Takashi Yamazaki is officially heading back into giant-monster scale spectacle, but this time in English.
Sony Pictures announced at CinemaCon that Grandgear, the first English-language film from the Godzilla Minus One director, will open on February 18, 2028. The studio also said filming will begin soon, which gives the project a much more concrete shape after its early reveal.
According to IndieWire, Sony showed off a sizzle reel for the title treatment featuring “menacing looking kaiju robots fighting in a city.” That is still a very small tease, but it is already enough to tell fans what lane this movie may be aiming for: large-scale destruction, giant mechanical threats, and the kind of city-level chaos Yamazaki knows how to stage well.
For Malaysian and wider Southeast Asian audiences, the big draw here is simple. Yamazaki is no longer just “the director of a good Godzilla movie.” After Godzilla Minus One, he is now one of the most closely watched names in blockbuster genre filmmaking, especially for viewers who want spectacle with stronger storytelling than the usual effects-first formula.
That reputation did not come out of nowhere. Godzilla Minus One opened in Japan on November 3, 2023, a date tied to both “Godzilla Day” and the anniversary of the original 1954 film. In January, TOHO and GKIDS said the movie had earned more than US$116 million worldwide. Box Office Mojo estimates its US total at US$57,144,669, and the film became the third highest-grossing foreign-language film in the United States as of 2024.
That kind of performance matters because it shows Yamazaki can break out far beyond Japan. For SEA fans, that increases the odds that Grandgear will not be treated as a niche release. A Sony-backed film from a director with proven global pull is the sort of project that can land firmly on the radar across regional cinemas, streaming platforms, and fan communities.
It also helps that Godzilla Minus One is already easy to catch if you want to understand why expectations are so high. The film, along with Godzilla Minus One /Minus Color, is streaming worldwide on Netflix. In Japan, the movie is available exclusively on Amazon Prime Video in both colour and monochrome versions.
Yamazaki’s momentum has only grown since then. In March 2024, Godzilla Minus One won Best Visual Effects at the 96th Academy Awards. That made it the first Japanese film to win in the category, and also the first Godzilla film ever nominated for an Oscar.
He is not done with Godzilla either. The new film Godzilla Minus Zero is scheduled to open in Japan on November 3 and in North America on November 6, marking the first time a Japan-produced Godzilla series film will launch in both markets within the same week. Yamazaki is returning there as director, screenwriter, and VFX supervisor.
So while Grandgear is still a long way off, the early signs are strong. Sony has given it a release date, filming is about to begin, and the first visual hook is already leaning into giant-scale sci-fi action. For egg.network readers, this is one to keep close tabs on, especially if you are into kaiju, mecha, or Japanese creators crossing into bigger international productions.
Sony also used the same CinemaCon presentation to announce an animated R-rated Bloodborne film and confirm that filming for the live-action The Legend of Zelda movie has finished, making it clear the studio is pushing harder into game and genre adaptations.
Source: Anime News Network