Back King Ghidorah Danish King Ghidorah German King Ghidorah Spanish گیدورا شاه Persian King Ghidorah Finnish King Ghidorah French קינג גידורה HE King Ghidorah ID King Ghidorah Italian キングギドラ Japanese
| King Ghidorah | |
|---|---|
| Godzilla character | |
 Ghidorah as seen in the Japanese movie poster for Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster | |
| First appearance | Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (1964) |
| Last appearance | Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) |
| Created by | Tomoyuki Tanaka[1] Eiji Tsuburaya[2] Shinichi Sekizawa |
| Designed by | Akira Watanabe[2] |
| Portrayed by | Shōwa era: Shoichi Hirose[3] Susumu Utsumi[4] Kanta Ina[5] Heisei era: Hurricane Ryu[6] Tsutomu Kitagawa[7] Millennium era: Akira Ohashi[8] Legendary Pictures: Jason Liles[9] Alan Maxson[10] Richard Dorton[10] |
| In-universe information | |
| Alias | Ghidrah[11] King Ghidra[12] King Ghidora[13] Monster Zero[14] The 10,000 Year Old Dragon[15] The King of Terror[16] The Gold King[17] God of the Void[17] King of the Void[17] |
| Species | Dragon-like alien |
King Ghidorah (キングギドラ, Kingu Gidora) is a fictional monster, or alien, or kaiju, which first appeared in Ishirō Honda's 1964 film Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster. The creature was initially created by Tomoyuki Tanaka, Eiji Tsuburaya, and Shinichi Sekizawa as an homage to the eight-headed mythological Japanese dragon Yamata no Orochi. Although the name of the character is officially trademarked by Toho as "King Ghidorah",[18] the character was originally referred to as Ghidorah, Ghidrah, or Monster Zero in some English markets.[11]
Although King Ghidorah's design has remained largely consistent throughout its appearances (an armless, bipedal, golden and yellowish-scaled dragon with three heads, two fan-shaped wings, and two tails), its origin story has varied from being an extraterrestrial planet-destroying dragon,[19] a genetically engineered monster from the future,[20] a guardian monster of ancient Japan,[21] or a god from another dimension. The character is usually portrayed as the archenemy of Godzilla and a foe of Mothra,[22] though it has had one appearance as an ally of the latter.[21]
Despite rumors that Ghidorah was meant to represent the threat posed by China, which had at the time of the character's creation just developed nuclear weapons,[23] director Ishirō Honda denied the connection and stated that Ghidorah was simply a modern take on the dragon Yamata no Orochi.[24][1][25]
- ^ a b Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: CHO Japan (2012-10-31). "1970's Godzilla FX Director - PART I - ７０年代のゴジラの特技監督 (SciFi Japan TV #06)". YouTube. Retrieved 2015-07-25.
- ^ a b Ragone 2014, p. 90.
- ^ Ryfle 1998, p. 116.
- ^ Ryfle 1998, p. 357.
- ^ Ryfle 1998, p. 359.
- ^ Ryfle 1998, p. 364.
- ^ Solomon 2017, p. 102.
- ^ Kalat 2010, p. 238.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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- ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "AMC Intro - "Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah" (1990s)". YouTube. March 19, 2015. Retrieved March 1, 2019.
- ^ "Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah - Initial Sony 1998 VHS Release". Pinterest. Archived from the original on August 4, 2018. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
- ^ Solomon 2017, p. 37.
- ^ DeSentis, John (July 4, 2010). "Godzilla Soundtrack Perfect Collection Box 6". SciFi Japan. Archived from the original on August 4, 2018. Retrieved November 23, 2014.
- ^ Yoneda 1999, 4:49.
- ^ a b c "Godzilla: The Planet Eater Press Notes, Trailer and Pics From Toho". SciFi Japan. Archived from the original on March 31, 2019. Retrieved October 12, 2018.
- ^ "King Ghidorah Official Trademark". Toho. Archived from the original on February 28, 2023. Retrieved September 12, 2014.
- ^ Ryfle 1998, p. 115.
- ^ Ryfle 1998, p. 267.
- ^ a b Solomon 2017, p. 193.
- ^ Solomon 2017, p. 282.
- ^ Jess-Cooke 2012, p. 38.
- ^ David Milner, "Ishiro Honda Interview" Archived 2017-11-14 at the Wayback Machine, Kaiju Conversations (December 1992)
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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