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Following the box office and streaming success of ''Godzilla vs. Kong'' during the [[Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cinema|COVID-19 pandemic]], Legendary announced a sequel in March 2022 and that filming would commence later that year. In May 2022, it was announced that Wingard would return to direct and Stevens had been cast as a lead. Filming began in July 2022 in the [[Gold Coast, Australia]], and finished in November 2022.
''Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire'' premiered at [[Grauman's Chinese Theatre]] on March 25, 2024, and was released in the United States on March 29. The film received mixed reviews from critics, with many comparing it unfavorably to ''[[Godzilla Minus One]]'', which had been released four months prior. It became a box office success grossing over {{USD|568.7 million|long=no}} worldwide against a production budget of {{USD|135–150 million|long=no}}, becoming the [[2024 in film|fifth-highest-grossing film of 2024]], the highest-grossing film of the Monsterverse, as well as in the ''Godzilla'' and ''King Kong'' franchises. A sequel is set to be released on March 26, 2027.
==Plot==
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''Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire'' received mixed reviews from critics.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Malhotra |first=Rahul |date=April 2, 2024 |title=''Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire'' Destroys Kaiju-Sized Global Box Office Milestone in Less Than a Week |url=https://collider.com/godzilla-x-kong-new-empire-global-box-office-202-million/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240403203746/https://collider.com/godzilla-x-kong-new-empire-global-box-office-202-million/ |archive-date=April 3, 2024 |access-date=April 3, 2024 |website=[[Collider (website)|Collider]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Fuster |first=Jeremy |date=March 29, 2024 |title=''Godzilla x Kong'' Roars to $10 Million From Thursday Previews |url=https://www.thewrap.com/godzilla-x-kong-thursday-previews/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240330012757/https://www.thewrap.com/godzilla-x-kong-thursday-previews/ |archive-date=March 30, 2024 |access-date=April 28, 2024 |website=[[TheWrap]] |language=en-US}}</ref> {{Rotten Tomatoes prose|54|5.6|247|Come to ''Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire'' for the sheer monster-mashing spectacle -- and stay for that too, because the movie doesn't have much else to offer.|access-date=May 29, 2024|ref=y}} {{Metacritic film prose|47|51|ref=yes|access-date=March 29, 2024}} Audiences polled by [[CinemaScore]] gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale, while [[PostTrak]] reported 96% of audience members said the film "met or exceeded their expectations."<ref name="opening" />
Several critics compared the film unfavorably to Toho's ''Godzilla Minus One'', which had been released in the United States in December 2023.{{efn|Attributed to multiple references:<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" /><ref name="SCJ">{{Cite web |last=Miller |first=Bruce |date=April 4, 2024 |title=REVIEW: ''Godzilla x Kong'' assembles an ''Oppenheimer'''s worth of monsters |url=https://siouxcityjournal.com/life-entertainment/local/movies-tv/godzilla-x-kong-monsters-review-rebecca-hall-dan-stevens/article_c50ccba0-f1da-11ee-a712-031acfa0b955.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240521215351/https://siouxcityjournal.com/life-entertainment/local/movies-tv/godzilla-x-kong-monsters-review-rebecca-hall-dan-stevens/article_c50ccba0-f1da-11ee-a712-031acfa0b955.html |archive-date=May 21, 2024 |access-date=May 21, 2024 |website=[[Sioux City Journal]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Grierson |first=Tim |date=March 29, 2024 |title=''Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire'': Review |url=https://www.screendaily.com/godzilla-x-kong-the-new-empire-review/5191966.article |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240331155531/https://www.screendaily.com/godzilla-x-kong-the-new-empire-review/5191966.article |archive-date=March 31, 2024 |access-date=April 10, 2024 |website=[[Screen International]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=March 29, 2024 |title=''Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire'' review: flimsy monster mash |url=https://www.digitaltrends.com/movies/godzilla-kong-new-empire-movie-review/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240408022523/https://www.digitaltrends.com/movies/godzilla-kong-new-empire-movie-review/ |archive-date=April 8, 2024 |access-date=April 10, 2024 |website=[[Digital Trends]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Luxford |first=Victoria |date=April 5, 2024 |title=''Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire'' is a low IQ addition to a sagging franchise |url=https://www.cityam.com/godzilla-x-kong-the-new-empire-is-a-low-iq-addition-to-a-sagging-franchise/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240406011830/https://www.cityam.com/godzilla-x-kong-the-new-empire-is-a-low-iq-addition-to-a-sagging-franchise/ |archive-date=April 6, 2024 |access-date=April 10, 2024 |website=[[City A.M.]] |language=en-GB}}</ref>}} [[Owen Gleiberman]] of ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' found ''Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire'' mediocre, likening it more to a [[superhero film]], but felt that it was misfortunate that the film was released too soon after ''Godzilla Minus One'', comparing that film with "lyrical majesty" and ''Godzilla x Kong'' more like a "product", but admitted that the film delivers on the monster battles, praising the Rome battle.<ref name=":2">{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2024/film/reviews/godzilla-x-kong-the-new-empire-review-1235953545/|title='Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire' Review: A Godzilla Spectacle Minus One Thing: A Reason to Exist|first=Owen|last=Gleiberman|work=Variety|date=March 28, 2024|access-date=March 29, 2024|url-status=live|archive-date=March 29, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240329131135/https://variety.com/2024/film/reviews/godzilla-x-kong-the-new-empire-review-1235953545/}}</ref> Pete Hammond from ''[[Deadline Hollywood]]'' likened the scenes with the Ape tribe to ''[[Planet of the Apes]]'' and noted that Godzilla, despite getting top billing and referenced repeatedly in the film, mostly plays a supporting role. He felt the human characters were the same "one dimensional caricatures" typically found in monster films, but admitted that they had a "nice rapport" regardless. Like Gleiberman, Hammond compared the film to ''Godzilla Minus One'', calling it "far more impressive" than ''Godzilla x Kong'' and suggested that Legendary hire that film's team next.<ref name=":3">{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2024/03/godzilla-x-kong-the-new-empire-review-the-titans-of-the-monsterverse-join-forces-against-evil-but-it-is-all-still-just-more-of-the-same-stomp-fest-1235870412/|title='Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire' Review: The Titans Of The Monsterverse Join Forces Against Evil But It Is All Still Just More Of The Same Stomp Fest|first=Pete|last=Hammond|work=Deadline|date=March 28, 2024|access-date=March 29, 2024|url-status=live|archive-date=March 29, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240329132436/https://deadline.com/2024/03/godzilla-x-kong-the-new-empire-review-the-titans-of-the-monsterverse-join-forces-against-evil-but-it-is-all-still-just-more-of-the-same-stomp-fest-1235870412/}}</ref> [[James Berardinelli]] also expressed dissatisfaction for the film and suggested that ''Godzilla Minus One'' writer-director [[Takashi Yamazaki]] make the next Monsterverse film.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Berardinelli |first=James |author-link=James Berardinelli |date=March 29, 2024 |title=''Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire'' |url=https://www.reelviews.net/reelviews/godzilla-x-kong-the-new-empire |access-date=April 2, 2024 |website=Reelviews Movie Reviews |language=en |archive-date=April 3, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240403003436/https://www.reelviews.net/reelviews/godzilla-x-kong-the-new-empire |url-status=live }}</ref> The ''[[Sioux City Journal]]'' criticized the film's visual effects as inferior to those in ''Godzilla Minus One''.<ref name="SCJ"/>
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