What is the iRankMovies score for King Kong?

Name: King Kong
Director: Merian C. Cooper
Genre: adventure, fantasy, horror
Released: 1933
Duration: 1 h 40 min
Rating: 7.9

King Kong has an iRankMovies score of 86/100, based on a weighted combination of IMDb (×3.0), Rotten Tomatoes (×2.0), Metacritic (×1.5), and TMDb (×1.0).

King Kong (1933)

Beauty conquered the beast!

Release:1933

Runtime:1h 40m

Country:United States

Director:Merian C. Cooper, Ernest B. Schoedsack

Language:English

Genre

AdventureFantasyHorror

See the best adventure movies →

Keywords

New York CityShipExotic IslandIslandUnsociabilityScreenplayMovie BusinessGreat Depression

iRank86

King Kong rating: IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic

IMDb7.9/10· 95K votes

Rotten Tomatoes97%

Metacritic92%

TMDb7.59/10· 2K votes

With 97% on Rotten Tomatoes, backed by 7.9/10 on IMDb and 92/100 on Metacritic, critical reception of this film has been very positive.

About King Kong

Adventurous filmmaker Carl Denham sets out to produce a motion picture unlike anything the world has seen before. Alongside his leading lady Ann Darrow and his first mate Jack Driscoll, they arrive on an island and discover a legendary creature said to be neither beast nor man. Denham captures the monster to be displayed on Broadway as King Kong, the eighth wonder of the world.

Cast of King Kong

Robert Armstrong
as Carl Denham
Fay Wray
as Ann Darrow
Bruce Cabot
as Jack Driscoll
Frank Reicher
as Captain Englehorn
Victor Wong
as Ship's Cook Charlie
James Flavin
as Mate Briggs
Sam Hardy
as Charles Weston
Noble Johnson
as Skull Island Native Chief
Steve Clemente
as Skull Island Witch Doctor
Roscoe Ates
as Press Photographer (uncredited)
Merian C. Cooper
as Pilot of Plane that Kills Kong (uncredited)
Frances Curry
as Intended Sacrificial Bride for Kong (Uncredited)

King Kong facts

Budget: $672K
Box office: $10M
Collection: King Kong (1933) Collection

Our take on King Kong

The 1933 original sends a film crew to a mysterious island and brings back a giant ape whose doomed fascination with a beautiful woman ends atop the Empire State Building. Groundbreaking in its effects and surprisingly tragic, it's the template for every monster blockbuster since. If its spectacle and beauty-and-the-beast pathos gripped you, seek out classic monster movies and adventure films about wonders that should have been left alone.

Ranked by the iRankMovies editorial teamUpdated August 2026Methodology Data sources

Audience opinions

What the audience liked

•Cooper and Schoedsack create mythic adventure with practical effects that hold weight
•Dinosaur sequences retain visceral power despite primitive special effects technology
•Damsel-in-distress narrative anchors giant creature spectacle with emotional stakes

What the audience disliked

•Pacing feels leisurely and slow by modern action-cinema standards and expectations
•Period filmmaking reflects outdated and offensive racial attitudes in dialogue and casting

Saga: King Kong (1933) Collection