‘Godzilla Minus One’ Director Takashi Yamazaki Might Want To Remake ‘Godzilla vs. Hedorah’

Jeepers Peepers
Hedorah in a flying form stares into your soul in Godzilla vs Hedorah (1971), Toho Co. Ltd

A sequel to Godzilla Minus One is all but guaranteed after its massive success worldwide and its unprecedented Oscar win. However, with nothing official, the film’s auteur guiding force Takashi Yamazaki is sowing seeds for a potential season that could be big, retro, and trippy.

DiscoZilla
A random dance club interlude in Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971), Toho Co. Ltd.

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During a New York Comic-Con panel he mentioned he would like to attack with reinterpretation a divisive classic that recently turned 50 and has slowly built a following over the years. Via Kaiju United, Yamazaki revealed if the opportunity presented itself, he’d jump at the chance to remake Godzilla vs. Hedorah.

“I think that for its time, Hedorah was a very cutting-edge kaiju, and thinking about the type of visual expression we can do with technology and how far it’s come today – I’m imagining how it would move, and I think that would be a really cool remake,” he explained.

Godzilla got balls 2
Godzilla holds Hedorah’s, ehrm, “power source” in his hands in Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971), Toho Co. Ltd.

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Yamazaki is not the first current-day Godzilla filmmaker to share his admiration for The Smog Monster. Godzilla x Kong director Adam Wingard expressed alacrity for the Showa Era awhile ago and cited Hedorah as a highlight.

Godzilla vs. Hedorah is my favorite of that series, because it’s the most experimental. It’s like the Easy Rider of Godzilla movies,” Wingard said, adding it has a “psychedelic, colorful vibe.”

2021 Hedorah
Final Wars Hedorah in Godzilla vs. Hedorah short (2021), GODZILLA OFFICIAL by TOHO, YouTube

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Portrayed by Kenpachiro Satsuma inside the hot and heavy suit in his first Godzilla role, Hedorah boasts few appearances over the years, but has never left the hearts and minds of kaiju fans.

After his recent return in a short film that used good old Tokusatsu techniques, the Reiwa Period might be the best time to introduce “yet another one” as an answer to the stinger at the end of the 1971 film by Yoshimitsu Banno.

Based on a trend in the MonsterVerse, it would not be unreasonable to expect Banno to receive an executive producer credit on a Toho production from Yamazaki as a tribute to the former’s creation. Call it poetic justice (that is, if you buy the story they blacklisted Banno for his trouble.)

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