‘Godzilla Minus Zero’ Gets an Early Boost on Godzilla Day as Toho Crowns a New Kaiju

November 3 is a special date for Godzilla fans. Known as Godzilla Day, it marks the anniversary of the original 1954 film’s debut, and Toho often uses it for big announcements and releases.

‘Godzilla Minus One’ opened in Japan on the same date in 2023. It went on to become the highest-grossing Japanese Godzilla film ever and the first film in the franchise to win an Oscar, taking home the award for Best Visual Effects.

Takashi Yamazaki’s sequel, ‘Godzilla Minus Zero’, followed that tradition and opened in Japanese theaters on Godzilla Day. Early social media reports suggest a strong start. According to several outlets, posts on X claimed that mid-morning ticket sales across hundreds of theaters were running at roughly double the first-day pace of ‘Minus One’. Some posts put the figure at about 201% of the previous film’s opening day.

These figures are not official Toho numbers, though, so they should be treated as preliminary. Fuller box office data should arrive in the coming days. The film arrives in North America on November 6 through GKIDS. It is the first Japanese production filmed for IMAX, and it premiered at the New York Film Festival in September.

SlashFilm reports that Box Office Theory projects a domestic opening of $25 million to $35 million. That would be the biggest North American debut ever for a Japanese Godzilla film, well beyond the $11.4 million opening of ‘Minus One’.

The film faces competition from Warner Bros.’ ‘The Cat in the Hat’, which is tracking in a similar range. If ‘Minus Zero’ wins the weekend, it would be the first Japanese Godzilla film to top the box office over a full weekend.

Early reviews have been strongly positive. Critics have praised the sequel’s massive scale and emotional human story, and some have argued its destruction sequences go beyond those in ‘Minus One’.

GODZILLA MINUS ZERO is the loudest movie I’ve ever heard in my entire life. This will be a reference title for testing theater setups. Unbelievable film, and the definition of FILMED FOR IMAX. https://t.co/miNvoegXKY

— patrick. (@imPatrickT) November 3, 2026

The story is set in 1949, 2 years after the first film. King Ghidorah’s rampage shows that conventional weapons are largely useless, and Godzilla resurfaces offshore, bigger and more aggressive, to face the new threat.

Godzilla Day brought more news for kaiju fans. At Godzilla Fest in Tokyo, Toho named Xenolhu the winner of its New Monster General Election, a fan vote to create a new rival for Godzilla.

Fans chose from 8 designs created by Toho and Shirogumi, the VFX company behind ‘Minus One’. Xenolhu led the earlier round with 46,066 points, ahead of fellow finalists Sagius, Glix and Rigedoh.

The final trailer for ‘GODZILLA MINUS ZERO’ has been released. In theaters on November 6. https://t.co/rmgd8FgXJy

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) October 11, 2026

According to its official profile, Xenolhu is an extradimensional creature that stands 58 meters tall and weighs 45,000 tons. It came to Earth out of sinister curiosity after Godzilla’s heat ray gave off waves similar to its own spatial abilities.

The new monster will appear in a Fest Godzilla short film at a future Godzilla Fest. Toho has said Xenolhu will also show up in other ways. This year’s festival also premiered a new short, ‘Fest Godzilla II: Tokyo Vanishing’. The Fest Godzilla shorts are known for practical tokusatsu techniques, including suitmation and miniature sets.

Some fans online criticized what they described as an AI-generated shot in a promotional short meant to celebrate practical effects. Several outlets noted that these claims had not been independently confirmed.

Between the Japanese release, the North American launch and a brand-new kaiju, this has been a big week for the franchise. Official box office figures will show whether the sequel can match the hype. For now, it looks like ‘Godzilla Minus Zero’ is off to a strong start.

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