Godzillahas become a box office behemoth again thanks to both his tag-team appearance in the MonsterVerse movieGodzilla x Kong: The New Empireand the stunning Toho movieGodzilla Minus One. Although the two movies could not be further apart in terms of storytelling and scope, it seems that both movies, and indeed any Godzilla project, must conform to a strict set of rules dictated by the “Godzilla Room.”
Part of Toho Studios, the “Godzilla Room” is a dedicated team within the company who act as sort of guardians of the Godzilla franchise in all its forms. As the iconic kaiju continues to rise after 70 years of bringing destruction to various locations – particularly his native Japan – making sure that the legacy of Godzilla continues to follow some rules to maintain the integrity of the character now he is once again back at the top of his game.
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In an interview withLivedoor, Tetsuya Yoshikawa, the director of the “Godzilla Room,” explained the almighty task that is undertaken by these guardians of Godzilla to have continuity across every iteration of the character. The “Godzilla Room” was established after therelease ofShin Godzillain 2016and includes 14 members dedicated solely to managing Godzilla’s projects, ensuring that the brand is protected and not damaged in any way. Yoshikawa explained:
“Some of the big rules are that Godzilla never dies and that Godzilla does not prey on people or things. We checked these things from the script stage for Godzilla Minus One as well. The same goes for the Hollywood version. Managing the film by clarifying agreements and principles, rather than just going by intuition, also leads to the credibility of the film.”
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While it may seem like Toho are keeping an unnecessarily tight leash on Godzilla, the micromanagement of the franchise has paid off massively in the last several months.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empirefollowed up 2021’sGodzilla v Kongby becomingthe highest-grossing movie in the MonsterVerse. With a worldwide haul of just under $570 million, the film is also currently the second highest-grossing movie of the year so far, sitting behindDune: Part Two. Meanwhile,Godzilla Minus Onemay not have hit those numbers, but it has stillset a number of impressive recordssince its release at the beginning of December 2023. The movie became one of the highest grossing foreign language movies ever released in the U.S., claimed Oscar glory, and set more records with its impressive streaming performance.
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Godzilla x Kongwill be getting a sequel, under the direction of Grant Sputore following the departure of Adam Wingard from the franchise. The MonsterVerse will also be expanding further on Apple TV+ witha second season ofMonarch: Legacy of Monstersand other to-be-announced projects coming soon. Meanwhile, a follow-up toGodzilla Minus Onehas been discussed, but so far there has been no confirmation that it will happen. However, Toho will certainly be releasing more Godzilla content in the future.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empireis currently available from VOD outlets.Godzilla Minus Oneis available to stream on Netflix.
