“Godzilla -0.0” marks the next chapter in Toho’s monster saga

Toho has officially revealed the title of its upcoming “Godzilla” feature film: “Godzilla -0.0” (Godzilla Minus Zero). The announcement was made during the annual Godzilla Fest in Tokyo and confirmed via Toho’s official X account.

The film will once again be written, directed and visual effects supervised by Yamazaki Takashi, with visual effects work by Shirogumi and production handled by Toho Studios and Robot, the same team behind 2023’s “Godzilla Minus One.” Toho Co., Ltd. produce and distribute.

A new “Godzilla” movie was teased almost exactly a year ago.

Yamazaki’s “Godzilla Minus One” became a historic success for the franchise. Released in Japan in November 2023, it grossed over 7.65 billion yen ($50 million) locally, making it the highest-grossing Japanese live-action Godzilla film in history. In North America, it grossed $56 million, making it the highest-grossing Japanese-language live-action film of all time. The film then made history at the 96th Academy Awards, where it won the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects – the first “Godzilla” film ever nominated for an Oscar and the first Japanese feature film to win in that category.

The franchise began in 1954 with Ishirō Honda’s “Godzilla,” a dark allegory of nuclear devastation that introduced audiences to the radioactive reptile that would become Japanese pop culture’s most enduring export. Since then, Toho has produced 33 live-action “Godzilla” films across multiple eras – Showa, Heisei, Millennium and now Reiwa – while American studios have released five additional titles, including Legendary’s MonsterVerse.

Set in post-World War II Japan, “Godzilla Minus One” starred Kamiki Ryunosuke as Shikishima Koichi, a former kamikaze pilot who survives a near-fatal encounter with Godzilla and suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. When the massive beast reappears years later, a group of soldiers and veterans must band together to defeat the monster before it can destroy Japan. The cast also includes Hamabe Minami, Yamada Yuki, Aoki Munetaka, Yoshioka Hidetaka, Ando Sakura and Sasaki Kuranosuke.

With “Godzilla -0.0,” Toho appears to be signaling a continuation of Yamazaki’s “Minus” saga while also teasing a thematic reset implied by the “Zero” in its title. No plot or release date has been announced yet, but anticipation is high for the next kicker from the King of the Monsters.