Godzilla (disambiguation)

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Godzilla , also known as Gojira, is a fictional Japanese monster.

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Godzilla may also refer to:

Film

Television

Video games and pinball

Literature

Godzilla Rock

Music

Other uses

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Godzilla</span> Fictional monster

Godzilla is a fictional monster, or kaiju, that debuted in the eponymous 1954 film, directed and cowritten by Ishirō Honda. The character has since become an international pop culture icon, appearing in various media: 33 Japanese films produced by Toho Co., Ltd., five American films, and numerous video games, novels, comic books, and television shows. Godzilla has been dubbed the King of the Monsters, an epithet first used in Godzilla, King of the Monsters! (1956), the American localization of the 1954 film.

<i>Godzilla</i> (1954 film) Japanese monster film

Godzilla is a 1954 Japanese epic kaiju film directed and co-written by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. Produced and distributed by Toho Co., Ltd., it is the first film in the Godzilla franchise. The film stars Akira Takarada, Momoko Kōchi, Akihiko Hirata, and Takashi Shimura, with Haruo Nakajima and Katsumi Tezuka as Godzilla. In the film, Japan's authorities deal with the sudden appearance of a giant monster, whose attacks trigger fears of nuclear holocaust in post-war Japan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mothra</span> Godzilla kaiju

Mothra is a fictional monster, or kaiju, that first appeared in the 1961 film Mothra, produced and distributed by Toho Studios. Mothra has appeared in several Toho tokusatsu films, most often as a recurring monster in the Godzilla franchise. She is typically portrayed as a colossal sentient larva (caterpillar) or imago, accompanied by two miniature fairies speaking on her behalf. Unlike other Toho monsters, Mothra is a largely heroic character, having been variously portrayed as a protector of her own island culture, the Earth and Japan. Mothra's design is influenced by silk worms, their imagos, and those of giant silk moths in the family Saturniidae. The character is often depicted hatching offspring when approaching death, a nod to the Saṃsāra doctrine of numerous Indian religions.

Creature often refers to:

<i>Godzilla vs. Gigan</i> 1972 film by Jun Fukuda

Godzilla vs. Gigan, is a 1972 Japanese kaiju film directed by Jun Fukuda, written by Shinichi Sekizawa, and produced by Tomoyuki Tanaka, with special effects by Teruyoshi Nakano. Distributed by Toho and produced under their effects-based subsidiary Toho-Eizo, it is the 12th film in the Godzilla franchise, and features the fictional monster characters Godzilla, Gigan, Anguirus, and King Ghidorah. The film stars Hiroshi Ishikawa, Yuriko Hishimi, Tomoko Umeda, and Minoru Takashima, alongside Haruo Nakajima as Godzilla, Kenpachiro Satsuma as Gigan, Koetsu Omiya as Anguirus, and Kanta Ina as King Ghidorah. It is the last film in which Godzilla was portrayed by Nakajima after playing the character since the original 1954 film; he subsequently retired from suit acting.

<i>Godzilla Raids Again</i> 1955 Japanese kaiju film

Godzilla Raids Again is a 1955 Japanese kaiju film directed by Motoyoshi Oda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. Produced and distributed by Toho Co., Ltd., it is the second film in the Godzilla franchise, and a sequel to Godzilla (1954). The film stars Hiroshi Koizumi, Setsuko Wakayama, Minoru Chiaki, and Takashi Shimura, with Haruo Nakajima as Godzilla and Katsumi Tezuka as Anguirus. In the film, Japan struggles to survive Godzilla's return, as well as its destructive battle against its ancient foe Anguirus.

<i>Godzilla vs. Destoroyah</i> 1995 film by Takao Okawara

Godzilla vs. Destoroyah is a 1995 Japanese kaiju film directed by Takao Okawara, with special effects by Kōichi Kawakita. Distributed by Toho and produced under their subsidiary Toho Pictures, it is the 22nd installment in the Godzilla franchise, and is the seventh and final film in the franchise's Heisei period. The film features the fictional monster characters Godzilla, Godzilla Junior and Destoroyah, and stars Takuro Tatsumi, Yōko Ishino, Yasufumi Hayashi, Sayaka Osawa, Megumi Odaka, Masahiro Takashima, Momoko Kōchi and Akira Nakao, with Kenpachiro Satsuma as Godzilla, Hurricane Ryu as Godzilla Junior, and Ryo Hariya as Destoroyah.

