The original Godzilla featured bold and effective social commentary, but as the series progressed, it took on a much lighter sci-fi tone. This included pitting the King Kaiju against a host of equally threatening enemies of different shapes and sizes. Eventually, Godzilla went from a creature of rampaging destruction to a giant wrestler fighting opponents in a very large ring.
As more movies came out, so too were more Godzilla enemies introduced, some better than others. The crème de la crème of deadly Godzilla villains each possess extraordinary powers that set them apart from their peers, and there are a lot of them to choose from. Each has managed to give Godzilla a run for his money, and some even came close to killing him.
Updated on November 13th, 2021 by Mark Birrell: With the success of the MonsterVerse finally bringing a satisfying Hollywood version of the King of the Monsters to the big screen, it would seem that the roster of Godzilla enemies only stands to grow and grow. The best Godzilla villains have legacies that span far beyond just Godzilla films and can often be called some of the greatest movie monsters in their own rights.
• Manda first appeared in Atragon (1963), which is available to purchase on Prime Video
This cool-looking creature resembled a cross between a Japanese dragon and a serpent and was just as deadly as the combination would suggest. Although the two never squared off officially on film, a deleted scene from Destroy All Monsters shows some snippets of them having a bit of tussle. The scene was rejected due to both being on the same side.
Manda made another appearance in the super-corny and ultra-fun Godzilla: Final Wars when it attacks the Gotengo warship. It loses the fight when the Gotengo fires a freeze beam at it, before ramming straight through its icy corpse, shattering it into bits.
• The MUTOs first appeared in Godzilla (2014), which is available to stream on HBO Max and Fubo TV
Of Godzilla’s many, many main villains, the MUTOs from the 2014 MonsterVerse movie are his most recent but by no means his weakest. The pair begin their life cycles as parasitic spores which have supposedly killed a creature not too dissimilar from Godzilla and were discovered when a large piece of mining equipment collapsed into the cavern where they had been lying dormant in the Philippines.
Having waited for what can only be assumed to be thousands of years, the male awakens first and goes on a small rampage to find a nearby nuclear power plant to cocoon in and mature. After emerging years later for an even larger rampage, the female spore awakens also, having apparently survived all kinds of experimentation. Though she doesn’t possess wings like the male, the female is even larger but they’re both more than enough in terms of size and strength to take on a rusty Godzilla. However, he’s ultimately able to kill both as their main special attack–a powerful EMP burst–does nothing to slow him down.
• Hedorah first appeared in Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971), which is available to stream on HBO Max and YouTube
Hedorah is one of the few kaiju to nearly put Godzilla down for the permanent count. The creature is extraterrestrial in nature, hailing from the Dark Gas Nebula. It arrived on Earth to feed on the pollution in the atmosphere and environment, but it was an unwelcome guest for humanity.
Godzilla battled the creature and nearly lost his life in the process. The combination of physical strength and energy-based bolt attacks almost killed him before Godzilla got the upper hand. He lost an eye and a hand in the process, which must have been a blow to the ego.
• Biollante first appeared in Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989)
One of Godzilla’s most fearsome and tragically underrated foes is Biollante, a mixture of plant, human, and Godzilla DNA. The result is a nightmarish genetic monstrosity that could regenerate its damaged body, and shrug off some of Godzilla’s most devastating attacks.
If that weren’t enough, Biollante is also capable of spitting radioactive sap at its foes in order to weaken and harm them. Godzilla had his hands full more than he’d have liked when he went up against this horrifying creation, and it was nearly curtains for him.
• King Caesar first appeared in Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974), which is available to stream on HBO Max
This particular kaiju is sometimes benevolent, and sometimes malevolent, depending on the circumstances. Regardless of which, the creature is one of the coolest Godzilla foes in the entire franchise, with the skills and abilities to prove it.
While incredibly fast and nimble, that’s not King Caesar’s main selling point. His energy-deflecting capabilities are what make him truly unique. He is able to absorb energy fired at him, and redirect it back at his opponents via bolts from his eyes. If that weren’t enough, he also has lighting and heat beams, not to mention a tough outer shell that is durable in close quarters combat.
• Kumonga first appeared in Son of Godzilla (1967), which is available to stream on HBO Max and Tubi
Spiders make for excellent movie monsters, and a gigantic one that can hold its own against Godzilla is even better. Kumonga is an incredibly aggressive predator that will go after almost anything it deems worthy as prey, including human beings.
It is not implied whether Kumonga’s monstrous size was due to radioactive fallout, or whether it’s a natural extension of its species’ evolution, much the same as King Kong. Whatever the case, Kumonga’s skewer-like legs, thick webbing, and ability to withstand repeated atomic breath attacks make it one of Godzilla’s deadlier foes.
• Anguirus first appeared in Godzilla Raids Again (1955), which is available to stream on HBO Max, The Criterion Channel, YouTube, and Tubi
Anguirus, which basically resembles a giant Ankylosaur, was the first enemy of Godzilla. He was the first indication that Toho was going to abandon the rampaging movie monster formula, in favor of something more closely resembling the classic 1930s King Kong.
Even though he’s just another riff on dinosaurs, Anguirus will always be an important enemy. Unfortunately, he generally loses the majority of his battles, even when Godzilla plays the antagonist to humans as well. In fact, he isn’t very effective even when he aligns with Godzilla.
