Apple TV+’s Monarch: Legacy of Monsters returns on February 27, 2026, and Season 2 is shaping up to be the series’ most ambitious chapter yet. While the new season promises to push the 2017 storyline forward, it will also dive deep into a previously unseen era of Lee Shaw’s life—his mysterious two decades trapped inside the Axis Mundi.
A Hidden Era Between 1962 and 1982
Based on revelations from the Season 1 finale, the prequel arc of Season 2 will chronicle Lee Shaw’s lost years inside the Axis Mundi, covering the period from 1962 to 1982. This timeline clarifies lingering questions left by the first season. Although some fans speculated the prequel might explore Shaw’s 1950s missions, those events were already accounted for in Season 1, which focused heavily on his early Monarch career.
Revisiting Shaw’s Early Monarch Timeline
Season 1 mapped out Shaw’s pre–Axis Mundi journey:
1952: Shaw becomes the military escort for Monarch scientists Keiko Miura and Bill Randa.
1959: He witnesses Keiko being pulled into a Hollow Earth rift during a Kazakhstan expedition.
1962: Shaw leads Operation Hourglass—a reconnaissance mission meant to stabilize a rift using a Titan entry—only to become stranded in the Axis Mundi.
The Truth Behind Operation Hourglass
Operation Hourglass was Monarch’s attempt to stabilize a Hollow Earth gateway long enough for human entry. The mission required a Titan to pass through the rift, but once inside the Axis Mundi, Shaw’s team faced the lethal Ion Dragon. Shaw alone survived.
A week in the realm equated to 20 years on the surface. When Shaw was finally ejected back to Earth in 1982, he returned to a world that believed him long gone.
Season 2: Two Timelines, One Legacy
While exploring the 1962–1982 prequel gap, Season 2 will also continue the present-day storyline following the 2017 events of the Season 1 finale. Viewers last saw the older Shaw (Kurt Russell) sacrificing himself to save Cate, May, and the newly returned Keiko, vanishing into the Hollow Earth in the process.
The official synopsis confirms that Season 2 will confront the mystery of Shaw’s fate, reunite the main characters on Skull Island, and continue building Monarch’s larger monster mythology. Kurt Russell is officially returning as the older Lee Shaw, signaling a major continuation of his arc.
With its blend of untold past and escalating present, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters Season 2 promises a feature-worthy exploration of one man’s impact on two worlds—and two timelines. Mark your calendar for February 27, 2026.