<i>Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II</i> 1993 film by Takao Okawara

Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II, is a 1993 Japanese kaiju film directed by Takao Okawara, with special effects by Kōichi Kawakita. Distributed by Toho and produced under their subsidiary Toho Pictures, it is the 20th film in the Godzilla franchise, as well as the fifth film to be released during the franchise's Heisei era. The film features the fictional monster character Godzilla, along with Baby Godzilla and the mecha character Mechagodzilla. Despite its English title, the film is not a sequel to the 1974 film Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla.

<i>Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla</i> 1994 Japanese science fiction kaiju film directed by Kenshō Yamashita

Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla is a 1994 Japanese kaiju film directed by Kensho Yamashita, with special effects by Kōichi Kawakita. Distributed by Toho and produced under their subsidiary Toho Pictures, it is the 21st film in the Godzilla franchise, as well as the sixth film in the franchise's Heisei series. The film is notable for the introduction of the monster SpaceGodzilla, as well as the re-introduction of the mecha character M.O.G.U.E.R.A.; its first appearance on-screen since the 1957 film The Mysterians.

<i>Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla</i> 2002 film by Masaaki Tezuka

Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla is a 2002 Japanese kaiju film directed by Masaaki Tezuka, with special effects by Yūichi Kikuchi. Distributed by Toho and produced under their subsidiary Toho Pictures, it is the 27th film in the Godzilla franchise and the fourth film in the franchise's Millennium period, and is also the 26th Godzilla film produced by Toho. The film features the fictional giant monster character Godzilla, along with an updated version of the mecha character Mechagodzilla, who is referred to in the film as Kiryu. The film stars Yumiko Shaku, Shin Takuma, Kou Takasugi, Yuusuke Tomoi, Kumi Mizuno, and Akira Nakao, with Tsutomu Kitagawa as Godzilla and Hirofumi Ishigaki as Kiryu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minilla</span> Godzilla kaiju

Minilla is a kaiju who first appeared in Toho's 1967 film Son of Godzilla. He is the adopted son of Godzilla, and is sometimes referenced as Minya, Godzilla Jr., and Baby Godzilla in the American dubbed versions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tomoyuki Tanaka</span> Japanese film producer (1910–1997)

Tomoyuki "Yūkō" Tanaka was a Japanese film producer. Widely regarded as the creator of the Godzilla franchise, he produced most of the installments in the series, beginning in 1954 with Godzilla and ending in 1995 with Godzilla vs. Destoroyah. He was one of the most prolific Japanese producers of all time, having worked on more than 200 films, including over 80 tokusatsu films.

<i>Godzilla, King of the Monsters!</i> 1956 Japanese-American monster film

Godzilla, King of the Monsters! is a 1956 kaiju film directed by Terry O. Morse and Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. It is a heavily re-edited American localization, or "Americanization", of the 1954 Japanese film Godzilla. The film was a Japanese-American co-production, with the original footage produced by Toho Co., Ltd., and the new footage produced by Jewell Enterprises. The film stars Raymond Burr, Takashi Shimura, Momoko Kōchi, Akira Takarada, and Akihiko Hirata, with Haruo Nakajima and Katsumi Tezuka as Godzilla. In the film, an American reporter covers a giant reptilian monster's attack on Japan.

