Godzilla's Best Friends

Godzilla has inevitably made a lot of enemies in the 38 different movies that were released throughout his 70 years of existence. While audiences fondly remember deadly creatures like King Ghidorah and Mechagodzilla, the truth is that the King of the Monsters has also managed to make a lot of good friends and allies.

It varies from incarnation to incarnation, but there’s definitely a good number of iconic kaiju that have cemented themselves as some of Godzilla’s most loyal friends. But which one is his best friend overall?

Updated December 18, 2024 by Julián Fernández Loyarte: This franchise is made up of a multitude of different films, TV shows, video games, and more, which means that there still are a lot of other beloved friends of Godzilla that were sadly left out of the original version of this list.

As a result, it has been updated to include Shimo from Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire, Minilla from the Showa Era, Godzilla Junior from the Heisei Era, and Ishiro Serizawa from the Monsterverse. These four picks are more unconventional, but they have still proven to be worthwhile allies to the King of the Monsters.

10 Shimo

A Powerful Titan Who Godzilla Helped Set Free

While Shimo technically is one of the main antagonists of Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire, she isn’t actually evil because she is being controlled by the despicable Skar King. Godzilla and Shimo fight multiple times throughout the film, but the King of the Monsters ultimately helps her break free from his control.

On top of that, both titans worked together to defeat Skar King alongside Kong, so they became good allies by the end. And if that wasn’t enough, the novelization of Godzilla X Kong implies that Shimo was responsible for freezing King Ghidorah in Antarctica millions of years in the past, which confirms that she and Godzilla have fought together before.

9 Gorosaurus

A Fellow Dinosaur Who Never Really Fought Godzilla

Destroy All Monsters

• Released: August 1, 1968
• Era: Showa
• Studio: Toho
• Director: Ishiro Honda

Gorosaurus is one of those rare cases of a kaiju that was introduced during the Showa Era but never really faced Godzilla since he was specifically created as an enemy of King Kong for the 1967 film, King Kong Escapes. After his initial debut, Gorosaurus can be seen living peacefully in Monsterland alongside his fellow monsters.

But his role as one of Godzilla’s most trusted allies was cemented during the final fight of Destroy All Monsters. Gorosaurus joined the massive final brawl against King Ghidorah and was possibly one of the most useful monsters of that fight, especially when he performed his famous kangaroo kick that took the alien monster down. Without his crucial assistance, Godzilla and the other kaiju would’ve had a much harder time defeating Ghidorah.

8 Minilla / Godzilla Junior

Godzilla’s Weak But Plucky Adoptive Sons

Godzilla Vs. Destoroyah

• Released: December 9, 1995
• Era: Heisei
• Studio: Toho
• Director: Takao Okawara

There have been two prominent incarnations of Godzilla’s son in this franchise: Minilla from the Showa Era, and Godzilla Junior from the Heisei Era. They do fulfill the role of Godzilla’s children but they have also proven numerous times that they are trustworthy allies that can put up a fight.

Minilla is quite weak but he contributed a lot in the battle against Kumonga in Son of Godzilla and the massive brawl against King Ghidorah in Destroy All Monsters. Godzilla Junior, on the other hand, got a lot stronger and was a key player in the battle against Destoroyah in Godzilla vs. Destoroyah, until the titular monster tragically killed him. Godzilla’s heartbreaking reaction to his son’s death reveals that he truly cared a lot about him.

7 King Caesar

Helped In The Violent Battle Against Mechagodzilla

Godzilla Vs. Mechagodzilla

• Released: March 21, 1974
• Era: Showa
• Studio: Toho
• Director: Jun Fukuda

In its debut film, Mechagodzilla proved to be one of the deadliest and most powerful enemies that Godzilla had ever encountered up to that point. So, the members of the Azumi family decided to help him out by awakening the ancient Guardian of Okinawa, King Caesar, who immediately assisted Godzilla in battle.

With his impressive acrobatics and his useful ability to deflect laser attacks, King Caesar ended up being a key player in the battle against Godzilla’s new mechanical doppelganger, and the King of the Monsters definitely ended up seeing him as a trustworthy ally. This was even extended to his appearance in Godzilla: Final Wars, where King Caesar was one of the few mind-controlled kaiju that Godzilla didn’t kill, serving as a nod to their old friendship from the Showa Era.

6 Ishiro Serizawa

Godzilla’s Only Real Human Friend

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Godzilla: King Of The Monsters

• Released: May 31, 2019
• Era: Monsterverse
• Studio: Legendary Pictures
• Director: Michael Dougherty

Of course, most of Godzilla’s friends and allies are giant monsters like him, but, throughout the years, there have been a fair share of human characters that have helped him. Among all of them, Ishiro Serizawa from the Monsterverse is undoubtedly the most helpful and memorable one, not to mention that Godzilla seemed to like him back.

In his first appearance in Godzilla (2014), Serizawa was always trying to convince the American military to not destroy the King of the Monsters and to let him fight the MUTOs, and his efforts were not in vain, because Godzilla saved the world by defeating these two new monsters. But what cemented Serizawa as one of Godzilla’s closest friends was his appearance in Godzilla: King of the Monsters, in which he sacrificed himself to save the titular kaiju and help him heal. He even called him “Old friend” right before dying, something that Godzilla seemed to truly appreciate. The relationship between these two is truly unmatched, and one of the best narrative elements in the Monsterverse.

