Godzilla Minus Zero roars to about $6M in US previews, a record for its distributor
Takashi Yamazaki’s Godzilla Minus Zero has opened its North American run far ahead of its predecessor. Deadline, which first reported the figure, says the R-rated sequel took in around $6 million from early screenings before its wide release on Friday, November 6.
That total bundles three waves of shows: the IMAX fan screenings on Tuesday, November 3, the Wednesday showtimes and the regular Thursday previews. Thursday alone is said to account for more than $4 million.
A new high for GKIDS
For GKIDS, the Toho-owned label that handles the film in North America, this is its best preview result to date. The previous record belonged to The Boy and the Heron, which collected $2.39 million from Thursday and early-access shows in 2023 on the way to a $13 million three-day start.
The comparison with the last Yamazaki film is even starker. Godzilla Minus One earned $2.1 million from its Wednesday and Thursday shows and finished its first weekend at $11.4 million. Deadline also lines the new film up against Hollywood’s own monster movies: Legendary’s Godzilla: King of the Monsters made $6.3 million from Thursday previews in 2019 before a $47.7 million opening, while Disney’s Predator: Badlands opened last November with $4.8 million in previews and $40 million for the weekend.
Before these numbers arrived, the most optimistic industry tracking put the North American opening at more than $30 million. Deadline now suggests the final figure could land well above that.
Why the date matters
GKIDS deliberately launched the first IMAX shows on November 3, known to fans as Godzilla Day: it marks the anniversary of the original 1954 film’s release in Japan. Minus Zero is also the first Japanese production to be Filmed For IMAX, which helped it secure large-format screens.
The story is set in 1949, two years after the events of Minus One, and follows the Shikishima family through a new disaster, with Ryunosuke Kamiki and Minami Hamabe returning. At home in Japan the film has already set a record: according to GKIDS, its $5.7 million opening day is the biggest ever for a live-action title there.
See also
- Stranger Things gets a live-action prequel set in the 1950s, coming in 2028
- Kamen Rider studio Toei now makes film with generative AI, sets first games for 2027
- Adam Driver confirms he is the villain of Heat 2 and says Kylo Ren’s story is over
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