Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color: black & white re-release is coming to U.S. theatres

Toho released a new Godzilla film, titled Godzilla Minus One (read our review HERE), in Japan on November 3rd, which happens to be Godzilla Day – the anniversary of the 1954 release of the original Godzilla movie. The movie made its way over to the U.S. on December 1st. On January 12th, a black & white version of Godzilla Minus One reached theatres in Japan… and Deadline has confirmed that this black & white version, which is called Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color, will also be getting a U.S. theatrical run! Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color will begin showing in U.S. theatres on January 26th, then the theatrical runs for both versions of the film will be coming to an end on February 1st.

Director Takashi Yamazaki, who has let it be known that he would like to make a sequel to the film, had this to say about the black & white re-release: “I was very happy that the North American audience embraced Godzilla Minus One and gave us positive feedback such as “it was incredible! ,” “it was scary!,” and “it made me cry!” And now I am very pleased to be able to release a black-and-white version for North America as well. Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color will bring a new and visceral experience to audiences and I hope they will tremble with a new kind of terror! Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color is not just a simple black and white version. Our colorist took the time and care to go through a very meticulous and complex process. The black-and-white images make Godzilla look very realistic and documentary-like, which leads to even more fear. Even though we have seen Godzilla Minus One many times, we felt that something completely different appeared here -and it’s very scary! So this is not only for those who liked Godzilla Minus One but also those who are seeing it for the first time – they should definitely see this black-and-white version. Especially the scene at the beginning where Godzilla appears in the night – it is so terrifying that it made my knees shake!“

So far, Godzilla Minus One has earned almost $51 million in the U.S. That makes it the fifth highest grossing non-English film and the top highest grossing Japanese film in the U.S.

Written and directed by Yamazaki, Godzilla Minus One sees an already devastated postwar Japan facing a new threat in the form of Godzilla. Interestingly, one of Yamazaki’s previous credits is the 2007 film Always: Sunset on Third Street 2, which features a Godzilla cameo in a fantasy sequence. 

The film stars Ryunosuke Kamiki, Minami Hamabe, Yuki Yamada, Munetaka Aoki, Hidetaka Yoshioka, Sakura Ando, and Kuranosuke Sasaki, with music by Naoki Sato.

Toho’s Koji Ueda has said, “Set in a post-war Japan, Godzilla Minus One will once again show us a Godzilla that is a terrifying and overwhelming force, which you already get a sense of from the teaser trailer and poster. The concept is that Japan, which had already been devastated by the war, faces a new threat with Godzilla, bringing the country into the ‘minus.’“

Yamazaki directed a trilogy of Always: Sunset on Third Street films, as well as Juvenile, Returner, Ballad, Space Battleship Yamato, Friends: Naki on the Monster Island, The Fighter Pilot, Stand by Me Doraemon, Stand by Me Doraemon 2 (with Ryuichi Yagi), Parasyte: Part 1 and 2, Fueled: The Man They Called ‘Pirate’, Destiny: The Tale of Kamakura, The Great War of Archimedes, Dragon Quest: Your Story, Lupin III: The First, and Ghost Book Obakezukan. 

Toho brought Godzilla Minus One to the states in its original Japanese version, with English subtitles. The film secured a PG-13 rating for its U.S. release. This is Toho’s 33rd film in the franchise. The most recent entries were the 2016 live-action film Shin Godzilla and a trilogy of animated features; Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters, Godzilla: City on the Edge of Battle, and Godzilla: The Planet Eater. While Toho sends this one out into the world, Legendary is keeping their own Godzilla MonsterVerse alive with Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (which is set to reach theatres on March 15, 2024) and the Apple TV+ series Monarch: Legacy of Monsters.

Will you be watching Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color when it reaches the U.S.? Let us know by leaving a comment below.