Every King Kong Movie (In Chronological Order)

King Kong has been remade, reimagined, animated, paired with Godzilla and even given a mechanical double. The result is a film history that spans more than 90 years but several separate continuities.

This is the complete release-order list of the 13 feature-length films officially centered on King Kong or Kong through August 9, 2026. It includes 10 live-action films and three animated features. Because most of these movies are not connected, release order is the clearest way to follow Kong’s evolution from stop-motion horror icon to MonsterVerse Titan.

#	Preview	Product	Price
1		Mezco King Kong of Skull Island 7" Action Figure	$49.99	Buy on Amazon

King Kong movies in release order

The dates below use the earliest significant release listed in the available records. Where a film had different Japanese, international or U.S. release dates, those differences are noted.

1. King Kong (1933)

Release: March 2, 1933, New York premiere; April 7, 1933, general U.S. release
Directors: Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack
Distributor: RKO Radio Pictures

#1 Best Overall

Mezco King Kong of Skull Island 7" Action Figure

• This figure from Mezco Toyz celebrates King Kong, the monstrous anthropoid that ruled Skull Island and terrorized New York in 1932. King Kong stands 7 inches tall and features 28 points of articulation for giant ape smashing action. The King Kong figure comes loaded with accessories, including two (2) interchangeable head portraits, five (5) interchangeable hands, one (1) set of shackles with real chains, and one (1) scaled Ann Darrow figurine. Comes packaged in a collector-friendly window box,

$49.99

Buy on Amazon

The original King Kong established nearly every image associated with the character: the mysterious island, the giant ape, the expedition that captures him and the spectacular New York climax. Kong is brought from Skull Island to be exhibited as a wonder, but the attempt to turn a living creature into entertainment ends with his escape and death atop the Empire State Building.

Its lasting importance is not only the character. Willis O’Brien’s stop-motion animation gave Kong physical presence and personality at a time when special effects were still largely mechanical or theatrical. The film became a landmark in effects-driven filmmaking and the foundation for every later version.

Read the AFI Catalog entry for King Kong.

2. The Son of Kong (1933)

Release: December 22, 1933
Director: Ernest B. Schoedsack
Distributor: RKO Radio Pictures

Released less than a year after the original, The Son of Kong follows filmmaker Carl Denham and Captain Englehorn after the disastrous Skull Island expedition. They return to the island and encounter a much smaller, unusually gentle white ape. The character is called “Little Kong” in the film, rather than being presented as the same Kong who died in New York.

The sequel is lighter and more adventure-oriented than its predecessor. It is also the only film in the original live-action cycle to make Kong’s family central to the story. Although it directly follows the 1933 film, it did not launch a continuing series; Kong’s next major screen appearance would come nearly three decades later in a different continuity.

3. King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962)

Release: August 11, 1962, Japan; June 26, 1963, United States
Director: Ishirō Honda
Production: Toho

This Japanese production brought Kong into conflict with Toho’s Godzilla. The story is not a sequel to The Son of Kong; it uses a separately licensed version of Kong and places him in a comic, satirical battle involving pharmaceutical executives, television publicity and competing attempts to exploit giant monsters.

The film is especially notable for its practical effects and its very different interpretation of Kong. He is smaller relative to his surroundings than in later versions and is given fantastical abilities, including the capacity to draw strength from electricity. The Japanese and U.S. releases are not identical: the American version was re-edited and includes newly created material framing the events for U.S. audiences.

See Toho Kingdom’s film information and Godzilla.com’s official filmography entry.

4. King Kong Escapes (1967)

Release: July 22, 1967, Japan; June 19, 1968, United States
Director: Ishirō Honda
Production: Toho, in association with Rankin/Bass

King Kong Escapes is another Toho Kong adventure, but it is generally treated as a standalone story rather than a direct continuation of King Kong vs. Godzilla. This time Kong becomes entangled in a plot involving the villainous Doctor Who, the underwater base of Madame X and a mechanical duplicate called Mechani-Kong.

The film is built around the kind of imaginative monster spectacle associated with 1960s Toho: Kong fights the robotic Mechani-Kong, encounters the dinosaur-like Gorosaurus and battles a giant sea serpent. It is best approached as a separate Japanese interpretation of the character, not as chapter two of the 1962 crossover.