5 Kong

From Deadly Enemies To Close Allies

Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire

• Released: March 25, 2024
• Era: Monsterverse
• Studio: Legendary Pictures
• Director: Adam Wingard

When Legendary Pictures secured the rights to use both Godzilla and King Kong in their Monsterverse, they knew that they had to make them fight for the second time. But what was even more exciting was the prospect of these movie icons befriending each other and fighting together against another kaiju, and that’s exactly what happened in Godzilla vs. Kong.

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While they obviously had their differences because they’re both Alpha Titans, Godzilla would never have been able to defeat Apex Cybernetics’ Mechagodzilla without Kong’s strength and abilities. Many years later, they joined forces once again (although they first had an intense rematch before making amends) to defeat the dangerous team of Skar King and Shimo. And thus, Godzilla and Kong unexpectedly became one of Hollywood’s most endearing movie duos.

4 Jet Jaguar

One Of Godzilla’s Most Bizarre Yet Charming Friends

Godzilla Vs. Megalon

• Released: March 17, 1973
• Era: Showa
• Studio: Toho
• Director: Jun Fukuda

Godzilla vs. Megalon may not be the best film in the franchise, but it’s undoubtedly one of the most memorable ones, with one of the main reasons being the introduction of Jet Jaguar. This Ultraman-inspired robot is as charismatic as it is weird, and at one point, it was forced to call in Godzilla for help in the fight against both Megalon and Gigan.

Despite having completely different designs and fighting styles, the synergy between Godzilla and Jet Jaguar was truly palpable, as they managed to pull off some impressive and efficient moves against the duo of alien kaiju. But the moment that truly cemented their legendary friendship was when Jet Jaguar shook Godzilla’s hand in gratitude, a great show of affection that was faithfully replicated later in the 2023 short, Operation Jet Jaguar.

3 Mothra

The Queen Of The Monsters

Godzilla: King Of The Monsters

• Released: May 31, 2019
• Era: Monsterverse
• Studio: Legendary Pictures
• Director: Michael Dougherty

Despite her reputation as one of Toho’s most iconic and benevolent kaiju, Mothra was an enemy to Godzilla more times than she was an ally. There were a few notorious exceptions, though. Like the time they put their differences aside to fight King Ghidorah in Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster, and Destroy All Monsters. Not to mention that she also assisted in the final showdown against Monster X and Gigan in Final Wars.

But their real friendship became truly apparent in the Monsterverse. Godzilla: King of the Monsters introduced a symbiotic relationship between the two creatures, to the point that Mothra was nicknamed the Queen of the Monsters. And this strong bond between them would later be seen clearly when she sacrificed herself in the battle against King Ghidorah. On top of that, Godzilla could clearly be seen mourning the loss.

Luckily for both Godzilla and the fans, Mothra reappeared once again in the recent Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, where she was the only creature who was able to stop Godzilla’s attack on Kong and convince him to team up against Skar King and Shimo. Their symbiotic relationship is truly fascinating, and since Mothra is still alive by the end of the film, many fans hope it will be explored more in future installments.

2 Rodan

A Reluctant But Trustworthy Ally

Ghidorah, The Three-Headed Monster

• Released: December 20, 1964
• Era: Showa
• Studio: Toho
• Director: Ishiro Honda

Like many other of his classic friends, Godzilla and Rodan got off to a bad start, but they luckily managed to put their differences aside to fight King Ghidorah alongside Mothra. They later teamed up against this very same opponent the following year in Invasion of Astro-Monster, and Rodan was also one of many allies in the massive final battle of Destroy All Monsters. The Showa Era iteration of Rodan began as more of a rival to Godzilla, but he slowly became one of his most trusted allies and friends.

A similar dynamic was seen once again during the Heisei Era’s Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla 2, where they began as rivals – because Rodan was guarding Baby Godzilla’s egg – but he eventually sacrificed himself in the final encounter against Super Mechagodzilla so Godzilla could live on and protect Rodan’s adoptive child. To top it all off, Rodan was also one of the monsters that was spared in Godzilla: Final Wars, serving as yet another reference to their iconic friendship.

1 Anguirus

Godzilla’s Best Friend Ever

Godzilla Vs. Gigan

• Released: March 12, 1972
• Era: Showa
• Studio: Toho
• Director: Jun Fukuda

Whenever Godzilla fans discuss who is Godzilla’s best friend, they all share one common response for the #1 spot: Anguirus, which is especially curious considering that he is the very first giant monster that the King of the Monsters ever fought, back in the 1955 film, Godzilla Raids Again. But things have changed a lot ever since, and Godzilla was a close friend to another incarnation of Anguirus while they were living peacefully in Monsterland in subsequent films. They were even part of the huge climactic battle of Destroy All Monsters, where Anguirus’ resilience proved to be extremely efficient.

But Anguirus was finally cemented as Godzilla’s best friend in Godzilla vs. Gigan, where they both teamed up in the battle against Gigan and King Ghidorah. The close bond between these two kaiju that was seen in that film was like nothing audiences had seen before; Godzilla and Anguirus communicated, protected each other, and even performed some amazing combined attacks in the middle of the battle. Anguirus was so close to Godzilla that he even got tricked by Fake Godzilla in Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla. This classic friendship was so endearing that it was referenced many times throughout the rest of the franchise: Like in Final Wars – where Anguirus was also kept alive – or in King of the Monsters, where the corpse of a creature similar to Anguirus could be seen outside of Godzilla’s hideout.

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