What to Watch Before Monarch: Legacy of Monsters

The new Apple TV+ series Monarch: Legacy of Monsters stars father-and-son acting duo Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell as the older and younger versions of the same character in a timeline-switching, multi-generational mystery. But don't worry, this isn't a family saga of the prestige television variety: it's a good old-fashioned monster fest set in a fictional universe where Godzilla and King Kong both exist.

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters takes place in the "MonsterVerse," Legendary Entertainment's ongoing franchise which began with 2014's Godzilla. Since then there have been three subsequent movies—Kong: Skull Island, Godzilla: King of the Monsters, and Godzilla v. Kong—as well as the animated series Skull Island.

But don't worry: you don't need to watch every single previous installment of this ever-expanding series to enjoy Monarch: Legacy of Monsters. Here's everything you need to get ready for the new show.

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters begins in the immediate aftermath of the climactic battle between Godzilla and the MUTO/kaiju monsters in San Francisco at the end of the 2014 Godzilla movie. In fact, the first episode of the show is entitled "Aftermath," and follows a survivor of the "G-Day" incident as she investigates old family secrets and discovers a surprising link to the mysterious Monarch organization.

This means that even though Monarch: Legacy of Monsters was released nearly a decade after Godzilla, it is a direct sequel to that movie, making it the only one you have to watch to prepare for the TV series.

Philip Ellis is News Editor at Men's Health, covering fitness, pop culture, sex and relationships, and LGBTQ+ issues. His work has appeared in GQ, Teen Vogue, Man Repeller and MTV, and he is the author of Love & Other Scams.