5. King Kong (1976)

Release: December 17, 1976, United States and Canada
Director: John Guillermin
Starring: Jeff Bridges and Jessica Lange
Distributor: Paramount Pictures

The first major American remake modernized the premise for the 1970s. Instead of a Depression-era film crew searching for a lost island, the expedition is organized around oil exploration. The story still moves from an isolated island to a major American city, but the climax takes place on the World Trade Center rather than the Empire State Building.

The production’s Kong was created through a combination of practical effects, full-size mechanisms and performer Rick Baker’s ape suit. The film also changes the emotional emphasis of the original, presenting Kong less as a frightening prehistoric force and more as a tragic, intelligent creature caught between exploitation and captivity.

Paramount provides a production page for the 1976 King Kong.

6. King Kong Lives (1986)

Release: December 19, 1986
Director: John Guillermin
Starring: Linda Hamilton and Brian Kerwin

King Kong Lives follows directly from the 1976 remake. Its central premise is that Kong survived his fall from the World Trade Center. After years in a coma, he needs an artificial heart, and the scientists treating him search for a female giant ape whose blood type can help save him.

The film expands the 1976 continuity rather than restarting it. Kong is transported from New York to a research facility and later escapes with the female ape, Lady Kong. Some international markets released the movie under the title King Kong 2, a name that makes its sequel status more explicit.

Its direct connection to the 1976 film is important: neither movie is linked to the 1933 original’s continuity, and the 1986 story is not a bridge to the 2005 remake.

7. The Mighty Kong (1998)

Release: May 29, 1998, limited Los Angeles theatrical release; June 16, 1998, VHS release
Format: Animated musical
Director: Art Scott
Voices: Dudley Moore and Jodi Benson

The Mighty Kong is an animated musical retelling of the original Kong story. It follows the familiar journey to Skull Island and the capture of Kong, but its songs, brighter tone and family-oriented presentation distinguish it from the darker live-action films.

It is often described as a direct-to-video production because home video was its primary release route. However, it had a limited theatrical release in Los Angeles before arriving on VHS. It is a remake in animated form, not a sequel to King Kong Lives.

8. Kong: King of Atlantis (2005)

Release: October 24, 2005, United Kingdom; November 22, 2005, United States
Format: Animated direct-to-video feature

Kong: King of Atlantis is connected to Kong: The Animated Series, not to Peter Jackson’s live-action film released in the same year. The feature-length story sends the animated Kong into an adventure involving the lost civilization of Atlantis.

Its position in the release list can cause confusion because it arrived only weeks before Jackson’s King Kong. The shared name reflects the character’s long-running franchise identity, not a shared storyline or production universe.

9. King Kong (2005)

Release: December 5, 2005, New York world premiere; December 14, 2005, U.S. release
Director: Peter Jackson
Starring: Naomi Watts, Jack Black, Adrien Brody and Andy Serkis
Distributor: Universal Pictures

Peter Jackson’s film returns to the 1933 setting and period, but it is a new remake rather than a continuation. The story again follows a struggling filmmaker who takes a crew to Skull Island, discovers Kong and brings him to New York. Jackson expands the expedition, the island’s creatures and Kong’s relationship with Ann Darrow into a much longer adventure.

Andy Serkis performed Kong through motion capture, while digital effects created the ape and the film’s extensive prehistoric environments. The result combines the structure of the original with modern visual effects and a more developed portrait of Kong as an individual animal.

The film is separate from both the 1976 version and the animated features released around it. Universal lists the film through its official home-entertainment page.

10. Kong: Return to the Jungle (2006)

Release: 2006
Format: Animated direct-to-video feature

This follow-up belongs to the same animated continuity as Kong: King of Atlantis and Kong: The Animated Series. It is not a sequel to Peter Jackson’s King Kong, despite arriving one year later and using the Kong name prominently.

As its title suggests, the story returns Kong to a jungle-centered adventure. Its direct-to-video format and connection to a television cartoon make it a different kind of franchise entry from the major theatrical remakes.

11. Kong: Skull Island (2017)

Release: March 10, 2017
Director: Jordan Vogt-Roberts
Starring: Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, Brie Larson and John C. Reilly
Production: Legendary Pictures
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures

Kong: Skull Island is a reboot and an origin-style reimagining. Set primarily in 1973, it follows a military and scientific expedition into an uncharted region of Skull Island, where its members encounter Kong and a hostile ecosystem of giant creatures.

Unlike the 1933, 1976 and 2005 films, it does not repeat the plot of a filmmaker capturing Kong and displaying him in New York. Kong remains on Skull Island, where he is presented as the island’s protector and as one of the ancient giant beings later known as Titans.

