Director Takashi Yamazaki's Godzilla Minus One just can't be stopped it seems. After overperforming in North America its opening weekend, Godzilla Minus One took down four box office records. It has now beaten a 34 year old record, topping the 1989 North American release of Japanese import, The Adventures of Milo and Otis (1986), to become the highest grossing live action Japanese film in North America.
The Adventures of Milo and Otis grossed $14.1 Million between 1989 and a 1990 re-release. Godzilla Minus One passed it Tuesday, December 5th with $14.6 Million. It sits at $17 Million before the weekend.
Current records held by Godzilla Minus One at the box office now include:
- #1 All-Time Highest Grossing Toho Godzilla Movie
- #1 2023 Highest Opening for a Foreign Language Film
- #1 All-Time Highest Opening Japanese Film
- #1 All-Time Highest Grossing Live Action Japanese Film
- #2 All-Time Highest Opening for a Foreign Language Film
Due to the overwhelmingly positive reception, Toho has announced that screenings will be extended and Godzilla Minus One will increase the locations it is played from 2,300 to over 2,500. "Godzilla Minus One isn't going anywhere," claims Toho, "As long as people are attending, showtimes will continue."
Set in a post-war Japan, Godzilla Minus One once again shows us a Godzilla that is a terrifying and overwhelming force. Japan, which had already been devastated by the war, faces a new threat with Godzilla, bringing the country from nothing (zero) into the ‘minus.’
Godzilla Minus One is directed by Takashi Yamazaki. An award winning filmmaker and avid Godzilla fan, his work on Always: Sunset on Third Street (2005) earned him two Japanese Academy Awards for Best Director and Best Screenwriter. He was honored with another Best Director and Best Screenplay nomination for the sequel, Always: Sunset on Third Street 2 (2007). In 2016, he won the Best Director category again for The Eternal Zero. Yamazaki also helmed highly acclaimed actioners, Returner, Space Battleship Yamato and many others.
He gave Godzilla a cameo during an opening dream sequence in Always: Sunset on Third Street 2. In 2021 he returned to Godzilla and directed footage for Seibuen Amusement Park's Godzilla the Ride: Giant Monster Battle Summit.
Godzilla Minus One is now playing in both Japan and North America.
--
Source(s):
Deadline
Official Godzilla Minus One Twitter
Official Godzilla Instagram
Godzilla Minus One is North America's Highest Grossing Live Action Japanese Film, Showtimes Extended Indefinitely
