MUTO

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MUTO
Page Template:Noitalic/styles.css has no content.Monsterverse character
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The MUTOs as depicted in Godzilla (2014)
First appearanceGodzilla (2014)
Last appearanceGodzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)
Created byDavid Callaham[1]
Gareth Edwards
Designed byMatt AllsoppLua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.
In-universe information
AliasWinged MUTO (male)[2]
Eight-legged MUTO (female)[2]
Titanus Jinshin-Mushi (MUTO Prime)[a]

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The MUTOs (acronym for Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism) are giant monsters, or kaiju, in Legendary Pictures' Monsterverse franchise. The characters first appeared as the antagonists in Godzilla (2014), directed by Gareth Edwards. While the term "MUTO" is mainly used as a moniker for the two parasitic monsters, it is intended to flag unidentified creatures. Edwards likened the term to UFO for monsters.

Edwards noted that it took over a year to create a design intended to be new and different and credited a majority of the design to Matt Allsopp. Inspiration was drawn from past American monster films.

Critics and journalists have positively received the MUTOs, however, their designs had drawn comparisons with the Cloverfield monster. The characters and their variants had appeared in other media outside of Godzilla (2014).

Overview

Name

"MUTO" is an acronym for "Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism". Director Gareth Edwards stated that "it's basically the UFO of monsters".[3] However, the term is also used as a name for the two parasitic monsters in Godzilla (2014).[4] An early draft of the screenplay differentiated the male and female MUTO as Hokmuto and Femuto.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. Official merchandise refer to the male MUTO as "Winged MUTO" and the female as "Eight-Legged MUTO".

The term "MUTO" is also used to reference giant monsters who are yet to be named. Such was the case in the official prequel comic, Godzilla: Awakening, where a hive-minded superorganism from the Permian era that feeds on radiation, is identified as a MUTO before being designated as Shinomura ("Swarm of Death.")[5] In Kong: Skull Island, Bill Randa (played by John Goodman) states that the Monarch agency, first introduced in Godzilla (2014), specializes in the hunt for Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organisms.[6] Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) changes the monsters' designation from "MUTOs" to "Titans".[6]

Development

File:Winged muto kaiju.jpg
Concept artwork of the male MUTO featured in Godzilla: Art of Destruction. Despite their arthropod-like appearance, they're considered to be vertebrates and serve as parasites to Godzilla's species. Several Hollywood monster films inspired their designs.

Upon acquiring the license for Godzilla, Legendary Pictures had planned to feature two new monsters in addition. David Callaham's first draft featured early versions of the MUTOs where they were established as ancient enemies of Godzilla but never established as to why. When Gareth Edwards came aboard the project, he created a back story to bridge the gap between Godzilla's connection with the MUTOs. Edwards brainstormed the idea that, "When these Godzillas were on Earth, there was another creature that would kill them and lay its eggs inside their dead bodies. Therefore, if these creatures ever came back, part of their life cycle would be the ability to attract Godzillas to the surface to kill them for reproduction."Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.

Edwards stressed that it took over a year to design the MUTOs in order to achieve a design that was new and different for the modern age. The creatures from Jurassic Park, Alien, Starship Troopers and King Kong became a source of inspiration for Edwards and the design team, and reflected on what made these monsters and their designs so iconic. From this, the design for the MUTO monsters kept evolving and "mutating" into a design that Edwards felt was more cohesive.[7] Edwards has credited artist Matt Allsopp for creating the majority of the MUTOs designs, stating, "The DNA of the MUTO is 80 to 90 percent from Matt, he was the main guy". Others contributed to the design of the MUTOs as well such as Weta, Rob Bliss, Steambot, and Legacy, who provided a 3-D model of the MUTOs.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.

