All 10 King Kong movies ranked from worst to best

8. Son of Kong

Less than a year after King Kong, RKO Pictures released Son of Kong. It was a one-hour-long adventure that took Carl Denham back to Skull Island where he came face-to-face with – yes, you guessed it! – the son of Kong.

Son of Kong is a strange entry in the King Kong franchise. The producers knew they wouldn’t match the heights of the game-changing original, so decided to rush out a sequel that did something a little different. It’s impressive that they managed to get this released so quickly, but maybe this is a case of striking when the iron is too hot.

It feels like there could have been a bigger movie here, as Son of Kong ends up feeling like a short or a TV special due to its brief runtime. Nevertheless, it does offer up 69 minutes of pure nostalgic entertainment with some of the same stunning stop-motion effects that its predecessor gave us. It also benefits from its significantly more comedic tone, and Kong’s son is an enjoyable addition to the lore.

Its greatest attribute, however, might just lie in the character development that Denham receives, making him a much more well-rounded character than he appeared in the original.