Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters Season 2 - Trailer, Premiere Date, Cast And More Details

With all due respect to James Gunn's ever-expanding DC Universe, the age of gods and monsters may very well be upon us ... but primarily through the kaiju-infested action of Legendary and Warner Bros.' ongoing MonsterVerse franchise. The various blockbuster movies have gone a long way towards reinvigorating mainstream audience interest in the larger-than-life creatures, starting with Gareth Edwards' "Godzilla" movie over a decade ago and somehow ending up with the utterly gonzo Godzilla/Kong crossover extravaganzas in recent years. But as much as the titans have dominated all the headlines and attention on the big screen, fans may have missed the (comparatively) smaller-scale joys taking place on Apple TV streaming.

"Monarch: Legacy of Monsters" could've easily been a hackneyed cash-grab attempt to beat the superhero franchises at their own game, but the first season provided a solid enough foundation and a compelling enough cast (highlighted by the cross-generational duo of Kurt Russell and his son Wyatt as, respectively, older and younger versions of the same character, Lee Shaw) to stick with it and where this journey is taking us. Set in the immediate aftermath of Godzilla's attack on San Francisco in the 2014 film, the story centered on a new group of characters left to pick up the pieces in a world progressively overrun by these ancient apex predators. What followed were deadly brushes with titans like Godzilla and King Kong, a vast conspiracy unfolding across two separate timelines, and maybe a little bit of time dilation thrown in for good measure.

With more episodes on the way, now's as good a time as any to gather up all the breadcrumbs and lay out what "Monarch: Legacy of Monsters" season 2 has in store.

We could beat around the bush and drag this out for 200 words for kicks and giggles, or we could just give you the information that you're obviously here for. Because we're not click-hungry sadists, we can confirm that season 2 of "Monarch: Legacy of Monsters" is officially scheduled to premiere on Apple TV on February 27, 2026. Like the debut season, this next batch of episodes is set to stream on a weekly basis, running for 10 full episodes until the finale on May 1. There, now you can get your calendars and begin planning on how to revolve your entire life around those two months of television ... or, you know, just keep those details in the back of your mind like any normal person. No judgment, either way.

With a title like "Monarch: Legacy of Monsters," even viewers who haven't yet caught up on the first season likely know what they're in for with a show like this. Expect plenty of monster-sized action with Titans, MUTOs, kaiju, or whatever else you want to call these living and breathing gods and monsters from the deep. Throughout the first season, we discovered how the secret affair bridging together half-siblings Cate ("Shōgun" star Anna Sawai) and Kentaro Randa (Ren Watabe) brought ripple effects far beyond their wildest imaginations. Determined to find the truth about their father Hiroshi (Takehiro Hira), the pair soon wrangled together an unlikely team made up of May (Kiersey Clemons), Tim (Joe Tippett), and ultimately Lee Shaw (Kurt Russell) to address the much larger issue at play: the scheming machinations of the Titan-monitoring organization Monarch.

While all this was going on, a secondary arc followed characters from the 1950s, where Keiko (Mari Yamamoto), her husband Bill (Anders Holm, playing a younger version of the character depicted by John Goodman in "Kong: Skull Island"), and Wyatt Russell's Lee Shaw attempted to research the growing threat of the Titans and steer Monarch on the right path. As for season 2, here's the official synopsis: 

Season 2 will pick up with the fate of Monarch — and the world — hanging in the balance. The dramatic saga reveals buried secrets that reunite our heroes (and villains) on Kong's Skull Island, and a new, mysterious village where a mythical Titan rises from the sea. The ripple effects of the past make waves in the present day, blurring the bonds between family, friend, and foe — all with the threat of a Titan event on the horizon.

Besides monsters and more monsters, you mean? (Look, we ask silly, rhetorical questions so we can provide silly, not-so-rhetorical answers.) In all seriousness, a major question mark looming over season 2 of "Monarch" had to do with whether Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell would return for more timeline-hopping shenanigans. At the end of the season 1 finale, our characters finally unite in one wonky place inside the Hollow Earth, where concepts like "time" don't quite mean the same thing. Keiko, long presumed dead following her disappearance in 1959, remains alive and (mostly) well. The love-stricken elder Shaw, meanwhile, decides to sacrifice himself to save the others and allow them to escape back to the surface, though now having arrived in the year 2017.

Early returns from season 2 indicate that we can expect much more of where this came from, as the returning cast is confirmed to include Kurt Russell, Wyatt Russell, Anna Sawai, Kiersey Clemons, Ren Watabe, Mari Yamamoto, Joe Tippett, and Anders Holm. This at least suggests that there will continue to be more flashbacks throughout the sophomore season, further uncovering the actions that characters like Bill Randa and young Lee Shaw took to help create what Monarch would eventually become. Otherwise, season 2 is expected to continue the journeys of the now-united cast and reveal Shaw's fate inside the Hollow Earth. Oh, and as for the monster side of things? Expect plenty of Kong, too.

Unfortunately, Godzilla only has a starring role in "Monarch: Legacy of Monsters" — the multi-hyphenate decided to slack off in the directing, writing, and producing departments, apparently. Showbiz is just full of divas, am I right? In the absence of the King of the Monsters and his creative talents, however, an entire crew of human-sized artists luckily stepped up. After Matt Fraction (yes, that Matt Fraction), "WandaVision" and "The Fantastic Four: First Steps" director Matt Shakman, and Chris Black created the show in the first place, both Shakman and Black will return for season 2.

Shakman remains credited as an executive producer, while Black serves as sole showrunner. Joining them will be Joby Harold and Tory Tunnell as executive producers, along with Jen Roskind, Lawrence Trilling, and Andrew Colville. Godzilla owner and ever-protective company Toho will be represented by executive producers Hiro Matsuoka and Takemasa Arita. Elsewhere, on the directing side, we only know that Lawrence Trilling will helm four episodes. As for the writing team, presumably Black will continue to be credited on certain episodes. For now, though, the only confirmed name is Colville, who'll be credited as a writer for two episodes.

We could waste precious internet ink explaining that, yes, Apple TV released a new trailer for "Monarch: Legacy of Monsters," and that's why we're writing up this entire article in the first place ... or you could look just above this sentence and click on the link for yourself. (You can't miss it, we promise.) Technically a teaser, the footage lives up to the name by only setting the tone for what viewers can expect when season 2 finally arrives. Instead of setting up any major plotlines or narrative beats, the teaser focuses on a handful of visuals highlighting a world taken over by Titans. (RIP to those poor surfer dudes.) We do see familiar faces such as Keiko, Cate Randa, Tim, Kentaro, and Hiroshi staring up at some approaching monster and getting ready to flee for their lives, along with the briefest glimpse of both the younger and older Lee Shaw in undisclosed locations. Otherwise, the carefully-selected footage mostly displays acts of kaiju-on-human violence, masses running away from imminent danger, and other tantalizing imagery to whet our appetites for more. On that level, consider this mission accomplished.