Godzilla and Kong visit London: Monsters invade River Thames ahead of The New Empire cinema release

By Lucinda Herbert

Reporter

Published 25th Mar 2024, 12:21 BST

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Two giant sculptures have appeared in London to coincide with the launch of Warner Bros. Pictures’ new movie “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire”, released on Friday 29th March.

The video shows how the two giant beasts have invaded the River Thames and Southbank, in London.

Godzilla’s bristling pink spikes, brimming with atomic power, can be seen poking up from the river Thames next to Kong's giant hand, crushing an iconic London red phone box on Southbank.

View Godzilla and Kong from London's OXO Tower

The gigantic monsters are available to see beneath London’s OXO Tower – temporarily rebranded the GXK Tower, for today only (Monday), ahead of the film’s release in cinemas across the UK and Ireland from Friday 29th March.

Godzilla X Kong statues took 51 days to build

The giant titan’s spine stretches an impressive 65 feet, the length of a tennis court.

Londoners are stunned as Godzilla and Kong are spotted around the Thames in an epic stunt that spans air, land and the Thames. The formidable Titans have been unleashed in giant sculpture form beneath the OXO Tower which has also been renamed GxK Tower to mark the release of Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire, in cinemas across the UK and Ireland this Friday 29th March. — Londoners are stunned as Godzilla and Kong are spotted around the Thames in an epic stunt that spans air, land and the Thames. The formidable Titans have been unleashed in giant sculpture form beneath the OXO Tower which has also been renamed GxK Tower to mark the release of Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire, in cinemas across the UK and Ireland this Friday 29th March. | Simon Jacobs/PinPep

Londoners are stunned as Godzilla and Kong are spotted around the Thames in an epic stunt that spans air, land and the Thames. The formidable Titans have been unleashed in giant sculpture form beneath the OXO Tower which has also been renamed GxK Tower to mark the release of Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire, in cinemas across the UK and Ireland this Friday 29th March. — Londoners are stunned as Godzilla and Kong are spotted around the Thames in an epic stunt that spans air, land and the Thames. The formidable Titans have been unleashed in giant sculpture form beneath the OXO Tower which has also been renamed GxK Tower to mark the release of Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire, in cinemas across the UK and Ireland this Friday 29th March. | Simon Jacobs/PinPep

Kong's hand is a mammoth 16 feet tall, with a head seven metres in diameter – 45 times that of a human.

A team of 40 worked around the clock to create the two sculptures, spending a colossal 6,326 hours over two months.

And it took 51 days just to paint the two giant beasts, which collectively weigh more than a tonne.

The sculptures were fabricated from 3D references from the filmmakers, built in a combination of poly, fibreglass and steel framework, as well as interactive lighting.

Hyper-realistic fur on King Kong

Godzilla contains over 70 individual pulsing pink lights to achieve the atomic effect, a spectacular addition in the new film, which sees him team up with Kong as a greater threat to earth materialises.

Godzilla’s bristling pink spikes, brimming with atomic power, were seen poking up from the river Thames next to Kong's giant hand, crushing an iconic London red phone box on Southbank.

The giant titan’s spine stretches an impressive 65 feet, the length of a tennis court. — Godzilla’s bristling pink spikes, brimming with atomic power, were seen poking up from the river Thames next to Kong's giant hand, crushing an iconic London red phone box on Southbank. The giant titan’s spine stretches an impressive 65 feet, the length of a tennis court. | Simon Jacobs/PinPep

Godzilla’s bristling pink spikes, brimming with atomic power, were seen poking up from the river Thames next to Kong's giant hand, crushing an iconic London red phone box on Southbank.

The giant titan’s spine stretches an impressive 65 feet, the length of a tennis court. — Godzilla’s bristling pink spikes, brimming with atomic power, were seen poking up from the river Thames next to Kong's giant hand, crushing an iconic London red phone box on Southbank. The giant titan’s spine stretches an impressive 65 feet, the length of a tennis court. | Simon Jacobs/PinPep

Kong is covered in over 30 metres of fur, to create a hyper-realistic finish.

Filmmaker Adam Wingard is 'blown away'

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire filmmaker Adam Wingard said: “A lot of the magic of the Monsterverse comes from watching these Titans battling it out in real world surroundings.

“To see Godzilla and Kong actually accessing Hollow Earth portals into London just really blew me away! I felt like I did as a kid, watching the Toho classics on a Saturday afternoon.”

For more info visit Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.

Film Cinemas River Thames London

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