In 2014, 16 years after the first American-produced Godzilla movie came out, Hollywood gave the reptilian monster another shot, and with that, the MonsterVerse was born. Godzilla was followed by Kong: Skull Island, Godzilla: King of the Monsters and Godzilla vs. Kong, and the franchise made its first foray into television in June with the animated Netflix series Skull Island. Now we’re on the cusp of this shared universe’s first live-action small screen offering, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, which Apple TV+ subscribers will be able to stream.
This series takes place between the events of Godzilla and Godzilla: King of the Monsters, when the public has only recently learned about the existence of the Titans, and follows two siblings discovering their family’s connection to Monarch, the scientific organization that’s been studying these monsters for decades. You can watch the Monarch: Legacy of Monsters trailer to learn more story details, but in this spot, we’re talking about who’s making up the Apple TV+ show’s main cast, starting with the two actors who are playing the same character in different time periods.
Kurt Russell
Kurt Russell has been on quite the franchise tear over the last decade, having played Mr. Nobody in three Fast & Furious movies and Ego in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, not to mention starring in The Christmas Chronicles movies, The Hateful Eight and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, among other projects. Now he’s lending his talents to the MonsterVerse by portraying the older version of Lee Shaw, a former U.S. army officer who goes way back with Monarch. Russell’s Shaw will meet our main protagonists in the show’s contemporary time period and shed some light on their family’s past. The bad news is that at this stage of his life, Lee is on the outs with Monarch, which will undoubtedly complicate his ability to help the younger leads.
Wyatt Russell
Who better to cast as a younger version of Kurt Russell than the man’s own son? Wyatt Russell has built his own impressive acting resume for more than two decades now, with some of his more recent credits including Lodge 49, Overlord, The Woman in the Window and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Monarch: Legacy of Monsters will see the younger Russell playing Lee Shaw in the 1950s, i.e. his early days of working for Monarch. Presumably these flashbacks will show how Lee became disillusioned with the agency.
John Goodman
The only familiar MonsterVerse face who’s confirmed to appear in Monarch: Legacy of Monsters so far is someone we met in 2017’s Kong: Skull Island. The 1973-set movie saw John Goodman’s Bill Randa, who led Monarch at the time, putting together an expedition to the then-recently-discovered title location. Randa would have been better off staying behind since roughly halfway through the story, he was devoured by a Skullcrawler. The Monarch show will reunite us with Randa shortly before his death on Skull Island judging by his clothing and surroundings, but that won’t be the only way we spend time with the character.
Anders Holm
Just like with Lee Shaw, we’ll follow along with Bill Randa in the 1950s in Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, with his younger self being played by Anders Holm. Some of you may have seen Holm earlier this year playing JJ in The Muppets Mayhem (which can be watched with a Disney+ subscription) or Lucky Collins in About My Father, while others may recognize him from The Mindy Project, Champions, Inventing Anna and Game Over, Man! (which he also wrote and produced), among other projects. While Randa saw his first Titan in 1943 when he survived the destruction of the USS Lawton, he’ll discover how prominent these monsters are in our world with Lee and a character we’ll talk about later.
Anna Sawai
One of the lead protagonists in Monarch: Legacy of Monsters is played by Anna Sawai, who played Elle in F9 and Naomi in fellow Apple TV+ show Pachinko, which has been renewed for a second season. Sawai stars in Monarch as Cate Randa, a schoolteacher who survived the battle between Godzilla and the MUTOs in San Francisco and has traveled to Japan to settle some family affairs, only to discover a family secret. While it’s unclear if Cate was aware of Bill Randa’s existence prior to the events of Monarch beginning, she definitely didn’t know about his work with the title group, and unfortunately, her quest for the truth will lead to her coming face to face with more Titans.
Kiersey Clemons
Following her time as Iris West in The Flash this past summer, Kiersey Clemons is now participating in the MonsterVerse as May, an American ex-patriate who’s “aways three steps ahead of everyone around her,” whether it’s by “deciphering a code or finding the loophole.” We’ll see May spending time with Cate and Kentaro in Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, but how she knows these two and gets dragged into their adventure remains a mystery. This year has also seen Clemons star in Somebody I Used to Know and The Young Wife.
Ren Watabe
Monarch: Legacy of Monsters makes Ren Watabe’s first major acting gig. He stars in the show as Kentaro, who is described as an “intelligent, creative, and curious young man who has yet to find his own path” and will set out to learn more about his “revered father.” Going off the earlier Monarch plot synopsis, it’s a good bet that Ren and Cate are the show’s two siblings, although we may a situation where they’re only just meeting each other for the first time rather than having been raised together.
Joe Tippett
Fans of the HBO miniseries Mare of Easttown will remember Joe Tippett for playing John Ross, but you may have also seen him on The Morning Show, Mr. Harrigan’s Phone and Spirited, among other projects. For Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, Tippett is playing Tim, an office drone who dreams os being a secret agent, which comes true when his overconfidence lands him in the field. It’s a good bet that Tim and the next character on this list are working for Monarch, but I suppose there’s a possibility they’re affiliated with a different government agency.
Elisa Lasowski
Tim will be working closely alongside Elisa Lasowski’s Duvall in Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, with this character being “an expert operative with unwavering confidence in herself and her skills” who possess a “wry sense of humor,” which will help her with guiding Tim out in the field. Lasowski’s credits include Eastern Promises, Hyena, Versailles and guest-starring in an episode of Game of Thrones.
Mari Yamamoto
Rounding out the trio of characters we’ll chiefly be following along with in the 1950s sequences is Keiko, played by Mari Yamamoto. In addition to starring in Pachinko with Anna Sawai, she’s also appeared in the Netflix movie Kate and the Max series Tokyo Vice, which has been renewed for a second season. She’ll be by Lee Shaw and Bill Randa’s sides as they run into Titans out in the world, though it hasn’t been revealed yet how she comes to know these men.
We’ll see these actors and many more over the course of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters’ 10 episodes, with the first two premiering November 17 on Apple TV+. Don’t forget that the cinematic side will pick back up on April 12, 2024 with the release of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, and its cast includes Dan Stevens, Rebecca Hall and Brian Tyree Henry. Max subscribers can stream the previous four MonsterVerse movies.
