King Kong (1976)
12-month trend
12-month trend
Monthly article views
2025-09 to 2026-08
An oil executive's expedition to a hidden island leads to the discovery of a prehistoric giant ape and a tragic romance.
The story
Frederick Wilson, an oil executive, leads an expedition to an undiscovered island hidden by clouds, believing it holds a massive oil deposit. Jack Prescott, a primate paleontologist, joins the voyage to warn the team of a legendary beast. During the journey, they rescue Dwan, an aspiring actress, from a shipwreck. Upon reaching the island, the team discovers a primitive tribe protected by a wall from a mysterious god known as Kong. The expedition finds the oil deposit to be of poor quality. However, the natives kidnap Dwan to offer her as a sacrifice to the giant ape, who eventually captures her.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Frederick Wilson leads an expedition to a cloud-hidden island seeking oil. Primate paleontologist Jack Prescott joins to warn them of a great beast. They rescue Dwan, an actress, from a shipwreck. On the island, they find a tribe protected from Kong by a wall. The oil is unusable. The natives kidnap Dwan and sacrifice her to Kong, who tames her through her monologues. Prescott and a rescue party attempt to save her, but the party is killed by Kong. Prescott eventually rescues Dwan while Kong battles a giant snake. Kong is then captured by the natives using a pit trap and chloroform. Wilson decides to transport Kong to New York City for promotion. In a 'Beauty and the Beast' show, Kong breaks free and rampages through the city, killing Wilson. Prescott and Dwan flee across the Queensboro Bridge. Kong snatches Dwan from a bar and heads toward the World Trade Center. The military uses flamethrowers and helicopters to attack Kong on the towers. Kong is fatally injured and falls to the plaza, dying as Dwan watches in trauma.
- First release year
- 1976
- Runtime (minutes)
- 134
- Production countries
- United States; Italy
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- John Guillermin
- Writers
- Lorenzo Semple Jr. · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Jeff Bridges; Charles Grodin; Jessica Lange · Dwan
- Genres
- adventure; monster; horror; science fiction; fantasy
- Themes
- Man vs. Nature; Sacrifice; Romance
- Tone and mood
- Absurdist; Romantic; Adventure
- Premise and plot tags
- Remake; Lost World; Monster Movie; Damsel in Distress
- Source material / true-story basis
- The 1933 film King Kong
- Franchise connections
- King Kong
- Reception
- The film received mixed reviews from critics but was a solid success at the box office, earning back over triple its budget despite not meeting studio expectations.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 55% · review count: 51; Metacritic · score: 61 · scale: 100 · review count: 11
- Awards and nominations
- Special Achievement Academy Award · Best Visual Effects · Winner; Academy Award · Best Cinematography · Nominee; Academy Award · Best Sound · Nominee; Golden Globe Award · Best Acting Debut in a Motion Picture – Female · Winner
- Production trivia
- The roar used for Kong was taken from the film The Land Unknown (1957).; The film's climax was set on top of the newly constructed World Trade Center.; Over 30,000 people showed up as extras for the scene of Kong's death at the World Trade Center.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
Your lists
Loading your lists…