Yoshimitsu Banno passed away in 2017 and never got to see his dream of a “Godzilla vs. Hedorah” sequel realized. But he did, in a roundabout way, help to revive the franchise in a very meaningful way. Gareth Edwards’ “Godzilla” may not have resembled Banno’s vision, but it was very successful, pulling in $529 million worldwide against a $160 million budget. Yes, the movie proved divisive as it focused a lot on human POV to showcase the monster action, but it was a hit nonetheless. It also, without a doubt, was received far better than America’s first attempt at “Godzilla” in 1998, which was both a critical and commercial disaster.
While Edwards didn’t stay with the franchise, moving on to make “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” instead, Legendary and Warner Bros. kept their partnership with Toho alive, releasing several other films over the years including 2017’s “Kong: Skull Island,” 2018’s “Godzilla: King of the Monsters,” 2021’s “Godzilla vs. Kong,” and the Apple TV+ series “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters.” Dubbed the MonsterVerse, the franchise had pulled in nearly $2 billion at the box office to date, with “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” on the way this year.
Meanwhile, Toho has had success with homegrown entries as well. 2016’s “Shin Godzilla” was a massive critical success and a commercial hit in Japan. But it was last year’s “Godzilla Minus One” that proved to be one of the most heralded entries in the 70-year history of the franchise, finding huge success at the box office in North America en route to an Oscar nomination for visual effects.
It’s the most prosperous time in history for “Godzilla” and it might not have happened if Banno hadn’t so aggressively pursued that short film that never came to pass. And if “Godzilla 3-D” had been made, who knows? Maybe the MonsterVerse would’ve never come to be. For better or worse, Banno helped change the franchise forever.