on its way to being an entire trilogy (when Godzilla x Kong: Supernovais released in March), while the MonsterVerse universe has successfully expanded into television via the Apple TV series Monarch: Legacy of Monsters.
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Tracking the history of the titular scientific/military organization that researches (and, if need be, contains) the Titans scattered across Earth, Monarch has been embraced by both the MonsterVerse fandom and mainstream viewers attracted to the show’s sci-fi lore. However, the movie-sized budget for the show has kept it on the bubble between renewal and cancellation, and fans have been left hanging for months now, wondering if the show will continue into Season 3.
Now, we know.
Monarch: Legacy of MonstersSeason 3 Will Be A Different Kind of Show
Monarch: Legacy of Monstershas been confirmed to be returning for Season 3 – with a catch. Apparently, Season 3 will “take the show in a new direction, featuring new Titans from Legendary’s Monsterverse.”
A whole new creative team is being brought in to replace showrunner/executive producer Chris Black and the writing team. No specific details on whether producers like comic book writer Matt Fraction (Hawkeye) are still involved. Executive producers on previous seasons include Joby Harold and Tory Tunnell from Safehouse Pictures; Hiro Matsuoka and Takemasa Arita from Toho, Chris Black, Jen Roskind, Matt Shakman (Fantastic Four: First Steps), Lawrence Trilling, and Andrew Colville.
In the first two seasons of Monarch, we met Cate Randa (Shogun’s Anna Sawai), the granddaughter of Bill Randa (John Goodman / Anders Holm), the founder of Monarch, who died discovering Kong and his home turf, Skull Island. Cate was a schoolteacher directly affected (and traumatized) by the events of Godzilla’s emergence on “G-Day.” As Cate gets drawn back into Monarch when her father, Hiroshi, vanishes, Bill Randa’s research leads them on a global hunt that leads to several Titan encounters, with Godzilla, Kong, and several other Titans from Toho lore.
However, the series’ biggest sci-fi twist was revealed near the end of Season 1, within the flashback storyline about Bill’s early days founding Monarch with his colleagues Dr. Keiko Miura (Mari Yamamoto), Hiroshi’s mother, and Col. Lee Shaw (played by both Kurt and Wyatt Russell), the first military liaison to Monarch.
Bill, Keiko, and Lee were the first to uncover the Hollow Earth theory that explains where the Titans live and how they move across Earth. Part of that discovery was learning about “Axis Mundi,” the junction point between Earth’s surface and Hollow Earth, which the Titans use as a Waystation moving between worlds. Both Lee Shaw and Keiko Miura end up stranded in Axis Mundi – only to learn that the realm experiences extreme time distillation: hours in the strange realm equal years on Earth. When Lee and Keiko each return to the surface world, they find that decades have passed, Monarch has thrived, but their lives as they knew them have passed by.
Monarchhas always been filling in the backstory of the MonsterVerse movies; Season 2 ended by setting up teases for events of Godzilla vs. Kong, like Apex Cybernetics obtaining the necessary algorithms and data that will allow them to build Mechagodzilla. It’ll be interesting to see if Season 3 abandons the backfilling approach as one of its changes, and what new concept the show explores instead.
Monarch “Classic” Will Still Continue
For longtime fans of Monarch, fear not: the original concept for the series will still continue on into an upcoming spinoff miniseries, Birdwatcher, centered around Wyatt Russell’s Lee Shaw. It will explore a mission Shaw takes on after returning from Axis Mundi (1962-1982). With the Cold War fully in swing by 1984, Monarch learns that the Soviets are hiding a Titan as a potential WMD, and Col. Shaw sets out to deal with the issue. The series will also feature Millie Brady, Pilou Asbaek, Corey Stoll, Ralph Ineson, Nyasha Hatendi, Connie Nielsen and Stana Katic.
Both Monarch: Legacy of MonstersSeason 3 and Birdwatcherare in development with no confirmed premiere dates. You can stream the TV series on Apple TV; MonsterVerse movies can be streamed on HBO Max. What changes are you hoping the franchise will make (if any)?
Monarch: Legacy of Monsters Star Mari Yamamoto Breaks Down Keiko’s Journey, Monster Deep Cuts & Rodan’s Return [Exclusive]
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