Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire smashes box office

There is now a solid proof that the G-Man is gaining popularity in the United States as Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire breaks box office records.

Godzilla x Kong is the newest Legendary film in the Monsterverse, taking place after Godzilla vs. Kong. In it, Godzilla begrudgingly teams up with King Kong and other kaiju to take on the Skar King down in Hollow Earth. The film focuses on King Kong’s backstory but also shows Godzilla’s personality and new strengths.

Despite fans and general audiences alike calling the film “stupid” (in a fun way, of course), it looks like The New Empire has been a titan-sized hit.

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire breaks box office records

It’s now been reported that Godzilla x Kong had a massive opening weekend, earning $194 million worldwide. This even surpassed Dune: Part Two’s opening weekend ($182.5 million), making it the largest opening weekend of 2024. Let’s not note that $100 million of it was from me watching the film throughout the weekend.

Godzilla x Kong is the biggest Godzilla movie so far, earning $80 million domestically alone. This is more than double what Godzilla vs. Kong made, which was $32 million. Godzilla: King of the Monsters, the film before those two, made $48 million on its opening weekend.

Of course, the year is still young, and most movies that have come out haven’t been blockbusters so far (aside from Dune). There is plenty of time for other big movies to beat Godzilla x Kong, but movie fans are pleased with the film bringing people back to theaters after a pretty abysmal last few years.

Is Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire good?

If you ask any Godzilla fan their opinion on the film, you’ll likely hear: “This was the stupidest film I ever saw but I loved it. I’m going to go see it again.”

Godzilla x Kong has a bit of a convoluted plot that feels a bit bloated and unnecessary at times, especially when we have to watch the humans fumble around in Hollow Earth. Still, the plot takes from cannon lore from graphic novels and other Godzilla media, including Godzilla’s long-time fight against Skar King, leaving the evil ape banished in a fiery pit under the earth.

So it’s nothing Godzilla fans aren’t used to.

If you can get past some of the more corny and cringe parts with the humans, you’ll experience some extremely satisfying kaiju fights. It’s more over-the-top than ever, with Kong showing off some new mechanical enhancements and Godzilla absorbing a horrifying amount of atomic energy to become faster and more powerful than ever before.

I found myself laughing at a lot of the chaos and insane action, including Kong throwing pocket sand at Godzilla during an impressive fight and a baby ape being swung around like a baseball bat to knock out other baddies. But I also experienced goosebumps at some of the more intense scenes, like Godzilla roaring into the sky, eyes fierce and glowing pink, and other stunning CGI visuals of kaiju.

This is a great film for Kaiju fans who just want to watch some dumb, awesome action. I recommend it. I saw it twice over the opening weekend and was not disappointed at all.