Report Confirms Toho Is Following Up ‘Godzilla Minus One’ With A Sequel, But The Legendary Japanese Studio Has Bigger Ambitions Than That
News of a follow-up to Godzilla Minus One, and even more so the return of Takashi Yamazaki to helm it, was a formality in retrospect. Given the film’s massive success globally, it was a question of if and not when. The nature of the next one was a mystery, however. Just what did Toho have in mind? What were they cooking up behind the scenes?
If a new report from Bloomberg is to be believed, and most would consider them reliable, we now know. Although a plot has not been revealed – or decided upon as far as we know – a sequel is being confirmed by the outlet. This intel seems to be coming directly from Toho, adding to its credibility, but the details remain scarce.
Some sites are running with the idea that Toho and Yamazaki are making a direct sequel to Minus One. That could be the plan or just a fair bit of speculation by journos fueled by high hopes. Although we definitely sympathize, the fact is Yamazaki’s story idea is a closely guarded secret.
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They certainly left the last film open for a direct sequel with all the loose ends. Godzilla may regenerate to wreak havoc again very soon, and we still have no clue what was up with the black mark on Noriko’s neck or how she survived a nuclear blast. There are so many questions and many more updates in this story.
Toho is not stopping at further Godzilla installments. No, no – they have grander aspirations that will take them beyond Japan’s borders and their immediate sphere of influence. Bloomberg says that Toho is investing 70 billion yen into global expansion.
Godzilla Minus One has engendered renewed demand for The King of the Monsters, and that demand is growing across platforms. Not only are we getting more movies from Yamazaki and Legendary Pictures, but Toho has eyes on growing their portfolio with a “Godzilla Strategy.”
According to Bloomberg (translated from Japanese), Toho plans to invest “15 billion yen to expand Godzilla into home video games, products, and attractions,” as in theme parks as well as promotion of the next film.
“This initiative represents a strategic shift to overseas markets, as domestic growth is expected to slow due to an aging population over the next few decades. In a statement, Toho said it aims to increase the ratio of overseas sales from 10% to 30% by the 100th anniversary of its founding in 2032,” Bloomberg reports.
They add that Toho experienced record profits during the last fiscal year, which saw “sales exceeding 313 billion yen and operating income of 64.7 billion yen.” That’s over $2.224B (American) in revenue, and their investment over the next few years will total upwards of $830 million.
$105M of that is going toward Godzilla—more than has ever been invested in the IP. This is way more than the $12-$15M budget of Minus One, but it is still conservative compared to Hollywood, which has poured close to a billion dollars many times over into just one major blockbuster that’s part of a bigger franchise.
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