Godzilla Minus One stomped into theaters this past weekend and did so with a pretty impressive bang. Riding a wave of near-universal praise from critics and moviegoers alike, the film massively overperformed at the box office. Yet, Toho had initially planned to have the King of the Monsters’ latest cinematic ride in North American theaters for just over a week, with the film’s run originally scheduled to end on December 7. We say originally because, thankfully, the run has been extended.
Toho International, rather wisely, will now keep the film in U.S. theaters at least through December 14. Showtimes recently cropped up on ticketing sites after news started making the rounds online that the film might be pulled from screens after the 7th. Given the very strong word of mouth that is now circulating, quite a few moviegoers were hoping they would have the chance to see Godzilla do his thing on the big screen. Luckily, fans will have at least one more weekend - as well as next week - to do precisely that.
Directed by Takashi Yamazaki, Godzilla Minus One had already been making very good money overseas but it opened to more than $11 million domestically, serving as quite a big surprise for the industry at large. It now ranks as the biggest opening ever in the U.S. for a live-action Japanese film. For context, 2016’s beloved Shin Godzilla made just $1.9 million during its entire run in the States. So yeah, this has become a pretty big deal. The brief synopsis for the film reads as follows:
“In postwar Japan, a new terror rises; Godzilla. Will the devastated people be able to survive… let alone fight back?”
The film takes the action back to the ‘40s, offering a very fresh perspective. It’s also the scariest that Godzilla has been in some time. That’s something that Yamazaki touched on in our recent interview with him, explaining how he arrived at his terrifying version of the legendary monster.
“I always thought that if Godzilla actually showed up in front of me, it would be scary, undeniably. And I also felt the visual effects technology overall is at the point where I could create the scary Godzilla that I wanted. Now the emphasis I placed was on how close Godzilla is, and the detail — people are running away, and you see his foot come down. You know he’s coming close to the train, and you see all the details. So, it’s a closeness.”
Godzilla Minus One is in theaters now.
