Recently ending its box office run with the monster success of Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color, director Takashi Yamazaki’s entry into the kaiju canon seems to have secured its place in history. With Yamazaki’s complicated sequel feelings still hanging in the air, fans continue wondering if we’ll get to see him continue the story in another film. Sure enough, the writer/director of Toho’s latest has some feelings, as he teased the potential plot for a follow-up.
As he continues to make the press rounds for Godzilla Minus One’s 2024 Oscar nomination, Takashi Yamazaki spoke with Empire about his hopes for what could come next. In vague, but exciting terms, here’s what Yamazaki specified as his hypothetical vision:
I would certainly like to see what the sequel would look like. I know that Shikishima’s war seems over, and we’ve reached this state of peace and calm – but perhaps [it’s the] calm before the storm, and the characters have not yet been forgiven for what has been imposed upon them.
So we saw the huge finale of Godzilla Minus One seemingly end with humanity defeating the lizard god, but not before a tease that hinted at his eventual return. Right off the bat, the chance to see a revitalized and super angry Godzilla stomping back into action sounds like a pretty solid basis.
As our own Rich Knight’s Godzilla Minus One review is just one of the many raves, my own included, in the parade of excitement over Takashi Yamazaki’s 2023 film, just knowing there could be more is enough to get hyped. But what’s also interesting is that in the reporting sourced above Takashi Yamzaki also said he was “very curious” about what the future could hold for hero Kōichi Shikishima (Ryunosuke Kamiki) and Noriko Ōishi (Minami Hamabe).
If you haven’t seen the movie yet, this is the time where you may want to check out for a paragraph, as spoilers are about to be dropped. This angle is what excites me the most about Godzilla Minus One, because of something that we saw in the closing moments of the movie. While it included a heartfelt reunion between Kōichi and Noriko, that moment had a huge question mark slapped on at the end, thanks to some sort of black splotch moving on Noriko’s neck.
Could a Godzilla Minus One sequel see this young lady turn into something rather inhuman? Or could Noriko be acquiring some sort of mutation where she can talk to Godzilla and/or other kaiju? All this, and Mothra, seem to be up in the air. As Takashi Yamazaki’s Godzilla Minus One influences included a handful of films, the 1954 original included, there’s no telling what entries he’ll choose from to draft his next chapter, provided he’s given the gig in the first place.
For the moment, we can all celebrate the theatrical thunder that was Godzilla Minus One,while waiting for news on both the sequel and its home entertainment release. That’s on top of anxiously anticipating the 96th Academy Awards, which might see the Godzilla franchise win its first Academy Award. You’ll have to tune in to find out, as the show is set to air on Sunday, March 10th, starting at 7 PM ET, only on ABC.