New Toho Godzilla Series after Legendary

[Henry88]

that just hurts watching it.

[lhb412]

... hmmm, those effects seem deliberately cartoony. I can't see how that relates to an approach to Godzilla, other than they're just name-dropping recent success of there's that featured a lot of special effects.

[Rodanex]

[kiryugoji04]

[Mexigojira]

Still hyped

[Jorzilla]

Considering the Legendary sequel isn't until 2018 I have no problem filling in the void. Particularly if Legendary fails to actually pull the trigger on the new movie. At the very least I could see this new movie being for fans and more of a cult film. When I posted the news to reddit it got to number 5 spot on /r/all, which is a good sign.

[Benjamin Haines]

Well, this news was certainly unexpected! Somebody pass me the crow, and the mustard.

This is the best kind of surprise. I'm so excited to have yet another new Godzilla movie to look forward to! I was already content with Godzilla's next return being set for 2018 so knowing that it will be two years sooner is just delightful, and it will be the first new Toho-produced Godzilla film since 2004.

So we know that Toho is aiming for 2016. If it ends up being a December release, as has been the case for every Japanese Godzilla since 1984, then that would give this project a full two years from announcement to release. I hope that's the case as that would be twice the development time that Toho allotted to any of the films in the Millennium Series. My biggest fear for this new movie is that Toho might not have grown out of their old habits from 1999-2004. We don't need a rehash of existing Godzilla movies featuring the same old Mothra/Ghidorah/Mechagodzilla lineup, nor do we need another cliche story about a specialized task force striving to defeat Godzilla once and for all.

I'm also worried that Toho will oversaturate the market for Godzilla in Japan. Will casual Japanese moviegoers in 2016 be confused to see a new Godzilla movie that has nothing to do with the one they saw two years prior? Would they be even more confused two years later when the sequel to the 2014 film hits theaters with no connection to the Japanese film that preceded it? Would the 2016 film's business be hurt by the fact that it's not a sequel to the Hollywood reboot? Will Japanese moviegoers already be burnt out on Godzilla again by the time the second Legendary film hits in 2018? I hope the answer to all of these questions ends up being no, but they're all possibilities.

I don't think Legendary's sequel will be affected by this film outside of Japan. This movie won't be seen by many people in the U.S., no more than any of the Millennium films were. I doubt it'll get a North American theatrical release of any kind, but hey, it happened the last two times Toho kicked off a new series of films so it could definitely happen again.

I really hope Toho sticks with the traditional monster suits and miniature sets. Toho's CGI has never been up to snuff and it simply can't be without a Hollywood-level budget, which wouldn't make fiscal sense for a film that will play primarily in Japan. Toho needs to recognize this and realize that the traditional special effects can be a tremendous asset in differentiating their new film from Legendary's and giving it a unique identity. The return of the Japanese Godzilla, made by Toho in Japan, utilizing the same special effects techniques that brought the character to life in the classic films. That needs to happen, and if ever there was a time for Shinji Higuchi to direct the special effects for a Godzilla movie, this is it.

Regardless of how the rest of the world takes it, I am absolutely on board with having two different Godzilla film series unfold independently of each other at the same time over the years to come – one from Japan and one from Hollywood. Bring it on!

[ebirahsmeg1]

Well, this defintely surprising/unexpected news. Been off the net for the last day and half, so still taking all of this in.

Although I was pleasently surprised, I have somewhat mixed feelings about this news. Of course, the Godzilla geek inside me says "Hell yeah, another Japanese G flick, count me in"...and then I remember the Millennium series....um...yeah Also, I'm not sure how wise it is from a business standpoint on TOHO's part to sandwhich this film between two Hollywood G films...sure, the film did decent over here, but Godzilla is by no means "back" in the minds today's current Japanese movie-goer (though the Hollywood film did raise [reviatalize?] G's profile a bit, no doubt about that...but not the extent some people want to believe). They risk oversatuating the market with G films, competinng with themselves (and many film goers might even look down on as an inferior product to the Hollywood film, no matter how much "pride" Japanese people may in films produced domestically). Or hey, perhaps will turn out the opposite, and in the end, we all win as G fans...I hope for the latter At this point, I just hope it's just a solid flick, regardless how it does business wise.

