Over the weekend we reported about The Fall Guy hitting VOD services a mere 17 days after its opening weekend. While we know that is primarily a result of Universal being allowed to do so in an agreement that lets them pull a movie’s theatrical run if it underperforms, it did bring up another point on the opposite side. What happens when a movie does insanely well at the box office, with critics and on the awards circuit but still doesn’t have a home video or streaming release? That’s precisely the case with Godzilla Minus One, which pulled in $115.8 million worldwide on a $10-12 million budget.
Despite those box office numbers, Godzilla Minus One is nowhere to be legitimately found in North America. Keep in mind also that the film made its North American debut December 1st — that’s almost half a year ago!
Godzilla Minus One topped out at more than 2,600 theaters, a hefty number for an international film. After an inevitable decrease, it jumped back up to 2,000 in late January to capitalize on its Best Visual Effects Oscar nomination, scaling back into the top 10. Yet, there was no push from the studio after it took home that award — while also becoming the first foreign film to win in that category and also the first Godzilla movie to win any Oscar.
Yet, here we sit without a Blu-ray, 4K or streaming release. Of note, the movie just got a home video release in its native Japan earlier this month. But it’s not like Toho needs to see how it does back home before they put it out in the States, as the box office numbers from domestic and international are nearly identical.
So when will we see Godzilla Minus One in a living room near us? If we go by the previous live-action entry in the franchise, Shin Godzilla, we could be waiting until close to the end of 2024. Whereas that film hit North American theaters in October, it didn’t receive a Region 1 Blu-ray until August of the following year. While Shin Godzilla’s box office haul had nothing on Godzilla Minus One, it could still help us narrow down the release window.
When do you expect to see Godzilla Minus One for purchase and streaming in North America? Will you be picking it up?