ゴジラゼロ
Godzilla Zero
Stats & Staff
Release: November 3rd, 2023
Produced by: TBA
Written by: Takashi Yamazaki
Directed by: Takashi Yamazaki
Composed by: TBA
Runtime: TBA
Appearances
Monsters: Godzilla (???), Godzillasaurus? (???)
Story
Known Details: Casting calls have made it clear the film is a period piece set between 1945 and 1947. Whether that means the events of the film happen over the course of two years, or if could take place in either 1945, 1946, or 1947 is unknown. A countdown on twitter (which... still exists?) on the marketing account for the film has started counting down the live action films, so, starting from #29, with a second image having the slots for 30 posters. This implies that the final poster revealed will be counted as "No. 0" which means that the film will definitely be a prequel and not take place later than 1954. Whether this means a prequel to the 1954 continuity family or a full reboot, however, is still unknown. It is almost certain, however, that the long rumored fan nickname "Godzilla Zero" is probably going to be the actual title of the film, based on this countdown.
Rumors/Leaks: Take these with a grain of salt, but also with the understanding that, unlike some other multimedia franchises, leaks in the Godzilla series have a nearly 100% accuracy record; it seems that there just aren't many people trying to post fake leaks online for internet clout when it comes to Godzilla compared to comparable franchises. There are two details that have been noted in these rumors/leaks: the first is that the film will feature not one, but two Godzillas that battle each other, with one actually being an unmutated version, or Godzillasaurus if this is going to take place in the 1954 continuity family and is not a complete reboot. The mutant Godzilla will be very conventional, while the Godzillasaurus is said to have a single large dorsal plate, like a shark or something. Additionally, there is talk of a naval battle between one of the Godzillas and a Japanese World War II era Imperial Navy battleship. Which, if you know Yamazaki's previous work in the period piece and war genre, is something to get seriously hyped about.
Personal Speculation: With the assumption that the film will follow the conventional rules of previous entries in the series, one thing we know is that the size of a mutant Godzilla is actually determined by the type of radioactive material they are created with. The 1st and 2nd generation Godzillas were a result of a first generation 1950's thermonuclear bombs and were 50m tall as adults. The 3rd generation was created with a late 1970's nuclear submarine and was 80m high, with the addition of an early 90's nuclear sub further increasing that to 100m. This suggests that the mutant Godzilla will actually be the smallest fully mutated adult Godzilla ever seen on screen before, with my personal estimation being somewhere between 20-30m. This makes the prospect of them battling an unmutated member of their species extremely believable, as the rumors have stated the mutant will be much larger than the large finned unmutated individual. Since the Lagos Island adult Godzillasaurus seen in Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah was 12m tall, this is matches what's been previously established. This also makes the possibility of this film being a true sequel to the original film, and thus, to all of the first 28 movies that are sequels to it. After the complete reboots of Shin Godzilla and the anime trilogy, this would be a welcome return to form for me, but if it is another reboot that ignores the implications and is instead a prequel to it's own unique version of a 1954 Godzilla attack, I'd be fine with that too. Just something to think about.
Themes: Given the fact that this film will take place in the aftermath of World War II during the occupation of Japan, and that Yamazaki is well known for his Showa era period piece films, including war movies, it is 100% certain that this film will tackle issues surrounding not just this unique period in Japan's history, but more importantly, will probably directly address the actual offensive uses of nuclear weapons on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, something no Godzilla or any Toho monster movie has ever done. Not only that, but as a film being made in 2022-2023, it will do so in a way that can only be done with many decades separating us from that period. Also, there's the possibility that we could be diving into some of the horrible war crimes of Imperial Japan, something Godzilla has only ever touched on once before, and would be incredibly important and relevant now, as extremist right wing politicians in Japan have a worryingly large stake in the country, and many centrists even still deny a lot of the war crimes from this time. With Shusuke Kaneko busy planning something for Gamera, this will probably be our best shot at this kind of Godzilla film in a good while.
