Monarch: Legacy of Monsters

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters is an American monster television series created by Chris Black and Matt Fraction and produced by Legendary Television. Based on Godzilla by Toho Co., Ltd, it is the sixth installment, the second television series and the prequel in the Monsterverse franchise. Following the events of Godzilla (2014), the ten-episode series follows members of the Monarch organization as they encounter Godzilla and other monsters called Titans, across a half century.

The series stars Anna Sawai, Kiersey Clemons, Ren Watabe, Mari Yamamoto, Anders Holm, Joe Tippett and Elisa Lasowski, alongside Wyatt Russell and Kurt Russell in the shared role of Lee Shaw. Monarch: Legacy of Monsters premiered on Apple TV+ on November 17, 2023, to positive reviews. In April 2024, the series was renewed for a second season.

Premise
In 2015, one year after the re-emergence of Godzilla, half-siblings Cate and Kentaro Randa investigate their missing father Hiroshi's connection to Monarch, the covert organization monitoring giant monsters known as Titans or MUTOs. ("MUTO" is an acronym for "Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism".) Two generations earlier, Bill Randa and Keiko Miura are scientists involved with the early development of Monarch. Former Army officer Lee Shaw becomes a close ally to the Randa family across both time periods.

Main

 * Anna Sawai as Cate Randa: A San Francisco schoolteacher coping with PTSD whose search for her missing father leads her to uncover his involvement with Monarch.
 * Kiersey Clemons as May: A former employee of Applied Experimental Technologies (later Apex Cybernetics) who later escaped to Japan under the alias "May" after discovering that her company was using her code for nefarious means.
 * Ren Watabe as Kentaro: An artist and Cate's half-brother who joins her on a journey to find their mysterious father.
 * Mari Yamamoto as Keiko: A scientist who investigates monsters with Lee Shaw and Bill Randa in the 1950s.
 * Anders Holm as Bill Randa: A cryptozoologist who becomes a leading researcher for Monarch.
 * John Goodman as an older Bill Randa, reprising his role from Kong: Skull Island (2017)
 * Joe Tippett as Tim: An overzealous Monarch office worker who goes into the field to track down the organization's lost documents.
 * Wyatt and Kurt Russell as Lee Shaw: a former U.S. Army colonel who joins Keiko and Bill in their investigations of monsters and subsequently becomes involved with Monarch. Kurt portrays the older version of Shaw, encountered by Cate and Kentaro, while Wyatt plays the younger version, responsible for founding Monarch.
 * Elisa Lasowski as Duvall: Sandra Brody's sister and a skilled Monarch operative partnered with Tim.

Recurring

 * Takehiro Hira as Hiroshi Randa, Keiko's son, Bill's stepson, and Cate and Kentaro's father.
 * Qyoko Kudo as Emiko Randa, Kentaro's mother
 * Christopher Heyerdahl as General Puckett, Shaw's superior officer
 * Mirelly Taylor as Natalia Verdugo, the deputy director of Monarch

Guest

 * Tamlyn Tomita as Caroline Randa, Cate's mother
 * Bruce Baek as Du-Ho, Shaw's old friend and an ally
 * Jess Salgueiro as Dr. Barnes, a Monarch researcher
 * Dominique Tipper as Brenda Holland, a former executive at Applied Experimental Technologies (later Apex Cybernetics)
 * Morgan Dudley as Lyra Mateo, May's sister

Development
Following the success of Godzilla vs. Kong, discussions commenced on ways that the MonsterVerse could be expanded beyond feature films. Legendary proposed a live-action series, and among the potential investors, Apple TV+ expressed immediate interest and negotiated a deal and green-lit the series in January 2022. It is a joint venture between Legendary Television, Safehouse Pictures, and Toho, although Warner Bros. still owns the rights for the MonsterVerse franchise alongside Legendary. Chris Black is creator and showrunner.

In May, Matt Shakman was hired to direct the first two episodes in addition to executive producing. In addition to Black and Matt Fraction, writers include Andrew Colville, Milla Bell-Hart, Amanda Overton, Karl Taro Greenfeld, Mariko Tamaki, and Al Letson. On April 11, 2024, Apple TV+ renewed the series for a second season, with several spinoffs in development.

Casting
In June 2022, Anna Sawai, Ren Watabe, Kiersey Clemons, Joe Tippett, and Elisa Lasowski were cast. In July, Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell were cast, and Mari Yamamoto joined in August. In September, Anders Holm was cast and revealed the title. In September 2023, the teaser trailer revealed John Goodman to reprise his role from Kong: Skull Island (2017) as William "Bill" Randa.

Filming
In July 2022, it was revealed that principal photography had commenced in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Two weeks of filming occurred in Japan in August.

Music
In October 2023, Leopold Ross was confirmed as score composer. The soundtrack was released online by Milan Records on November 17, 2023, with the main titles track released on November 3 as a single.

Marketing
In August 2023, Apple released first look images, now officially titled Monarch: Legacy of Monsters. The teaser and more images were released on September 8, 2023. The first trailer debuted at the 2023 New York Comic Con, and the official poster was revealed. In October 2023, a viral marketing website called "Monarch Unlocked" was launched with some Monarch computer private files.

Critical response
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the series has an approval rating of 89% based on 84 reviews, with an average rating of 6.8/10. The site's consensus reads, "With performances by father–son duo Kurt and Wyatt Russell that work a charm, Monarch adds a welcome wrinkle to the Godzilla legacy by honing its monstrous scope to a very human level." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 68 out of 100, based on 26 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Mike Hale of The New York Times commended the straightforward narrative and visual effects, and noted that Kurt Russell's presence gave it a "nostalgic charm". In Variety, Aramide Tinubu wrote that the series "will likely satisfy the most novice MonsterVerse explorer".

Writing for RogerEbert.com, Brian Tallerico praised the performance of Kurt and Wyatt Russell, but he expressed dissatisfaction with the writing, describing the characters as "underdeveloped", the plot as lacking depth, and the dialogue as too lengthy.