Toho Studios’ Godzilla Minus One is aiming to scare away the competition at the UK and Ireland box office this weekend as the Japanese monster epic opens in 469 cinemas for Anime Ltd.
It is an impressively wide opening for a non-English language film and is the widest opening for Anime Ltd, which specialises in distributing Japanese titles. The film was originally reported to be opening in 200-250 sites but was expanded due to critical acclaim, including a recent Critics Choice award nomination, and box office success in other territories - in North America, the film grossed $11m in its opening weekend and broke the record for the highest-grossing Japanese live-action.
The film is the 38th Godzilla feature with the most recent being Warner Bros’ English-language Godzilla Vs Kong which opened in 296 cinemas in May 2021 and went on to make more than £3m.
Godzilla Minus One is written and directed by Takashi Yamazaki with a cast that includes Minami Hamabe, Ryunosuke Kamiki and Sakura Ando. It is set in post-war Japan when a giant Godzilla monster is born from the aftermath of the atomic bomb and begins terrorising citizens.
Meg Ryan’s romcom return
Daring to go up against Godzilla is Meg Ryan’s romcom What Happens Later which opens in 205 cinemas for Universal. Ryan directs, co-writes and stars in the film about two ex-lovers, the other played by David Duchovny. who end up snowed in at an airport overnight.
Also opening is French action The Three Musketeers – Milady which opens in 170 venues for Entertainment Film Distributors. It is the second of the musketeer saga, following on from The Three Musketeers: D’Artagnan which opened on 267 screens earlier this year. Eva Green, Vincent Cassel, Vicky Krieps and Jacob Fortune-Llyod are among the cast.
Trafalgar Releasing is releasing South Korean boyband Seventeen’s live convert Follow To Japan in 66 locations tomorrow only (December 16). Screen understands tickets, which cost £20, have almost entirely sold out across London.
Venice premiere Monica is opening in 14 cinemas for 606 Distribution with a special screening on Sunday (December 17) in 90 locations. Andrea Pallaoro’s drama follows a trans woman who returns home to take care of her dying mother. It stars Tracee Lysette, Patricia Clarkson and Emily Browning.
Also opening in 14 locations is Hong Kong music drama Band Four for Central City. The film follows an estranged family who reconnect and form a band. It’s directed by Yan-chi Mo Lai and stars Rondi Chan, Teddy Robin Kwan and Kay Tse.
French drama The Lost Boys is opening in 12 sites for Peccadillo Pictures. Set in a juvenile reform centre, Zeno Graton’s film centres around two teenage boys who fall in love. It screened at Berlinale and Toronto.
Other releases this weekend are Zack Snyder’s Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire ahead of its release on Netflix; Angel Studios’ sci-fi The Shift; and intersex documentary Every Body for Dogwoof.
The key holdover title to look out for is Warner Bros’ Wonka which debuted with £8.9m last weekend.
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