Godzilla Minus Zero Sets Japan’s Live-Action Opening-Day Box Office Record
GKIDS and TOHO will bring Takashi Yamazaki’s sequel to North American theaters on November 6.
Godzilla Minus Zero sold 590,000 tickets and earned 910 million yen on its first day in Japan, TOHO announced Wednesday. Its opening-day revenue was 201% higher than Godzilla Minus One’s.
TOHO announced Wednesday that Godzilla Minus Zero earned 910 million yen (about US$5.75 million) from 590,000 tickets on its opening day in Japan. That sets Japan’s opening-day revenue record for a live-action film, including both domestic and foreign releases.
The new Godzilla film from Godzilla Minus One filmmaker Takashi Yamazaki posted opening-day earnings 201% higher than its predecessor’s.
The film opened in Japan on Tuesday, November 3, celebrated as Godzilla Day to mark the original film’s November 3, 1954 debut. This year, Godzilla Day fell on Tuesday and coincided with Japan’s Culture Day holiday. Godzilla Minus One also debuted in Japan on November 3, 2023.
GKIDS and TOHO will release the sequel in North America on Friday, November 6. This marks the first time a Japanese-produced Godzilla film opens in Japan and North America during the same week.
Godzilla Minus Zero is also the first Japanese film to qualify for the “filmed for IMAX” designation. Alongside Japan and North America, its opening-week rollout includes:
- Latin America
- Europe
- Asia
- The Middle East
- Australia
- New Zealand
The companies said they would announce more international release dates later. TOHO acquired GKIDS in October 2024.
The sequel takes place in 1949, two years after the events of Godzilla Minus One.
Min Tanaka, whose credits include 47 Ronin and the live-action Rurouni Kenshin films, joins the cast as biologist Kanji Murakami. The returning Godzilla Minus One cast includes:
- Ryūnosuke Kamiki as Koichi Shikishima
- Minami Hamabe as Noriko Ōishi
- Hidetaka Yoshioka as Noda
- Yūki Yamada as Shiro Mizushima
- Kuranosuke Sasaki as Seiji Akitsu
- Sakura Andō as Sumiko Ota
- Miō Tanaka as Tatsuo Hotta
Behind the camera:
- Takashi Yamazaki returns as director, screenwriter, and VFX supervisor
- Naoki Satō returns as composer
- Shirogumi Inc. handling visual effects
Godzilla Minus One has grossed more than US$116 million worldwide. Box Office Mojo estimates its United States earnings at US$57,144,669. As of 2024, it ranked as the country’s third highest-grossing foreign-language film.
Netflix streams Godzilla Minus One and its black-and-white edition, Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color, worldwide. Both versions are also available in North America for digital rental and purchase through:
- Amazon
- Apple iTunes
- Google Play
- Microsoft
- FandangoNOW/VUDU
- inDemand
- XBOX
- Vubiquity
In Japan, Amazon Prime Video exclusively streams the film’s color and monochrome versions.
Godzilla Minus One won Best Visual Effects at the 96th Academy Awards in March 2024. It became the first Japanese film to win that category and the first Godzilla film to receive an Oscar nomination.
Sony Pictures recently moved Grandgear, Yamazaki’s first English-language film, to January 14, 2028. It had originally been scheduled for February 18, 2028.
Source: Godzilla Minus Zero on X