This is the first Kong film in Legendary’s MonsterVerse. It shares continuity with Godzilla (2014), although that film does not feature Kong directly. Legendary’s official film page identifies the movie’s place in that modern franchise.

12. Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)

Release: March 24, 2021, international release; March 31, 2021, United States
Director: Adam Wingard
Production: Legendary Pictures
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures

The MonsterVerse brings its two headline Titans together in Godzilla vs. Kong. Kong is moved from Skull Island as humans search for a new home and a way to reach the Hollow Earth. Godzilla, meanwhile, is attacking facilities associated with the technology company Apex.

The film follows the MonsterVerse continuity established by Godzilla, Kong: Skull Island and Godzilla: King of the Monsters. It is not connected to the 1962 Toho crossover, despite the similar premise and title. The U.S. release also had an unusual distribution arrangement: Warner Bros. opened it in theaters and on HBO Max simultaneously during its initial 2021 release.

13. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024)

Release: March 27, 2024, international releases; March 29, 2024, United States
Director: Adam Wingard
Production: Legendary Pictures
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is a direct continuation of Godzilla vs. Kong. Rather than centering on another surface-world hunt for Kong, it moves much of his story into the Hollow Earth, where he discovers other giant apes and confronts the tyrannical Skar King.

The film also introduces Shimo and develops the partnership between Kong and Godzilla. Kong receives new equipment and a more sustained character arc as he searches for belonging and a place among his own kind.

The official movie site and Godzilla.com’s release announcement document the film’s release and MonsterVerse setting.

MonsterVerse chronological order

If you only want the modern shared universe, the Kong-centered viewing order is straightforward:

1. Kong: Skull Island (2017), set primarily in 1973
2. Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)
3. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024)

For the complete MonsterVerse film chronology, add Godzilla (2014) before Kong: Skull Island, followed by Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) between Kong: Skull Island and Godzilla vs. Kong. Those two films are part of the shared universe but are not Kong-centered movies.

Godzilla x Kong: Supernova is scheduled for theatrical release on March 26, 2027. It is therefore not included among the released films in this list as of August 9, 2026.

How many King Kong movies are there?

Using the broad franchise definition applied here, there are 13 released feature-length films officially centered on King Kong or Kong through August 9, 2026: 10 live-action movies and three animated films.

The answer is sometimes given as six because that count includes only the major early live-action films and omits animation, or because it stops before the MonsterVerse. A narrower count can be useful for a specific continuity, but it should not be confused with the complete released-film total.

Which King Kong movies are connected?

The most important distinction is between a remake and a reboot. The 1976 and 2005 films retell the basic 1933 premise in different periods and styles. Kong: Skull Island, by contrast, creates a new MonsterVerse history for Kong and does not remake the original movie’s plot.

FAQ

What is the correct order to watch the King Kong movies?

For the complete franchise, watch them by release date: King Kong (1933), The Son of Kong (1933), King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962), King Kong Escapes (1967), King Kong (1976), King Kong Lives (1986), The Mighty Kong (1998), Kong: King of Atlantis (2005), King Kong (2005), Kong: Return to the Jungle (2006), Kong: Skull Island (2017), Godzilla vs. Kong (2021) and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024). Most are separate continuities, so there is no single story timeline for all 13 films.

Are the 1976 and 2005 King Kong movies connected?

No. The 1976 film is a remake of the 1933 story and is followed by King Kong Lives (1986). Peter Jackson’s 2005 film is a separate remake with its own continuity. Neither version continues into the other.

Is Kong: Skull Island a remake of the 1933 movie?

No. It is a MonsterVerse reboot and origin-style reimagining. It keeps the Skull Island setting and the central idea of a giant ape, but it does not repeat the 1933 plot in which a film crew captures Kong and takes him to New York.

Which King Kong movies feature Godzilla?

Two released films feature both monsters: Toho’s King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962) and Legendary’s Godzilla vs. Kong (2021). They belong to completely separate continuities. The 2024 sequel Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire also features both Titans, although its story is a continuation of the MonsterVerse rather than another first-time crossover.

The Bottom Line

There are 13 released feature-length King Kong or Kong films through August 9, 2026. The simplest complete order is release order, beginning with the stop-motion landmark King Kong in 1933 and ending with Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire in 2024. For a connected modern story, watch only the MonsterVerse sequence: Kong: Skull Island, Godzilla vs. Kong and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.

Quick Recap

Bestseller No. 1

Mezco King Kong of Skull Island 7" Action Figure

$49.99

Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.