Megalodon Vs. Kraken! - Dinosaur Facts For Kids

Moviegoers will once again plunge into the treacherous depths as “The Meg 2: The Trench,” the highly anticipated sequel to the 2018 blockbuster “The Meg,” hits the big screens soon. This time Jonas Taylor, once again portrayed Jason Statham, faces not only the Megalodon but a colossal octopus-like creature people are calling the Kraken. From the trailers, it appears to be a fearsome adversary, to both ‘Jonas and the Megs – this time there are three!

This raises the question: What would Megalodon Vs. The Kraken actually look like?

The kraken’s size varies due to its mythological nature mostly shown as being large in terms of length but not weight. Megalodon at up to 70 feet was shorter in length but at 50 tons much heavier. This weight advantage, speed and its powerful jaws would have given it advantage over a mythical octopus like a Kraken,

To answer this, both scientifically and with some tongue in cheekiness ( just like the movie) We need to take a look at both these two huge predators.

The Megalodon, an ancient shark of colossal proportions, prowled the oceans millions of years ago. With its massive size and powerful jaws, this prehistoric predator ruled the underwater realm, and it now, luckily just in the movie, returns to terrify us once again.

The Kraken, on the other hand, emerges from the depths of mythology, and Pirates of the Caribbean, It is said to live in the deepest parts of the ocean. With its enormous tentacles and unparalleled strength, the Kraken has been the subject of sailors’ stories and ancient myths for thousands of years.

In this article, we explore their sizes, physical attributes, and unique abilities, before taking a look at who would win in a fight between the Megalodon, or three, and the Kraken.

The Megalodon

This colossal shark, one of the the largest known predators to have ever existed, captivates our imaginations with its sheer size and power.

With an average length of around 50 to 60 feet (15 to 18 meters), and some individuals possibly (though disputed!) reaching up to 82 feet (25 meters), the Megalodon would dwarf every modern-day shark. We have an article on how big Megalodon could be here on the site.

Physically, the Megalodon resembled its modern relatives, although there is still discussion if it looked more like a huge Great White or a Short Fin Mako, with a streamlined body and rows of razor-sharp, serrated teeth that could grow up to 7 inches (18 centimeters) long.

These fearsome jaws were perfectly designed for crushing the bones and shells of its prey, which mainly consisted of whales, seals, and other large marine mammals and in the movie giant squid and people!

Despite its tremendous size, the Megalodon was surprisingly agile, able to reach speeds of up to 20-25 miles kilometers per hour. This speed, coupled with its power and hunting strategies, made it a formidable apex predator.

However, the Megalodon’s colossal size came with some drawbacks. It needed an extensive hunting ground to sustain itself, which might have contributed to its eventual extinction as well as competition from smaller predatory species like orcas and other sharks.

Additionally, like modern sharks, the Megalodon reproduced relatively slowly giving birth to large young, making its populations vulnerable to any drastic changes in the environment.

The Kraken

Deep-sea legends and folklore give birth to the awe-inspiring Kraken, a mythical creature that lurks in the uncharted depths of the ocean. we have an article here on what was the Kraken

Although its existence remains shrouded in mystery, various tales from different cultures paint a vivid picture of its monstrous proportions. It is first thought to have appeared in modern times – descriptions we mean not the actual Kraken its self – in around 1700, but in more detail in 1734 when a Danish Norwegian – Hans Egede described the Kraken in more detail.

Megalodon vs. Kraken!

The name actually comes from Norwegian word that describes a malformed tree with outgrowths. (much like the many arms or tentacles of a Kraken or Giant Octopus.)

Descriptions of the Kraken’s size have varied across legends, ranging from a massive creature capable of dwarfing ships to an almost supernatural animal that could be Godzilla sized and reach hundreds of feet in length. In The Meg 2: The Trench it does appear to be at least to have 200 feet plus tentacles.

These tentacles are its most distinctive feature, and are each adorned with formidable suction cups and teeth or hooks of sorts that could certainly help it to grip onto sharks the size of a Megalodon.

Despite all this, the Kraken’s lack of speed compared to the agile Megalodon might pose a disadvantage in a head-to-head encounter. Its vast size and habitat might also limit its ability to defend against surface attacks.

While not actually being a real animal would also be a huge drawback when encountering a very real shark like Megalodon. However, there was and is a very real giant octopus which we discuss here as well.

To compare the two, before we get into who would win in a head to head between megalodon and a Kraken we have put together a table that compares the two in numbers*

*The numbers and statistics for the Kraken vary wildly due to its mythical nature.

