GODZILLA MINUS ONE Director Explains How the Film's Ending Can Lead to a Sequel
Godzilla Minus One continues to dominate the American box office and fans are eager to see if director Takashi Yamazaki will return to make a sequel. We will see Toho make a sequel one day, we just don’t know what exactly the story will tell. However, the filmmaker did lay the foundation for a sequel and when talking about how the open ending of Godzilla Minus One can lead to a sequel, Yamazaki said:
"Godzilla is both a monster and a god. Godzilla is the Tatari-gami that appears in Princess Mononoke. After all, if you really think about it, isn't it strange that the thing awakened by America's nuclear tests is going to attack Japan? However, if you think of it as the Tatari-gami, it makes sense. A story about everyone working together to quell an attack by the Tatari-gami."
For those of you not sure what Yamazaki is talking about regarding the Tatari-gami, it means “cursing gods” and was the demon used in Studio Ghibli’s Princess Mononoke. It is a manifestation of negative energy that causes catastrophes and lays curses. Yamazaki believes these curses have a lot in common with Godzilla, and explains:
"Godzilla was born as a result of an American nuclear test and yet it was created in Japan. Isn't it incredibly absurd that this happens? However, I believe that Japanese people sense they must accept this and consider it a curse.
"The Tatari-gami from Princess Mononoke also comes to a village he has no connections with, messes it up, and leaves behind a curse. That's how I felt after making this film. I felt that making a Godzilla movie was a divine ritual. The ritual [gathers] the anxieties of the world at the time and summons them as a cursed deity which must be appeased."
No other filmmaker is going to truly understand Yamazaki’s vision for the sequel, which means if it’s going to be fully realized in its proper form, Yamazaki is going to have to be the one to tell the story. I love where his head is at with Godzilla and its future and after hearing him talk about this, I really hope that he does return to direct the sequel!
Godzilla Minus One ends with our main characters reuniting as Koichi learns Noriko ended up surviving a destructive Godzilla attack. It was an emotional moment, but we then learn that there’s a black mark hiding on Noriko's neck. After this recent insight into where the director wants to see the story go, it seems as if Noriko has been cursed by the kaiju.
When previously asked if the filmmaker was going to make a sequel, he said: "I'd like to see someone else's Godzilla, but I want to make a next time as well. I've got very complicated feelings.”
The movie is set in Japan 1945-1947. “After the war, Japan has been reduced to zero. Godzilla appears and plunges the country into a negative state. Against the most desperate situation in the history of Japan, how — and with whom — will Japan stand up to it?”
The director recently shared a message to Godzilla fans in North America thanking them for their support of the film and its success, saying: “We're excited by the tremendous response in North America. I've been reading the fan feedback on social media and am very encouraged by the passionate comments based on a thorough analysis of the film. In some theaters, I've heard there was even applause. Thank you for warmly receiving our Godzilla."