• Kong first appeared in King Kong (1933), which is available to stream on HBO Max
Although Kong: Skull Island welcomed the giant ape into the kaiju universe of today’s Godzilla, it wasn’t the first time. These two iconic creatures have battled it out before, to great hilarity and laughs. For all intents and purposes, Kong was the original giant kaiju in film. His story is thematically neat, and being an ape, he’s more personable than most monsters.
Kong recently duked it out with the King of the Monsters in 2021’s Godzilla vs. Kong, where the fight ended in a draw. After Godzilla successfully beats down Kong at the end of a long bout, where the great ape gets a few good licks in, the two ultimately set aside their differences to take down a deadly new version of Mechagodzilla, which was making its first appearance in the MonsterVerse film series.
• Megaguirus first appeared in Godzilla vs. Megaguirus (2000), which is available to purchase on Prime Video
Giant insects were practically built for sci-fi films, and Megaguirus is no exception. Her species is a variant of the Dragonfly dating back to the Carboniferous period, and as such, she’s quite an intimidating bug that is very hard to squash. The mixture of bug and reptile elements also makes her something of a dragon in the abstract sense.
When Megaguirus eventually enters the ring, the lengthy battle is pretty brutal. This creature is evil by definition, and won’t hesitate to destroy anything, or anyone who gets in her path. Her stinger attack alone is a major threat, especially given how fast and agile she is.
• Orga first appeared in Godzilla 2000: Millennium (1999), which is available to purchase on Prime Video
Godzilla 2000 was the film that first introduced Orga to fans of the franchise. There, it started out as a Millennian, further playing up the alien/sci-fi elements of the franchise that had taken root in previous Godzilla tales. It ends up looking like a hideously mutated version of Godzilla, thanks largely to absorbing his DNA.
Orga bears the dubious honor of being one kaiju to successfully swallow Godzilla whole. It turned to be a rather rash move, however, as Godzilla simply destroyed the creature from the inside out.
• Mothra first appeared in Mothra (1961), which is available to purchase on Prime Video
It’s difficult to imagine Mothra as a threat to anyone, thanks largely to its rather pleasant design. However, the original Mothra film actually establishes the monster as a serious threat. Mothra is extraordinarily popular, having shown up in countless kaiju films, and definitely leans into elements of fantasy more than most kaiju.
It’s hard to count Mothra as an enemy, since she’s usually an ally of Godzilla, at least reluctantly. When Godzilla decides to go off script and become a threat, she’ll come rushing to the defense of humanity without hesitation.
• Gigan first appeared in Godzilla vs. Gigan (1972), which is available to stream on HBO Max and YouTube
Gigan is one truly awesome looking kaiju who inadvertently ends up being shoehorned into some rather terrible Godzilla stories. Still, there’s no denying how intimidating and destructive the creature looks, and he’s proved to be a serious challenger to Godzilla in the past.
His iconic buzzsaw weapon can cause immense damage, not to mention razor discs, a laser attack, and hooked appendages that can slice and dice his enemies to ribbons. To date, he’s one of the deadliest of Godzilla’s opponents, and it’s easy to see why.
• Destoroyah first appeared in Godzilla vs. Destoroyah (1995), which is available to purchase on Prime Video
Destoroyah might have one of the weirdest names of any Godzilla kaiju, but his character design is absolutely terrifying. In many ways, it resembles a nightmarish version of Godzilla with wings, spikes and a horn, and that’s definitely an intimidating combination, even for Godzilla himself.
He’s also one of the few kaiju to act on emotional desire, rather than animal instinct. The torment and destruction he wreaks are pleasant to him, and he enjoys dragging out a fight and making it as painful as possible. When it comes to Godzilla, the rivalry is real, and it isn’t pretty.
• Rodan first appeared in Rodan (1956), which is available to stream on HBO Max and Tubi
This gigantic Pteranodon made his first appearance way back in 1956 in a standalone film, but he’s since gone on to become a staple of Godzilla lore. The creature started off as a terrifying and destructive predator who stood in opposition to Godzilla, but this stance was softened later on.
Rodan’s best known abilities are its super speed, the ability to create hurricane-level winds with its wings, plus a fireball-style heat attack. Worse, Rodan seems able to shrug off Godzilla’s atomic breath; one of the few kaiju capable of this.
• Mechagodzilla first appeared in Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla (1974), which is available to stream on HBO Max
After its introduction as an alien threat in the ’70s, Mechagodzilla has shown up as a human-created robot designed to protect against kaiju threats. Mechagodzilla has actually been featured in some of the best Godzilla films around, and probably helped serve as inspiration for the giant robots seen in big blockbuster films like Pacific Rim.
Mechagodzilla allows humans to legitimately stand against the antagonistic Godzilla, and meet him on his own terms. The latest iteration of the character was an evil robot possessed by the brain of King Ghidorah in 2021’s Godzilla vs. Kong.
• Ghidorah first appeared in Ghidorah, The Three-Headed Monster (1964), which is available to stream on HBO Max, YouTube, and Tubi
Ghidorah is Godzilla’s greatest foe, and it isn’t close. This alien creature sports three deadly serpent-like heads, it can fly, and it’s capable of withstanding everything Godzilla can throw at it. Though the King Kaiju manages to win in the end, it’s usually by the skin of his teeth.
Regardless of what film he shows up in, Ghidorah is sure to bring the house down. It’s a nightmare in every respect, with deadly powers including gravity beams, regenerative capabilities, and an ability to drain the life out of its victims by biting them. To date, Godzilla has never faced a more deadly foe.