Table 1: Megalodon Vs. Kraken Comparison.

Characteristic	Megalodon	Kraken
Length	Up to 70+ feet (20+meters) More likely 50 feet or so	Varied in myths; from 100 feet to up to 1000 feet when classed as a Titan.
Weight	Estimated 50-100 tons	Varied in myths; often colossal
Teeth	Serrated, up to 7 inches long	Sharp beak in the mouth but had teeth like structures on its tentacle suckers
Reality	Real, existed for millions of years now extinct.	Mythical creature in folklore, its basis probably on giant Squid and octopus.
Predatory Behavior	Apex predator, hunted whales and large sea mammals and fish	Legendary sea monster, although probably ate sea creatures is shown as eating people and attacking ships.
Physical Existence	Fossil evidence, teeth and Vertebrae is now extinct	Legends and stories, possibly stemming form Giant Squid and Giant octopus sightings.
Habitat	Prehistoric oceans, 2-20 million years ago.	Deep, uncharted sea trenches, Still “around” today.
Pop Culture	Featured in movies and books including the Meg series of novels and movies.	Depicted in various tales including Pirates of the Caribbean, Clash of the titans, Godzilla and more.

The Battle: Megalodon vs. The Kraken

Never one to let reality get in the way, The Meg 2: The Trench, although not currently confirming it, is going to put the Kraken and the Megalodon – or three of them – head to head.

Although it has not been 100% confirmed that this tentacled creature is the Kraken, it is clearly going to be spun as a gianticised octopus where the legends came from ( in our mind anyway) and will be explained away that way.

So, with that in mind who would win in a fight between a Kraken and a Megalodon. We already have a “real” match up between a giant squid and octopus and a megalodon here on the site ( follow the link) so what if this was the bigger brother to these cephalopods!

Who would win ? Megalodon Vs. Kraken?

The Megalodon, with its remarkable speed and agility, would be able to dart through the wate using its keen senses to detect the Kraken’s presence.

The Kraken, with its larger size, if not weight, and eight hooked and powerful tentacle could not match it for speed, but with octopus being highly intelligent it may be able to trap or outwit its more aggressive and likely heavier attacker.

As the fight unfolds, the Megalodon relies on its powerful jaws and teeth to inflict devastating bites, aiming to cripple the Kraken’s tentacles.

However, the Kraken’s superior reach and strength enable it to grapple with the shark, attempting to wrap and immobilise the heavier shark. If it succeeds in wrapping one or two of its tentacles around the shark, it could potentially keep its more vulnerable areas away from that 7 foot wide mouth and even drown or crush the shark.

However if the Megalodon get a bite or two onto the body of the Kraken then it could be mortally wounded and unable to fight back leaving it helpless to the attacks of the Meg.

Ultimately, the outcome of such a battle would hinge on a wide range of factors, including the creatures’ intelligence, experience, and the environment in which they clash, and of course perhaps the biggest factor… luck!

Teamwork: Megalodon Alliance

As has been revealed in the trailers for The Meg2: The Trench the sequel will not feature just one megalodon “the biggest one anyone has ever seen” but three of them.

What could happen if multiple Megalodons joined forces to confront the formidable Kraken. In this scenario, three Megalodons, recognizing the threat posed by the Kraken could hunt in packs and use synchronized movements and coordinating their attacks.

Though the Kraken would certainly put up a valiant fight, the overwhelming force and strategy of the Megalodon alliance would be too much for it.

Eventually, the Kraken is either forced to retreat or would be killed and eaten by the Megalodon.

Conclusion:

While we have highlighted the differences between the two massive predators above and these, even with the Krakens mythical nature, are pretty obvious. The result of a head to head between these two is not so clear however.

The fight between a giant octopus, or Kraken like creature and a giant shark is not a new concept, and Hollywood has already covered it, although at a much smaller budget in “Mega Shark Vs. Giant Octopus” you can check out more megalodon movies here and in the link below.

As “The Meg 2: The Trench” unleashes this encounter with a significantly bigger budget we will be in for a visual, if not factual, treat when we head to the cinemas and whoever would win an actually fight between a Meg and a Kraken, watching it for ourselves is certainly going to be a win for us.

The Meg 2: The Trench is released on August the 4th.

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Roy Ford

Hi, I am Roy Ford a General Studies and English Teacher who has taught all over the world. What started as a fossil collection became a great way to teach, motivate and inspire students of all ages and all over the world about dinosaurs and from that and children’s love of dinosaurs came the site dinosaur facts for kids, a resource for all ages.