After Godzilla made its triumphant return in Japan in 2016, fans have been eagerly awaiting what’s next for the King of the Monsters. Thanks to an interview with Toho executive Keiji Ota in the magazine Nikkei Style , it’s been revealed that the studio’s plans are now to create a shared Godzilla universe akin to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with a new film being released every 1-2 years. These plans are expected to move forwards after 2020.
However this announcement comes with some bad news for Shin Godzilla fans, as it confirms that any plans Toho may have had for a sequel are now defunct. In the interview Ota said that they are “instead of thinking of doing the obvious idea of making a Shin Godzilla 2, instead thinking about a world that can be used for a long time”.
This new release strategy bears obvious similarity to Legendary’s own “MonsterVerse” plans, which connects their own Godzilla film, Kong: Skull Island and the forthcoming Godzilla: King of the Monsters and Godzilla vs King Kong movies. Of course its worth mentioning that even in Japan Godzilla is no stranger to a shared universe, with the Showa and Heisei eras showing particular continuity between its various films.
Are you excited for Toho’s future Godzilla plans? Let us know your thoughts after the jump!