Godzilla x Kong ending explained

It’s the ultimate titan showdown… of sorts. Here’s everything you need to know about the ending of Godzilla x Kong, explained.

In the red corner, there’s a giant mythical lizard who can somehow absorb nuclear energy and use it as a weapon. In the blue corner, there’s a giant ape who was briefly captured for entertainment purposes but managed to connect to humankind. Oh, wait, they’re not actually fighting this time around — but something else in Godzilla x Kong.

In the spirit of a monster Avengers, Kong and Godzilla are teaming up to fight an even bigger evil that has made itself known in Hollow Earth. Much like a brand would use an x to announce a product partnership with an Instagram influencer, these two have been stuck together in a scenario where they typically wouldn’t been seen within an inch of the other.

Our review described the movie as “Hollywood might have a handle on Kong, but Godzilla is clearly best left to Toho.” But what about its closing moments? Here’s everything you need to know about Godzilla x Kong ending, explained. Warning — spoilers ahead!

How does Godzilla x Kong end?

Warner Bros.

Picking up where the events of Godzilla vs. Kong left off, Godzilla is trawling the surface world while Kong has been relocated to Hollow Earth, with a team dispatched there to watch him around the clock. Dr. Ilene Andrews (Rebecca Hall) and adopted daughter Jia (Kaylee Hottle) are still caught up in the thick of it, with Jia struggling to adjust to modern society. It’s not long before Ilene’s team are getting weird readings — destorying the outpost — which Jia echoes in drawings she does subconsciously. The team work out that Godzilla is being drawn to something deeper by the strange vibrations, while Kong largely remains unaware.

Ilene turns to Bernie (Brian Tyree Henry) for help, taking him to her base where it’s decided that a small team need to be dispatched to Hollow Earth for a closer look. Ilene, Jia, Bernie, and vet Trapper (Dan Stevens) stumble upon a hidden Iwi tribe, who have been calling the surface world for help. Meanwhile, Kong enters an undiscovered realm in Hollow Earth and befriends mini-Kong Suko. In turn, Suko leads Kong to the Skar King, intent on conquering the rest of the planet. Skar unleashes the ice-breathing Shimo on Kong by controlling the beast with pain, leaving him with life-threatening frostbite.

Mothra and Shimo enter the chat

Warner Bros.

While the Iwi show Ilene and Jia their prophecy — the belief that an Iwi stranger will awaken Godzilla ally Mothra to help take down Skar — Kong and Suko limp to the Iwi’s cordened-off safe zone for help. While Trapper has the idea of fitting Kong with a bionic arm prototype that had been left at the outpost, the rest of the team work out that Godzilla needs to be drawn into Hollow Earth to work alongside Kong and defeat Skar. This goes against the precedent

As the prophecy forsaw, Jia is able to awaken Mothra, leaving with Kong to try and entice Godzilla to Hollow Earth. After a bust-up in Cairo, Mothra’s appearance seals the deal, meeting Skar and Shimo ready for a final showdown. Bernie manages to change the gravitational force of the Iwi territory through their pyramids, propelling the four titans to the surface world — Rio de Janeiro, to be precise. Sure enough, Shimo threatens to freeze the city over, leaving Kong and Godzilla to take care of business. Sure enough, that’s exactly what they do, with Suko and Kong able to destroy the shard that is keeping Shimo imprisoned. With Skar eliminated, Kong returns to the apes victorious, and allyship in Shimo and Suko. Jia tells Ilene that home is wherever she is, not feeling compelled to stay with the Iwi tribe.

Godzilla x Kong: A New Empire hits theaters on March 29. Find out how to get the themed Call of Duty bundle, who the villain is this time around, how to stream Godzilla Minus One, and find out how many Godzilla movies there are. Check out even more movies to stream this month as well.