A 21-Year-Old Kaiju Movie Reveals The Best Way For Gigan To Finally Join The Monsterverse

A key storyline in Godzilla: Final Wars provides a great blueprint for how Legendary could make the most out of Gigan in the Monsterverse. For years, Gigan has been one of the most popular choices for a villain role in Godzilla and Kong's Monsterverse movies. But despite all the interest in the monster, he's thus far been avoided. However, at least one more Godzilla-Kong movie is in development, not to mention the TV shows the franchise has in the works at Apple TV+. With that in mind, Gigan does indeed still have opportunities to appear.

Gigan's ferocity in battle and spectacular monster design would give the Monsterverse plenty to work with if the studio ever does buy the licensing rights to the character from Toho. Were that to happen, he could feature as the main antagonist of a Monsterverse film. But as for how he'd be implemented, that's not exactly clear. But thanks to his appearance in Godzilla: Final Wars, the Monsterverse has an existing idea it can use to deliver a compelling Gigan story on the big screen.

The Godzilla: Final Wars Version Of Gigan Perfectly Fits The Monsterverse

This Version Of Gigan Already Sounds Like A Monsterverse Titan

Prior to Godzilla: Final Wars, GIgan was understood to be a cyborg monster from outer space and a weapon of the alien civilization known as M Space Hunter Nebula. The 2004 film notably reinvented the kaiju, giving him a more nuanced backstory. In the film, it was established that Gigan is both an extraterrestrial and a creature associated with Earth's ancient history. Rather than reach the planet in the modern era, Gigan actually arrived in ancient times at the behest of the Xilliens, the evil aliens that controlled King Ghidorah in Invasion of Astro Monster.

The ancient Xilliens' plans to conquer Earth failed when Gigan came into conflict with Mothra, who succeeded in killing the monster. Later, the present-day Xilliens recovered Gigan's remains and gave him brand-new cybernetic upgrades. It was for this reason that Gigan sported a menancing design unique to his look in Godzilla vs. Gigan and Godzilla vs. Megalon.

The origin story that Final Wars gave to Gigan comes across as something that theoretically could have happened in Lengedary's Monsterverse. After all, both of the concepts it leans on exist in the Monsterverse. Like Final Wars' Gigan, the Monsterverse's Ghidorah is an alien that was defeated on Earth thousands of years ago. And monsters getting technological advancements is also part of the lore, courtesy of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, which saw Kong acquire the BEAST Glove. Because of these developments, a version of Gigan akin to the one in Final Wars would fit seamlessly into the Monsterverse.

Why Gigan Should Be Mothra's Rival In The Monsterverse

In addition to carrying over Godzilla: Final Wars' interpretation of Gigan as an ancient alien, the Monsterverse could also benefit greatly from recycling his history with Mothra. While it's true that Gigan's origin in that movie would technically mesh well with the Monsterverse, it's important to note that Ghidorah's alien origin story in Godzilla: King of the Monsters could make it seem too unoriginal. What's more, if Gigan is an ancient rival to Godzilla who lost to him in ancient times, he'd be the third monster villain to get this story, with the previous two being Ghidorah and Skar King.

On account of this, the Monsterverse could be best-served leaving Godzilla out of Gigan's backstory. Instead, it could copy Godzilla: Final Wars, allowing Mothra to serve as Gigan's pre-existing enemy. Doing so would further build on the Mothra mythos that King of the Monsters and Godzilla x Kong helped build. Mothra already has an interesting history in the Monsterverse, but one thing it lacks is a specific villain that can be accurately described as her rival, whereas Toho gave her two (Gigan in Final Wars and Battra in Godzilla vs. Mothra).

Mothra is recognized as the Queen of the Titans, a guardian monster, and one of the most important Titans in Monsterverse history - yet, there's no knowledge of anything truly significant that she's done before the current era. Ancient murals implied that Mothra had roles in Godzilla's battles against Ghidorah and the Great Apes, but no specific details were provided in regards to what she was up to at that time. Given that she's considered to be a protector of humanity, it stands to reason that she repelled threats to its safety at some point or another. One of those times may have involved an attack from Gigan.

How A Mothra vs. Gigan Story Could Work In Godzilla x Kong 2

There's Already Precedent For Gigan To Be A Secondary Villain

Were the upcoming Godzilla x Kong sequel to take this route with Mothra and Gigan, the most plausible scenario is that a different monster would be the main antagonist. If Mothra is Gigan's biggest problem, there's a good chance it'll pick a different Titan to pit against Godzilla. Godzilla is clearly more powerful than Mothra, so a villain previously defeated by her probably wouldn't make for a great matchup if paired with Godzilla. In light of that, the movie may follow along with the course set by Final Wars and utilize Gigan as a secondary antagonist.

If a powerful villain like Gigan being used in such a way comes across as unlikely, it shouldn't be forgotten that this would be consistent with every single movie appearance he's had to date. Despite his fame, Gigan has never been the main villain of a Godzilla movie. Each of his films - including his debut film, which had his name in the title - had the kaiju share the spotlight with another villain. He was an equal to Ghidorah and Megalon in Godzilla vs. Gigan and Godzilla vs. Megalon respectively, and a lesser threat to Monster X in Final Wars. So, it wouldn't be surprising if the Monsterverse continued that trend.

Heading in this direction would be an excellent way for the Monsterverse to raise the stakes and increase the scale of the action. Godzilla x Kong took things a step further than Godzilla vs Kong by ending in a two-on-two fight, as opposed to a two-on-one showdown. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire's ending featured Mothra, but the final fight was mainly focused on Godzilla, Kong, Skar King, and Shimo. But by taking a page from Godzilla: Final Wars' Gigan story, the Monsterverse can deliver a fun, three-on-three slugfest, with Godzilla, Kong, and Mothra all getting their one Titan villains to fight.