‘Godzilla Minus Zero’ Makes Box Office History With $31 Million Opening Weekend, Beating ‘The Cat in the Hat’
Godzilla Minus Zero is taking over the box office!
The new Japanese monster movie is debuting at No. 1 in North America, bringing in an estimated $31 million during its opening weekend.
The sequel to 2023’s Oscar-winning Godzilla Minus One is also making history with the biggest opening weekend ever for a live-action foreign-language movie in North America.
Meanwhile, Warner Bros.’ animated The Cat in the Hat, featuring the voice of Bill Hader, is coming in second place with a much smaller debut.
The impressive results are especially notable because Godzilla Minus Zero is playing in Japanese with English subtitles.
Keep reading to find out how much the movies are making…
Godzilla Minus Zero Breaks Box Office Records
According to Variety on Sunday (November 8), Godzilla Minus Zero is heading for an estimated $31 million opening weekend at the domestic box office.
The movie earned approximately $14.5 million on Friday, including earlier preview screenings, and is playing in 3,254 theaters across North America.
That makes it the biggest opening ever for distributor GKIDS, as well as the biggest domestic debut for a live-action foreign-language film.
The previous record belonged to 2002’s Hero, starring Jet Li, which earned approximately $17.8 million during its North American opening weekend in 2004.
The overall foreign-language opening record, including animated movies, still belongs to Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle, which debuted with $70.6 million in 2025.
Godzilla Minus Zero is also performing significantly better than its predecessor.
Godzilla Minus One opened with $11.4 million in December 2023, meaning the new movie is earning nearly three times as much during its first weekend.
Director Takashi Yamazaki returned to write and direct the sequel, which also features returning stars Ryunosuke Kamiki and Minami Hamabe.
The movie received an A CinemaScore from opening-night audiences, matching the grade earned by the previous film.
The Cat in the Hat Takes Second Place
Meanwhile, The Cat in the Hat isn’t getting the same reception at the box office.
The Warner Bros. animated movie is projected to earn around $20 million during its opening weekend, despite playing in more than 4,000 theaters.
Bill Hader voices the title character in the new adaptation of Dr. Seuss‘ beloved children’s book.
The movie’s debut is considerably smaller than the openings of other animated Dr. Seuss adaptations, including 2018’s The Grinch, which earned $67.6 million during its first weekend.
Both movies opened in theaters on Friday (November 6).
The weekend box office figures are estimates, with final totals expected to be reported on Monday (November 9).
If you’re planning to see the Godzilla movie, find out whether there’s an end-credits scene and if you should stay until the end.
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