Box Office: ‘Godzilla Minus Zero’ Stomps to $6.7 Million in Previews

Everyone’s favorite kaiju is stomping its way back to the box office.

“Godzilla Minus Zero,” the sequel to 2023’s “Godzilla Minus One,” has made $6.7 million in previews. The Japanese movie is expected to beat fellow newcomers at the box office this weekend with a $30 million opening. That’s more than double the $11.4 million opening that “Godzilla Minus One” had three years ago. The first movie, also written and directed by Takashi Yamazaki, charged its way to $57 domestically, becoming the biggest live-action Japanese movie in North America, and $113 million globally. It also was the surprise winner of the visual effects Oscar, beating out big-budget, CGI spectacles like “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3,” “Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning,” “Napoleon” and “The Creator.”

Yamazaki’s sequel keeps setting records for the monster series. “Godzilla Minus Zero” is also the first Japanese movie ever filmed for Imax, where it should over-perform as premium large formats have exploded this year thanks to “The Odyssey.” The sequel, produced by Japan’s Toho and distributed in the U.S. by GKids, takes place two years after “Minus One” as Godzilla returns and a new monster arrives.

This weekend’s other new movies will be no match for Godzilla. Warner Bros. Animation’s new take on “The Cat in the Hat,” starring Bill Hader, made $1 million in previews and is expected to come in second place with $20 million. Searchlight and director Martin McDonagh’s dark buddy comedy “Wild Horse Nine,” starring Sam Rockwell and John Malkovich, made $900,000 in previews and is on track to make $4 million to $7 million in limited release. Finally, the Indian epic “Ramayana: Rise of a Legend,” released by Sony in North America, made $3.5 million from its Thursday opening and Wednesday previews and is projected to open with $6 million.