Takashi Yamazaki’s new Godzilla film, Godzilla -0.0, opens in Japan on November 3, Godzilla Day—and plenty of fans are already counting down the days until they can catch the monster-movie sequel in theaters.
On October 30, Nippon TV’s Friday Road Show aired an uncut broadcast of Godzilla Minus One, while the film’s official X account hosted a simultaneous watch-along titled “Operation Wada Tsumi: All Hands on Deck.” Director Takashi Yamazaki joined the event alongside Mio Tanaka, who plays Captain Tatsuo Hotta, and the pair discussed Godzilla’s expressions and movements. That led to an unexpected question: Why does the Godzilla in Godzilla Minus One have such a distinctly cat-like quality? Yamazaki had a wonderfully simple answer. 
While discussing the scene in which Godzilla chases the minesweeper Shinsei Maru across the ocean, Tanaka recalled, “That was the first time I thought Godzilla looked cute.” He added that the monster’s expression seemed “just like a cat.” Yamazaki agreed, saying, “He sometimes has this look like he’s trying really, really hard.” The two also compared Godzilla chasing a plane to a cat gleefully swiping at a teaser wand.
When Tanaka asked whether Yamazaki had deliberately studied cats for inspiration, the director admitted, “I wasn’t consciously thinking about it, but I do have two cats at home.” He explained that whenever he saw an expression that looked slightly cat-like, he would think it was great and immediately approve it. As for viewers who noticed the resemblance, Yamazaki laughed and said, “I remember thinking, ‘Right? Exactly!’ So I was genuinely delighted when people started saying that.”
It seems Yamazaki never intentionally used cats as the model for Godzilla. Instead, years of living with them may have naturally worked their way into the expressions he gave the King of the Monsters.
But Godzilla’s feline streak is not all about looking cute. Discussing the chase involving the Shinsei Maru, Tanaka noted that Godzilla seemed completely at ease against a weaker opponent—as if he were deliberately toying with it. Yamazaki responded, “Isn’t that exactly what a cat does?” He compared the scene to a cat chasing “an injured mouse that can no longer fight back.”
The pair also discussed Godzilla’s battle with the heavy cruiser Takao, where the monster moves noticeably faster than he does while pursuing the Shinsei Maru. Their theory: Godzilla was never struggling to catch the smaller vessel. He was deliberately slowing down to savor the hunt.
Tanaka also pointed out that Godzilla’s expression during the ocean chase almost looked as if he were “slightly smiling.” He described that cool, unhurried look as “genuinely terrifying, yet strangely mesmerizing.”
Yamazaki and Tanaka may make Godzilla sound like an oddly adorable house pet, but their conversation offers fans a fun new way to read the monster’s behavior. With Godzilla -0.0 about to hit theaters, keep an eye out to see whether this cat-like side of Godzilla makes another appearance.
via： オリコンニュース