02/03/2025
It's been a decade and a half since Matt Frank started drawing comics starring the King of the Monsters, but in 2025 the artist is paying homage to the queen. On March 5, Frank and writer Sophie Campbell debut their traditionally-colored team-up to comic shops in Mothra: Queen of the Monsters #1 from IDW Publishing, which pits the mighty Mothra against the all-new antagonist Antra. Read on to learn more about Frank's history with Toho's iconic monsters, process, and toy collection in our exclusive interview.
Godzilla.com: Mothra: Queen of the Monsters is the first-ever Mothra comic book series. How does it feel to be involved in such a landmark project?
Matt Frank: So, as of this coming October, I’ll have been working on the Godzilla franchise for 15 years. Beginning back when IDW first got the license in 2010, I worked on the “Store Stomp” variant covers for Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters. Now, with Mothra looming, it feels like something my career has been building to over these 15 years. Not to mention it simply feels like the time is right for a Mothra spotlight.
For a long time, she’s been viewed as something of an oddity by audiences in the West, who often struggled with the idea that a “monster” could be something beautiful and delicate but also powerful and awe-inspiring. I remember snarky movie reviews decrying the idea of a giant moth being inherently ridiculous, sarcastically saying "Ooh how scary!" Now, in our shifting cultural climate, Mothra is allowed to be herself, to embody something beyond being just another kaiju in Godzilla’s roster. She’s always been more than that, having her own films and presence in Japan, but I’m beyond thrilled to help her ride that wave in American comics!
Godzilla.com: Antra is an all-new addition to the Toho monster continuum. How are you approaching illustrating this new Mothra foe?
Matt Frank: This was a true collaboration between myself and Sophie. While we were brainstorming enemy monsters, she loved the idea of a giant ant. I helped her expand the idea, drawing upon the idea that Antra is an ant QUEEN and the storytelling possibilities that come with that. I’m approaching her with a ferocity and reverence befitting a world-ending titan. Antra is herself a "Queen of Monsters", and I wanted her to overflow with menace - an oncoming storm. I also tweaked her design during the concept phase to be akin to a suitmation monster, just to give her that little extra dash of true kaiju-ness.
Godzilla.com: Series writer Sophie Campbell is an accomplished artist in her own right. How has her background informed how the two of you work together on this story?
Matt Frank: It’s been an absolute dream working with her; uninhibited creativity flows from her brain and I’m just running around trying to catch it in a metaphorical bucket. Initially when she sent me the short pitch, I swooned over the possibilities. When I suggested that I could draw it, she seemed genuinely pleased to be able to focus entirely on the writing side of the process. But she can’t help herself and cranks out concepts that have been immeasurably helpful. She’s responsible for much of the initial concept art that gave the pitch shape in the palace of my mind.
Sophie’s brain as an artist works differently than mine in a way I find inspiring, something we actually cultivated in each-other back when we were doing redesigns of various kaiju just for fun. Now, I’m finding myself exploring new avenues of character design working with her initial designs, and she’s even helped me refine a unified style for the humanoid characters in this comic. Drawing women especially seems to flow from her fingertips as effortlessly as kaiju flow from my own, and I found it particularly inspiring.
Godzilla.com: You’ve opted to color this comic by hand with COPIC markers instead of working digitally. What made you want to add this extra labor of love to the project, and how is your process going so far?
Matt Frank: Well, in a nutshell, it’s one of those artistic directions that I can’t argue with the results of, but find myself cursing the heavens whilst I grind over these pages for the extra layer of WORK I’ve buried myself in! Plus those markers ain’t cheap haha! Honestly it’s coming out beautifully, and I really appreciate Jake Williams (our editor) insisting that I approach the book in the same manner as the Godzilla 70th Anniversary anthology story that I wrote and illustrated (with Donny Winter providing poetry). And my artsy-fartsy brain enjoyed the notion of what sort of challenge this might present: keeping the color palette somewhat limited with warm and cool grays, but using color with strategic intentionality similar to the way Guillermo Del Toro uses it in The Shape of Water. I’m always looking for the next big challenge in my artistic career, looking to try something new or an approach I haven’t fully explored… and this certainly counts. It’s really challenging staying on-schedule though!
Godzilla.com: Like a lot of Godzilla storytellers, you have an impressive collection of monster toys. Do you have any favorite Mothra items in your collection?
Matt Frank: I do! One is a “Mothra Leo” Bandai action figure from 1996, which flaps its wings when I squeeze the abdomen! It’s also signed by Mothra Leo concept artist Hideo Okamoto!
I have the little set of figures from Mezco Toyz of Mothra (with the fuzzy flocking) and the Shobijin from Mothra vs. Godzilla, and they even come in a box similar to the one that they were carried within from the film.
But a real treasure in my collection is a hunk of Mothra’s eggshell! It’s a piece of painted fiberglass from the actual prop used in Godzilla: Tokyo SOS! It was given to me by friends from Japan, and you bet I put it under glass for safekeeping. I even made a little specimen card for it!
Mothra: Queen of the Monsters #1 arrives on March 5. Fans can pre-order through their local comic shop to make sure they get their copy.