To quote Jim Ross, "Business is about to pick up!" in 2015-2018...

[Shin_Edda_Robo!!!!!]

I hope for at least a solid film, made with tons of energy, lots of love, and with a lot of new blood.

Traditional tokusatsu sfx will have to be the way to go + good uses of limited CGI for enhancements.

And please give us a new monster/s.

[Psycho Soldier]

[DannyBeane]

I am ecstatic that there is a new Japanese Godzilla film. Tokusatsu films have a distinctly Japanese feel about them that even filmmakers paying tribute to them can't fully imitate. That said I hope they keep miniatures/suits as that is an important part of the genre but I hope they up the cinematography. A lot of the millenium films have a super saturated cartoony looking cinematography to them that I am not a huge fan of. Tezuka's films in particular were way too cartoony looking for my tastes. While I have my gripes with GMK storytelling-wise, the film has top notch cinematography. It has the look and feel of an actual movie being shown in theaters instead of a saturday morning kids show. I think part of that problem was because Toho was marketing the films towards children and while I would never advocate making a Godzilla film for grownups only, I feel making a film that looks like it was designed only for children makes the movies look cheap and limits the size of an audience.

[william newell]

I was just thinking(always a dangerous proposition when I'm involved )what if the teaser shown by Legendary at the last SDCC was actually for this, not for the sequel to G '14, and that they(Legendary) plan on releasing it stateside. I mean, Mothra, Rodan, and Ghidorah? Sounds like something Toho would do. I know it's probably just nonsense on my part, but you never know...

[planetxleader]

[Henry88]

[walshiam]

No matter what everyone's "preferences" are in a Godzilla movie, I think what we are about to get from Toho is something very different.......very different (even for a Toho film). Hold on to your britches guys 'cuz this is about to get very interesting. Some of us are going to be screaming bloody murder with some of the approaches Toho is about to take.

[Henry88]

[Shin_Edda_Robo!!!!!]

Imagine if Godzilla 2016 is just a suitmation version of Godzilla 2014

Or if Godzilla 2014 looks more Godzilla than Godzilla 2016

[Hybrid Gojira]

[Psycho Soldier]

[XvGojira]

With as serious as G14 was I kind of hope that we get some fun and lighthearted. But since Godzilla was a good guy, I kind of hope they make one where he's the villain.

Basically, I'm ready for whatever Toho throws at me. Solo villain movie, multi-monster camp mayhem, alternate reality fantasy epic, retelling of one or more of the 90's movies "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead" style.

It's more Godzilla and I'm always for that.

Bring it on Toho.

[Hybrid Gojira]

[Benjamin Haines]

Something just occurred to me. In the past, Toho has promoted their upcoming Godzilla films as though they were products of the following year. I remember seeing promotional items for GMK that boasted of "Godzilla 2002" and that movie opened in December 2001. I also saw something similar for Godzilla x Mechagodzilla (possibly for Bandai figures tie-ins?) that profiled the two title monsters' new designs as "Godzilla 2003" and "Mechagodzilla 2003," and leading up to Final Wars there were publicity images of the new Godzilla, Rodan, and Anguirus suits with a "2005" label. Even back in the Heisei Series, Mechagodzilla '93 was promoted in Japan as the 40th anniversary event picture. Plus, a lot of the more recent Japanese Godzilla movies were set one year or more in the future from the year in which they were released, and that might be part of a broader trend as even Ultraman: The Next did that.

What if, when Toho says this will be a new Godzilla for 2016, that means that it will hit Japanese theaters in December 2015, one year from now? That wouldn't be out of step with how Toho has promoted these films in the past, nor would it be uncharacteristic of them to produce a brand new Godzilla movie over the course of a single year.

[TerranigmaFreak]

[jamaal7]

[Hybrid Gojira]