Godzilla is one of the most enduringly popular characters in the history of fiction, and there's no sign of him fading from relevance any time soon. Every fan has their favorite version of the character, but next year, fans will be reintroduced to a more classic showcase for the King of the Monsters, provided by his original studio.
There have been 38 Godzilla films over the last 68 years, with a new film released roughly every 20 months. The future of the franchise seems to exist stretched across multiple continuities and creators, and that's often the ideal scenario for fans of the character.
Coming to Japan on Godzilla's birthday, November 3, 2023, is the newest adventure of everyone's favorite 300ft tall radioactive reptile. The untitled film was announced via the Japanese Godzilla Twitter account on November 3, 2022. It'll be the first live-action Toho Godzilla film since 2016. Their previous effort, Shin Godzilla was an instant fan favorite and a grim reinvention of the character. The studio has also released multiple anime iterations of the character, all of which dropped worldwide on Netflix. Before those outings, the Japanese Godzilla film industry went quiet for around 12 years, after Final Wars, the 2004 celebration of his legacy. Since then, Legacy's Monsterverse franchise has kept the character's legacy alive, though in a form that some were less happy with. Though very little is known about the plot, cast, or design elements of the upcoming film, there are some interesting details to be gleaned from the scant details.
The first and most obvious piece of information about the 2023 Godzilla film is what it won't be. The film will not be tied to the Monsterverse. That franchise is continuing with a sequel to Godzilla vs. Kong and a long-awaited live-action series. Fans will be enjoying plenty more American Godzilla action for the next few years. It also will not be a continuation of or sequel to Toho's last take on the character. The studio made it clear that the film will be unrelated to Shin Godzilla, to the disappointment of many fans. Evangelion creator Hideaki Anno's return to the nuclear horror of the 1954 classic is a contained story with a definitive ending, so it's not the biggest shame in the world to see it miss out on a sequel. Arguably, the film's sequel is the recently released Shin Ultraman and the upcoming Shin Kamen Rider, which perform similar acts of magic towards other beloved franchises.
Though the film won't be related to either of those existing continuities, it could be related to the larger Toho Godzilla franchise. The 28 films that came from the studio before Shin Godzilla didn't exactly have dense and carefully maintained lore, but there was connective tissue. Final Wars ended like most other Godzilla films, with the titular anti-hero returning to the sea from whence he came to await the next sequel. The upcoming 2023 film could easily follow that long continuity and move ahead with a comically large bestiary, countless magic systems, and an overcomplicated world to play in. It could also reinvent the wheel with new enemies and new lore. Whether it appeals to fans with a ton of callbacks or blazes a new trail, the new outing is a welcome return of the character.
The biggest announcement surrounding the 2023 Godzilla project is the attached director. The project will be crafted by none other than Takashi Yamazaki. Though many American fans might not know his name, he has an interesting background in live-action and animated cinema. His debut came in 2000 with a film entitled Juvenile about a child meeting an alien artificial intelligence in an E.T. sort of way. He directed the underrated 2002 action sci-fi romp Returner. He's adapted anime series like Space Battleship Yamato and Parasyte: The Maxim into live-action with incredible results. He directed feature-length animated takes on franchises like Dragon Quest and Doraemon. His biggest success by far is a moving family dramedy called Always: Sunset on Third Street, which cleaned up the 2006 Japanese Academy Awards. He's even worked with the King of the Monsters in the past when he directed Godzilla the Ride: Giant Monsters Ultimate Battle, a motion simulator ride at the Seibu-en theme park in Tokyo. Anyone who needs some convincing should look up that ride, it's a stellar example of Kaiju action in a weird format.
Godzilla has been a fixture of cinema for almost 70 years, and he isn't going anywhere anytime soon. The Japanese release date for the 2023 film suggests that American fans might have their hands on it in early 2024. Keep an eye on the Japanese Twitter feed for the Godzilla franchise to get updates. The return to Toho studios could mean any number of new horizons for the King of the Monsters, and fans are thrilled to find out.