Mothra
The giant heroic moth and her twin fairies.
Mothra is a giant moth-like kaiju who first appeared in the 1961 serialised novella The Luminous Fairies and Mothra, adapted the same year into the film Mothra directed by Ishiro Honda. She has since been a recurring monster in the Godzilla franchise.
Quick Facts
- Series
- Mothra and Godzilla
- First
- The Luminous Fairies and Mothra (1961 novella)
- Creator
- Shinichiro Nakamura
- Yoshie Hotta
- Takehiko Fukanaga
- Shinichi Sekizawa
- Eiji Tsuburaya
- Portrayed by
- Haruo Nakajima (caterpillar); Katsumi Tezuka (caterpillar)
- Also known as
- The Thing
- Titanus Mosura
- Queen of the Monsters
- Species
- Divine moth
- Gender
- Female
Lore & Background
She usually hatches from an egg as a larva, cocoons herself in silk and emerges as a winged adult, accompanied by two tiny twin fairies who speak for her. Unlike many Toho monsters she is largely heroic, protecting her island, the Earth and Japan.
Her design draws on silkworms and giant silk moths. She is often shown hatching offspring, sometimes twins, as she nears death, a nod to the doctrine of samsara.
More in Monsters & Heroes
Elsewhere in Godzilla
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