What Godzilla Minus One Director Really Thinks Of Hollywood’s Monsterverse Franchise
It is not too many characters that simultaneously have movies coming out both in America and internationally within a one year period. That truly speaks to the iconic status of Godzilla that he is popular enough to get multiple movie releases for different audiences. However, if you are worried that the director of Godzilla Minus One and the creators of America’s Monsterverse movies view either other as rivals, the director of the former shared some very positive words for America’s take on the monster.
Monsterverse A Lot Of Fun?
Takashi Yamazaki is the director behind Godzilla Minus One, and called the Monsterverse movies a lot of fun.
He acknowledged that the Japanese take on Godzilla was similarly action-oriented decades ago, so the American take on the giant lizard is in keeping with the Godzilla mythos. Yamazaki praised there being multiple interpretations of the same character for audiences to enjoy.
Godzilla Minus One Back To The Roots
Many critics and fans alike really enjoyed that Godzilla Minus One took Godzilla back to its roots as a more serious, threatening monster.
In Japan, as the franchise evolved, the character’s movies began adding increasingly fantastical elements like aliens, robots, and other sci-fi aspects.
This undeniably added some iconic details to the franchise, like Mechagodzilla and Mothra, but a lot of fans did miss the darker tone of the original movie. For Japan, the more kid-friendly and action-heavy Godzilla movies had oversaturated the market for a while.
Americans Can Do Godzilla?
However, Yamazaki expressed no ill feelings for America continuing in a similar vein with our version of Godzilla.
He feels that the character is a big enough icon to have multiple spins on the same character. He also complimented America’s integration of the human characters in balance with the giant monsters.
Yamazaki seemed happy that Godzilla Minus One and the Monsterverse could both coexist and provide the fandom with more movies each year.
Godzilla Minus One A Critical Hit
Godzilla Minus One currently holds a 98% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and it brought in over $106 million at the box office against a budget of about $10 million. It is also up for a nomination of Best Visual Effects this year at the Academy Awards.
It is the first time a Japanese movie has ever received a nomination in that category, as well as the first time any Godzilla movie has received a nomination from the Academy. So clearly, the movie’s impact and recognition go beyond just Japan.
Godzilla X Kong On The Way
Meanwhile, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire continues the Monsterverse next month in March with its release. After the previous movie pitted Godzilla and King Kong against each other, they are now uniting against a common threat. While the tone will no doubt be quite different from what we saw in Godzilla Minus One, as Yamazaki says, both versions of the character are valid.
More Than Enough Room
This allows fans of both styles of the monster to have new movies coming out that align with their preferred version of how to handle the giant monster.
Even a character as big as Godzilla leaves enough room in the world for other giant lizards to have their turn in the spotlight.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire releases March 29, 2024.
