King Kong has the rare honor of being one of few Universal Monsters that weren’t adapted from any existing media, having been created exclusively to terrify filmgoers. While the original 1933 film wasn’t exactly a horror flick, presenting itself as an adventurous trek through dinosaur-infested jungles with some melodramatic romance thrown in for good measure, it still inspired a entire generation of creature features like The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms and even the original Godzilla, making it a monster movie classic.

That’s why it’s no surprise that popular culture’s favorite giant ape has seen so many different incarnations over the years, from Dino De Laurentis’ ecological parable in 1976 to Legendary’s Vietnam-inspired Kong: Skull Island. While there’s some merit to all of these different versions of the story, my personal favorite will always be Peter Jackson’s 2005 remake. I’m clearly not the only fan of the film,...