‘Godzilla Minus Zero’ stomps to a record-setting $31.6 debut, clobbering ‘The Cat in the Hat’

NEW YORK — “Godzilla Minus Zero” stomped into movie theaters with a chart-topping $31.6 million over the weekend, scoring a record debut for a foreign-language film at the North American box office.

Takashi Yamazaki’s sequel to 2023’s Oscar-winning “Godzilla Minus One” easily thrashed Warner Bros.’ animated “The Cat in the Hat” movie. That film, featuring the voice of Bill Hader, opened with $20.5 million, according to studio estimates Sunday, plus $10 million overseas.

While Godzilla recently celebrated his 72nd birthday, Yamazaki has revived one of the longest running franchises in movies by bringing the series back to its Japanese roots. The film, produced by Toho and distributed in North America by GKids, is set in post-WWII Japan.

No live-action foreign language film has had a bigger opening weekend, unless you count 2004’s “Passion of the Christ,” which opened with $83.8 million despite its largely Aramaic dialogue. Last year, the anime “Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle” debuted with $70.6 million.

But “Godzilla Minus Zero” bested the mark for live-action previously held by 2004’s “Hero” (a $17.9 million launch) and added to the trend of international, non-English productions drawing American audiences to cinemas.

The weekend also saw the widest North American release for…

Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/health