The film depicts the MUTOs as a sexually dimorphic species. The female is much larger and walks on eight limbs—the male is much smaller, with one pair of his eight limbs modified into wings for powered flight. Though the MUTOs have an arthropod-like appearance, filmmaker Guillaume Rocheron likened them more to vertebrates.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. The angularity of the male MUTOs wing design was inspired by stealth aircraft.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found. As a side-effect of the radiation they absorb as food, the MUTOs are capable of causing electromagnetic interference, the male emitting EMP shockwaves from his claws and the female having an EMP field "Sphere of Influence" surrounding her instead.[8]

Reception

Oliver Gettell of the Los Angeles Times called the MUTOs "Godzilla's most important co-stars", praising them as threatening antagonists that encourage the audience to root for Godzilla.[9] Some viewers have been critical of the MUTOs' design, which was perceived to be similar to that of the monster from Cloverfield.[10] Collider added the MUTOs to their list of "Weakest to Strongest" MonsterVerse Kaiju, calling the male "nimble and durable" and the female "strong enough to toss Godzilla around" and that they pose a serious threat to Godzilla when partnered.[11]

In 2023, Mutotylaspis, a paguroid hermit crab from the middle Cretaceous (Albian) deposits of Vladimir Oblast (Central Russia) was named after the MUTOs.[12]

Appearances

The term "MUTO" (Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism) was referenced in Kong: Skull Island (2017).[6] The parent super-species to the MUTOs, MUTO Prime (or Titanus Jinshin-Mushi), appears in the graphic novel Godzilla: Aftershock.[13] A Queen MUTO, affectionately named "Barb" by director Michael Dougherty, was featured in Godzilla: King of the Monsters.[14] The MUTOs, along with Godzilla and the creatures from Edwards' directorial debut Monsters (2010), were briefly seen in cave paintings in Rogue One (2016). Edwards stated that the characters were added by the crew as a joke.[15]

Films

Video games

Literature

  • Godzilla: Aftershock (comic - 2019)
  • Godzilla x Kong: The Hunted (2024)

Notes

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  1. ^ The name(s) given to the parent species featured in the graphic novel Godzilla: Aftershock.Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'Module:Footnotes/anchor_id_list' not found.

References

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  1. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Screenwriter Profile: Dave Callaham". Fresh Voices. Archived from the original on September 23, 2020. Retrieved August 14, 2015.
  2. ^ a b Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Godzilla (2014) Licensed Product Guide". SciFi Japan. April 15, 2014. Archived from the original on November 15, 2020. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
  3. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content."Facebook Q&A with Director Gareth Edwards". Facebook. Archived from the original on October 15, 2022. Retrieved August 1, 2014.
  4. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Barton, Steve (October 28, 2013). "Good Morning Godzilla — More on New Kaiju Muto". Dread Central. Archived from the original on October 16, 2022. Retrieved October 16, 2022.
  5. ^ Godzilla: Awakening, Max and Greg Borenstein, Chapter 1
  6. ^ a b c Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Orquiola, John (July 21, 2018). "Godzilla 2 Has Renamed The MonsterVerse Creatures". Screen Rant. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
  7. ^ "Godzilla" Director Gareth Edwards explains why monsters still matter on YouTube
  8. ^ Godzilla, 2014, Legendary Pictures
  9. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Gettell, Oliver (May 20, 2014). "'Godzilla's' monstrous costars: What do MUTOs mean for the franchise?". LA Times.
  10. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Woerner, Meredith (March 12, 2014). "First descriptions of the new Godzilla monster (that isn't Godzilla)". io9.
  11. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Wooldridge, Zachary (July 6, 2022). "The 10 Major Monsterverse Kaiju Ranked Weakest To Strongest". Collider. Archived from the original on July 20, 2022. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
  12. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.René H.B. Fraaije, Eduard V. Mychko, Leonid S. Barsukov, John W.M. Jagt (2023). "A new mid-Cretaceous hermit crab (Crustacea, Anomura) from Central Russia sheds new light on paguroid evolution". Cretaceous Research. 154 105749. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2023.105749.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  13. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Millican, Josh (April 2, 2019). "Meet MUTO Prime: The Latest Confirmed Titan in Godzilla: King of the Monsters". Dread Central. Archived from the original on June 2, 2019. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  14. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Whalen, Andrew (May 31, 2019). "Godzilla: King of the Monsters Monster List: All 17 Titan Names Revealed". Newsweek. Archived from the original on June 2, 2019. Retrieved June 1, 2019.
  15. ^ Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css has no content.Holmes, Adam (November 30, 2016). "The Godzilla Easter Egg Star Wars: Rogue One Snuck In For Gareth Edwards". CinemaBlend. Archived from the original on January 6, 2023. Retrieved January 5, 2022.

Bibliography

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