Popverse's top stories of the day

• How the Star Trek V: The Final Frontier campfire scene encapsulated and inspired everything we love about the Marvel Studios movies & TV shows
• WATCH: Yellowstone: John Dutton's fate, Kevin Costner's exit, and season 5's biggest surprise revealed
• Creature Commandos at NYCC '24: The weirdest, wildest & Weasel-est moments from DC & Max's James Gunn-led panel

Godzilla has changed its look plenty of times in its more than 70 years of films and TV shows, but there have been a few consistencies to them. Normally, their iconic Atomic Breath has a distinctive blue color to it that starts in its dorsal spikes before firing out of its mouth. The trailer for the latest MonsterVerse film shows this attack with a pink hue, prompting plenty of theories and speculation about why Godzilla is pink in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.

The official reasons for Godzilla’s transformation will likely only be revealed when Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire hits cinemas in March 2024. However, the trailers show some hints that its new pink coloration is a result of Godzilla’s need to evolve and grow stronger. During the final battle in Godzilla vs. Kong, the Titan took significant damage. Presumably, that would explain why the trailer for the new film shows Godzilla recovering in a glacier, with a pink aura emanating from the bottom.

After emerging from that glacier, Godzilla is not only healed but also sports a new, slimmer design, which lends some credence to the theory that they evolved into a more powerful form when confronted with a power greater than themselves. That also would help explain why their Atomic Breath is pink now – they have changed and so has the representation of their power.

Director Adam Wingard seemed to confirm this theory in comments at IGN Fan Fest 2024. "I wanted it to be part of the major drive of the story, why Godzilla was getting this new look. And the pink colour itself, it's not random. Within the movie there's actually reasoning behind why he actually turns pink. It's not just like, he evolves and for some reason the blue turns to pink."

Whether Godzilla’s pink atomic breath is enough to overcome the new threat making its way out of Hollow Earth will only be revealed when Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire finally hits cinemas.

Whichever giant monster is your favorite, Popverse has you covered. We have a guide to Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire's ending (and what it means for the broader MonsterVerse), as well as watch orders for both Legendary's MonsterVerse and Godzilla's overall movies, as well as why Godzilla Minus One left theaters early (and why New Empire could be to blame!), and if you're a Popverse premium member, a New York Comic Con-exclusive interview with the cast and crew of Legendary's kaiju-hunting drama Monarch: Legacy of Monsters.