Michiru Oshima is a Japanese composer and arranger. She works on music in wide range of areas, such as anime, films, television series, video games and concerts. She has written scores for over 100 movies, over 200 television titles, video games, various types of events, concerts, theaters, among others. Ōshima is one of the most prolific living composers for film, anime and video game. She has released over 300 CDs including film soundtracks and artist CDs. Her works include composition for Godzilla vs. Megaguirus, Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla, and Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. movies and scores for numerous anime television series, including Fullmetal Alchemist, Fullmetal Alchemist the Movie: Conqueror of Shamballa, Nabari no Ou, Queen Emeraldas, Xam'd: Lost Memories, Arc the Lad, and Weathering Continent. In addition to the soundtracks on Kaiju films and anime music, she has composed music for several video games such as Genghis Khan II: Clan of the Gray Wolf for Super NES, Ico for PlayStation 2, Legend of Legaia for PlayStation and its PlayStation 2 sequel Legaia 2: Duel Saga, Arc the Lad III, Deemo, Midnight Play by the company Tivola based on the art illustrations of Květa Pacovská, and an orchestral arrangement of a Zelda medley for the Wii and GameCube game The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. She was also the composer for a Japanese stage musical adaptation of the classic Hollywood film Roman Holiday. Her latest work includes the composition of several music tracks for the highly acclaimed Chinese espionage thriller film The Message and a 2017 Chinese mystery thriller film The Devotion of Suspect X (film).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">-zilla</span> English language suffix

-zilla is an English slang suffix, a libfix back-formation derived from the English name of the Japanese movie monster Godzilla. It is popular for the names of software and websites. It is also found often in popular culture to imply some form of excess, denoting the monster-like qualities of Godzilla.

<i>The Mysterians</i> 1957 film by Ishirō Honda

The Mysterians is a 1957 Japanese epic science fiction film directed by Ishirō Honda, with special effects by Eiji Tsuburaya. Produced and distributed by Toho Co., Ltd., it is the first Honda-Tsuburaya collaboration filmed in both color and TohoScope, and stars Kenji Sahara, Yumi Shirakawa, Momoko Kōchi, Akihiko Hirata, Yoshio Tsuchiya, Susumu Fujita, and Takashi Shimura, with Haruo Nakajima and Katsumi Tezuka as Mogera. In the film, Earth's defense forces unite to combat an extraterrestrial race that desires to intermarry with human women and settle on the planet.

<i>Godzilla</i> (franchise) Japanese media franchise

Godzilla is a Japanese monster, or kaiju, media franchise consisting of films, television series, novels, comic books, video games, and other merchandise. The franchise is centered on the fictional kaiju Godzilla, a prehistoric reptilian monster awakened and powered by nuclear radiation. The franchise is recognized by the Guinness World Records as the "longest continuously running film franchise", having been in ongoing production since 1954, with several hiatuses of varying lengths. The film franchise consists of 38 films: 33 Japanese films produced and distributed by Toho Co., Ltd.; and five American films, the first of which was produced by TriStar Pictures and the remaining four by Legendary Pictures, with the latest being released in March 2024.

As an enduring and iconic symbol of post-World War II cinematic history, the fictional giant monster Godzilla has been referenced and parodied numerous times in popular culture. Godzilla and other atomic monsters have appeared in a variety of mediums, including cartoons, film, literature, television, and video games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Godzilla (Monsterverse)</span> Monsterverse character

Godzilla is a fictional monster, or kaiju, in Legendary Pictures' Monsterverse media franchise and based on Toho Co., Ltd.'s character of the same name. The character first appeared in Godzilla (2014), directed by Gareth Edwards. This incarnation of Godzilla is depicted as the sole survivor of a prehistoric superspecies, theorized by Ishirō Serizawa, acting as a force of nature that maintains balance. The character was initially designed by Matt Allsopp, modeled after the Toho version. It is the third incarnation of Godzilla to be created by an American studio, after Hanna-Barbera's 1978 animated series Godzilla and TriStar Pictures' 1998 film Godzilla, and overall the tenth onscreen incarnation of the iconic character.

<i>Godzilla and Godzilla Raids Again</i> 1955 Godzilla novellas by Shigeru Kayama

Godzilla and Godzilla Raids Again is a 1955 young adult kaiju novel by Shigeru Kayama. It is a novelization of the first two films in the Godzilla franchise produced by Toho, Godzilla (1954) and Godzilla Raids Again (1955), both of which were based on story outlines by Kayama.