Subtitled films rarely open anywhere near the top of the US box office, and live-action ones almost never do. Godzilla Minus Zero is on track to change that, and it’s doing it with a darker, R-rated monster movie. That matters for horror fans, because it shows a Japanese kaiju film can compete with Hollywood tentpoles on its own terms. It also confirms the pull of its predecessor, which won an Oscar for visual effects and built a following far beyond Godzilla’s usual audience.
The Record
Deadline’s Saturday morning update puts the opening at an estimated $32 million across 3,254 theaters, after a $14.5 million Friday. That would be the biggest opening ever for a live-action foreign-language film in North America, beating the $17.8 million that 2002’s Hero earned. It’s also nearly triple the $11.4 million debut of Godzilla Minus One. It’s the biggest opening ever for distributor GKIDS, topping the $13 million debut of The Boy and the Heron. Thursday previews alone reached $6.7 million.
Built for the Big Screen
The film leaned hard on premium screens. Deadline reports that IMAX and other premium large formats are driving 74% of the weekend gross, a larger share than The Odyssey saw in its opening. It’s the first Japanese production filmed for IMAX.
Strong Overseas Numbers
In Japan, the film took $5.7 million on its opening day, a live-action record there, and 201% above the first film’s first day. Its Japan total since Tuesday has reached $11.8 million. Deadline had forecast a global opening of about $60 million.
What Audiences and Critics Said
Audiences gave it an A CinemaScore, and it holds about 90% on Rotten Tomatoes from critics and 96% from audiences. The first film scored 99%. Critics who liked the sequel less said it’s bigger but not as tight, and The Associated Press said it doesn’t stick the landing.
The Film
Takashi Yamazaki wrote and directed the film and handled its visual effects. It’s set in 1949, two years after the first film, as postwar Japan faces a new threat from King Ghidorah. Godzilla regenerates and returns to fight it. It runs 135 minutes.
Godzilla Minus Zero is in theaters now.
