Today marks 71 years since Godzilla changed cinema history forever with his debut in 1954, and Toho has already celebrated in style with the official reveal of Godzilla Minus Zero, the title for Takashi Yamazaki’s follow-up to his 2023 smash hit Godzilla Minus One. But there might be even more cause for celebration: the movie might stomp its way into movie theaters around the world around the time we’re celebrating Big G’s birthday next year.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, citing insider sources, Toho—buoyed by the massive domestic and international success Minus One became, culminating in making franchise history with a win for best VFX at the 2024 Academy Awards—is currently aiming to release Minus Zero globally some time in late 2026. The window makes sense, given that Minus One itself was released in a similar late-year time frame, and again, it would frame the movie’s release as not just a highly anticipated sequel but a celebratory one to mark the original Godzilla movie’s anniversary, just as Minus One was framed as beginning the year of celebrations for Godzilla’s 70th.
Interestingly, the trade further frames Toho’s plans for Minus Zero to position the film “not just as a sequel but as a statement piece.” Production is expected to begin this year, including location shooting in New Zealand and Norway—a potential sign of Toho’s more expansive plans for the sequel, considering that Minus One filmed exclusively in Japanese locations. The first film had an estimated budget of around $10-15 million, so it’s likely to expect Toho to have much bigger plans for Minus Zero after all the hype.
Given the appetite—outside of this summer’s 4K re-release of Shin Godzilla, 2026 will have been three years since a Japanese-produced Godzilla theatrical project and two since a follow-up in Legendary’s own “Monsterverse” canon since the release of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire—let’s hope they can match the world’s own kaiju-sized expectations after we had our minds blown after Minus One.
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