‘Godzilla Minus Zero’ Is Stomping Toward a Massive Global Box Office Debut
The King of the Monsters is back, and Takashi Yamazaki’s follow-up to his Oscar-winning hit is already making noise around the world. ‘Godzilla Minus Zero’ opened in Japan on November 3 and arrives in US theaters on November 6, including IMAX screenings.
Set in 1949, 2 years after ‘Godzilla Minus One’, the sequel follows the Shikishima family as they face an all-new calamity. Ryunosuke Kamiki returns as former kamikaze pilot Kōichi Shikishima, with Minami Hamabe as Noriko Ōishi and Sae Nagatani as their adopted daughter, Akiko.
The early box office outlook is strong. According to Deadline’s weekend box office preview, ‘Godzilla Minus Zero’ is tracking to open to around $60 million worldwide. That includes a projected $25 million to $30 million in North America and more than $30 million from 23 international territories. The film opens this weekend in markets including Australia, Brazil, Mexico, France, Germany, the UK, Spain and Japan.
The film has already made a splash at home. Deadline reports that it earned $5.7 million (¥910 million) on its opening day in Japan, with more than 590,000 admissions. Toho has called it an opening-day record for a live-action title in Japan, though Deadline said it could not independently verify that claim.
The first day was also up 201% over ‘Godzilla Minus One’, and the film is expected to finish its Japanese run with more than ¥10 billion, about $63.2 million. In North America, the film is being released by GKIDS, a Toho subsidiary, in 3,250 theaters, including every IMAX auditorium and premium large format screen. The R-rated film is backed by a marketing budget of under $10 million, much of it focused on social media.
‘GODZILLA MINUS ZERO’ is tracking to open around $60M worldwide. Read our review: https://t.co/hNkhKvSMVo https://t.co/4nzP6nP8bv
— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) November 5, 2026
Even a mid-$20 million debut would give GKIDS its biggest opening ever. The current record belongs to ‘The Boy and the Heron’, which opened with $13 million. The sequel has a strong legacy behind it. ‘Godzilla Minus One’ opened to $11.4 million in North America in December 2023, finishing with $57.1 million domestically and $113.9 million worldwide on a reported $10 million budget.
That film also won the Oscar for Best Visual Effects and earned an A CinemaScore. ‘Godzilla Minus Zero’ carries a bigger reported budget of over $15 million and is the first Japanese production filmed for IMAX. Strong reviews could give the sequel even more momentum. Deadline notes that the film is Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with an 89% score.
The new trailer for ‘GODZILLA MINUS ZERO’ has been released. In theaters on November 6. https://t.co/sgaEXweerd
— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) September 8, 2026
Yamazaki wrote and directed the film and also supervised its visual effects. Filming took place in Japan, New Zealand and Norway between August and December 2025, and the sequel runs about 125 minutes.
New behind the scenes teaser for ‘GODZILLA MINUS ZERO’. In theaters on November 6. https://t.co/EzlmAfkLxV
— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) October 26, 2026
Godzilla will face several new releases this weekend. Warner Bros. Pictures Animation’s ‘The Cat in the Hat’ is projected to open to about $20 million domestically, while the Indian epic ‘Ramayana: Rise of a Legend’ is projected to earn between $30 million and more than $60 million worldwide.
Searchlight’s ‘Wild Horse Nine’ and Angel Studios’ ‘Drummer Boy’ are also in the mix. Even with that competition, ‘Godzilla Minus Zero’ looks set to dominate one of the busiest weekends of the season.
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