I recently had the privilege of having a little long-distance chat with the talented trio of Anna Sawai, Ren Watabe, and Kiersey Clemons - the lovely cast members behind Monarch: Legacy of Monsters' iconic and beloved trio: Cate, Kentaro, and May.
These three are not just talented but also pretty adorable. Our conversation ventured into the heart of their on-screen chemistry, character dynamics, and personal experiences in their recent project - and, of course, I had to ask them who their favorite MonsterVerse Titan was.
For those who have not watched Monarch: LoM yet, Cate (Anna Sawai) and Kentaro (Ren Watabe) find out that they are very estranged and unknown-to-each-other siblings. Their father, Hiroshi Randa, decided that having one family wasn't enough, so he lived two completely separate lives with two different families - one in Tokyo (Kentaro) and one in San Francisco (Cate). Oof. Talk about awkwardness.
Our discussion took an intriguing turn as we touched on the storyline and how it involved being surprise siblings, a plot element brilliantly portrayed by Watabe and Sawai. Sawai described her initial challenge, saying, "It was my first time meeting him. I had no idea who Ren was and I was just like, who, like I am, I'm not ready to be friends with you right now." This honest admission highlighted the raw emotion she brought to her character - which is very nicely translated onscreen.
All three actors expressed their appreciation for the series being shot chronologically. Watabe noted, "It was nice that we didn't know each other in the beginning so that we could kind of act off that energy." This approach allowed them to authentically evolve their on-screen relationships, mirroring their off-screen interactions.
Each of them shared their favorite aspect of their roles. Clemons, in true May fashion, candidly shared, "My favorite thing is probably, I don't know, just getting to be really, like, snarky." And she is not wrong - May's sass level is as entertaining as it is enviable.
Sawai added to our discussion, sharing her connection with her character Cate. "You see her at the rock bottom when we meet her... she's mad at herself."
Watabe also reflected on his role, "Maybe, to be able to play a character that I can relate to, that I can connect to."
Our conversation lightened as we discussed their favorite characters from the Monsterverse. Much to my liking, all three of them expressed a shared fondness for Godzilla - which we were able to bond over.
Clemons humorously admitted, "It's obviously Godzilla. I was saying how I feel like I would be like, I don't know, cheating or something on my partner if I said someone else." She also talked about liking the gross little bug-like Titans seen dragging Keiko to her death on the very first episode.
Sawai, makes an excellent point why her favorite is also Godzilla, stating "Cate has this connection with him with them and she looks into his eyes, and so I studied his eyes and they're so beautiful. Then you just see that they're also like, they're misunderstood and it just makes me want to take care of them." Girl, same. I snuggle my adorable Godzilla Squishmallow while watching the series. Do not judge me.
Watabe explains that he's actually new to the MonsterVerse - and he loves all Titans the same. "There's a lot more that I think that the audiences haven't seen," he teases. "So if you are a fan, you'll be... pleasantly surprised."
Concluding the interview, I couldn't help but express my admiration for the trio's on-screen and off-screen personas. Their insights, laughter, and candidness made for an enriching conversation, leaving me and undoubtedly the fans, eager for what lies ahead in their on-screen journey.
Make sure you catch all available episodes of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters on Apple TV+! A new episode drops every Friday through January 12th.