Godzilla Minus Zero is set to completely change Toho's iconic monster once again by pitting it against a powerful villain that MonsterVerse fans should be familiar with. Godzilla Minus Zero ended with a game-changing twist involving the G-cells, revealing that Noriko Ōishi was the first human in the franchise's history to be infected with them. In original Toho lore, another kaiju in the form of Biollante was spawned from a hybrid of G-cells, a rose, and human DNA, meaning that there is a chance that future installments could explore the consequences behind Noriko's ties to the G-cells. However, the Toho sequel is not expected to explore this dangling Godzilla storyline yet.
Godzilla Minus Zero, the direct sequel to the Oscar-winning Godzilla Minus One, is set to premiere in Japanese theaters on November 3 and in U.S. theaters on November 6. Directed by Takashi Yamazaki, the R-rated installment picks up two years after the events of the first film, mainly focusing on how Japan tries to rebuild after Godzilla's initial rampage. While exact plot details are still being kept under wraps, the official trailer sneakily revealed that Godzilla isn't the only kaiju featured in the sequel, raising the stakes for an already war-torn Japan in the upcoming sci-fi follow-up.
Every Key Spoiler Secretly Revealed by Godzilla Minus Zero's Trailers
King Ghidorah's Creation
Godzilla Minus Zero's IMAX trailer ended with Godzilla plummeting from the sky, followed by a piercing shriek that is obviously not Godzilla's signature roar. Kenji Noda (Hidetaka Yoshioka) then pointed out, "This isn't Godzilla we are talking about." This sequence strongly teased the arrival of Godzilla's archnemesis: Ghidorah. The fact that Godzilla was falling also suggests that a mid-air clash between the two kaijus will happen in the sequel.
Early reviews from the New York Film Festival premiere have since confirmed Ghidorah's presence in the sequel, meaning that a pivotal rematch between Godzilla and Ghidorah is bound to happen in Godzilla Minus Zero after the MonsterVerse showed a game-changing clash between the two rivals in 2019's Godzilla: King of Monsters.
The same trailer also namedropped Operation Narukami. Narukami is the god of lightning in Japanese mythology, which serves as another allusion to Ghidorah. In the footage, Kenji Noda called for the operation to commence, while a biologist, Professor Kanji Murakumi (Min Tanaka), spoke of fighting "fire with fire" and even "creating a god."
Based on the trailer's clues, it seems there will be an attempt to create Ghidorah through Operation Narukami, which will then turn on them. Humanity's attempt to weaponize Ghidorah would clearly backfire because they are playing with forces they can't control. It's worth noting that Ghidorah's true canon origin from 1964 isn't human-made; instead, the kaiju was an extraterrestrial destroyer that arrived on Earth inside a meteor after wiping out the civilization on Venus thousands of years earlier.
Later sci-fi films made by Toho rewrote Ghidorah's backstory, most notably in the 1991 Heisei entry, in which time travelers leave genetically engineered Dorats on an island that a hydrogen bomb then fuses into Ghidorah. Still, many fans see the space-invader version of events as the default origin story (similar to how the MonsterVerse portrayed Ghidorah as an invader from outer space).
King Ghidorah's Design
While Toho never showed the three-headed dragon on screen in any of Godzilla Minus Zero's trailers, the studio hid the design in plain sight. The sequel's stylized "G" logo, when inverted, resembles a silhouette of Ghidorah's potential design, with its long-necked heads.
The posters and later trailer footage of the sequel lean even harder into the visual language tied to Ghidorah. At the 1:02 mark of the September IMAX trailer, yellow lightning can be seen as it cracks through stormy skies and strikes directly toward fighter jets. Yellow lightning has been Ghidorah's signature since 1964, and the inclusion of this footage suggests that the creature is not something to be messed with in the sequel.
It is unknown how Godzilla Minus Zero will portray Ghidorah, but the clues suggest the kaiju will be more grounded, presented as a living storm weapon that becomes a terrifying three-headed rival to Godzilla.
The US Navy is Getting Involved
Godzilla Minus Zero's IMAX trailer included footage of an Iowa-class battleship among the military hardware tasked with subduing Godzilla (and potentially Ghidorah). The trailer made it clear that the U.S. Navy will be involved in the battle against these kaijus in the sequel. The Iowa-class battleships were among the most powerful of their era, and their presence may have indicated that the fight would be on an international scale.
In 1949, American ships and nuclear options were on the table, meaning that the Japanese forces would either be given no choice but to work with them or they were tasked to call them ahead as backup, knowing full well the threat of these creatures was insurmountable.
Godzilla In the US?
The final shot of the first Godzilla Minus Zero teaser showed a regenerated Godzilla walking past the Statue of Liberty, seemingly heading straight to New York City. This moment marked the first time this version of Godzilla set foot on American soil, effectively expanding its reach beyond Japan.
Seeing Godzilla in New York is a no-brainer, considering that one of Ghidorah's abilities is flying. It's possible that Ghirodah decided to escape his initial encounter with Godzilla by flying to the United States, making America the next major location of their battle in the sequel.
