Godzilla Minus Zero Roars With $6M Previews — SkimNews
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- Godzilla Minus Zero earned around $6 million in U.S. previews, including $4M+ from fan shows on Godzilla Day, surpassing its predecessor's $2.1M in early earnings
- GKIDs distributed Godzilla Minus Zero in the U.S., setting a new preview record for the indie label and exceeding its prior high of $2.39M set by The Boy and the Heron
- Godzilla Minus Zero opened to 1.38 billion yen ($8.7M) in Japan over three days, with a record 910M yen ($5.7M) on its first day — the highest live-action opening day in Japanese box office history
- Legendary’s Godzilla: King of the Monsters posted $6.3M in Thursday previews in 2019 on its way to a $47.7M opening, a benchmark Godzilla Minus Zero is closely approaching despite being distributed by a smaller outfit
- The Cat in the Hat generated $1M in U.S. previews starting at 2PM, aligning with mid-tier animated launches like Sony’s Goat but far below The Grinch’s $2.2M start en route to $67.5M
Why it matters: GKIDs, a smaller distributor, is outperforming expectations with *Godzilla Minus Zero*, which could open well above $30M in North America — a major win against larger studios and a sign that fan-driven momentum can elevate non-franchise films. Meanwhile, Warner Bros’ $86M *Cat in the Hat* shows weak early traction, raising concerns about its holiday performance.
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