According to sources close to the production, Godzilla's design in this film will be mostly based on his design from the original film from 1954, and is intended to appear very frightening.
Producer Akihiro Yamauchi stated that the title "Shin Gojira" was chosen for the film due to the variety of meanings the syllable "shin" could convey, such as "new", "true", and "god".
This is the first Japanese Godzilla movie to be a full reboot, meaning that it shows what would happen if Godzilla attacked for the first time in modern day, and there had been no previous records of him. Although Toho has "rebooted" Godzilla a few times each previous film acknowledged the original 1954 movie as canon and just ignored all previous sequels.
Hiroki Hasegawa immediately accepted a role in the film, stating, "Who wouldn't want to be involved in a Godzilla production?"
This film's Godzilla stands 118.5 m (388 ft) tall, surpassing Legendary Pictures' Godzilla (2014), which stood 355 ft/108 m tall thus making it the largest version of Godzilla to appear on film.
For Satomi Ishihara, who plays a Japanese-American diplomat, the hardest part of her performance was learning English. She found out she was playing an American after being cast, and was shocked by the amount of the English dialogue she had to speak when she read the script.
The day people first encounter the titular monster is supposed to be November 3, an obvious reference to March 11, the day the 2011 Tohoku earthquake commenced. It is also a reference to the Japanese release date of the original 1954 Godzilla film which was on November 3, 1954.
Godzilla was portrayed in motion capture by Mansai Nomura, a Kyogen (traditional Japanese comic theatre) actor. To realize Godzilla's slow movements, a 10-kilo weight was strapped behind him, and he incorporated the technique of the traditional Japanese dance into his performance.
Despite being released between Legendary Pictures' Godzilla (2014) and its sequel Godzilla 2 (2019), this film is not connected to Legendary's series.
It is not confirmed at all yet, only speculated upon, but Godzilla may use his trademark 1960's-70's roar in the film, and possibly even his original roar. This is given evidence in the first teaser trailer when Godzilla's 1954 roar is heard, and in the beginning of the official trailer, Godzilla lets out his famous Showa roar.
Shinji Higuchi has revealed that Godzilla in this film will be brought to life using a hybrid combination of computer generated imagery and traditional practical tokusatsu effects techniques. Higuchi utilized this same hybrid strategy for the Titans in the live-action "Attack on Titan" films, which he also directed.
This film's director and head of special effects, Shinji Higuchi, has previous experience working on special effects in multiple kaiju films by Toho. He previously worked as a special effects assistant for Godzilla 1985 (1984) and then was in charge of special effects for Shûsuke Kaneko's Gamera trilogy in the late 1990's. Higuchi also worked on the special effects in one scene for Godzilla, Mothra, and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack (2001).
Excluding Godzilla (1998), this is the 30th Godzilla film.
Writer and Chief Director Hideaki Anno reportedly refused Toho's initial offer to work on this film because of his work on the fourth Evangelion movie but was convinced to join the project after his longtime friend Shinji Higuchi signed on to direct.
Despite receiving an official English title (Godzilla Resurgence), the movie is nonetheless released in the United States under its original Japanese title (Shin Godzilla) at Toho's request. A possible explanation for this is that they want to avoid confusion with the movie Independence Day: Resurgence (2016). "Godzilla Resurgence" is kept as a title for general international promotion.
The first Toho-produced Godzilla film in 12 years since Gojira: Fainaru uôzu (2004).
Director Hideaki Anno told the actors to speak faster than usual so that they would resemble actual politicians and bureaucrats, citing The Social Network (2010) as a reference and warning he would cut the take if they spoke too slowly.
An old-school Toho logo which appears at the beginning was re-created specifically for the widescreen of this movie by Hiroyasu Kobayashi, a graphic designer at Anno's Studio Khara, as appointed by the director.
Directors Shinji Higuchi and Hideaki Anno are longtime friends and collaborators, and are both well-known for their work on the popular anime series Shin Seiki Evangerion (1995). They were selected by Toho to work on this film in part due to their work on the series. Both Toho and Gainax, the company that produces Neon Genesis Evangelion, are collaborating on a merchandise line called "Godzilla vs. Evangelion" to promote this film. This line includes various figures, pieces of artwork, clothing and other accessories featuring both Godzilla and his various monster costars alongside Evangelion- Unit-01 and other characters from Neon Genesis Evangelion.
Toho plans to have the movie released in over 100 markets worldwide, making it their most widely distributed feature to date.
The U.S. trailer is scored with the original 1954 recordings of Akira Ifukube's soundtrack for "Gojira" (1954) ("Godzilla").
This film will be given a special advanced release in the United States on October 11-18, 2016 when it will be shown in its original Japanese version (with English subtitles) and under a semi-translation of its original Japanese title, "Shin Godzilla" (2016).
In an unusual move for the studio, Toho did not screen the film for press in advance of the world premiere, which was held four days prior to the release.
This Godzilla film will break the record for the fastest release in the U.S., less than three months after its premiere in Japan.
There are six film directors that appear in this film: Kazuo Hara, Isshin Inudô, Suzuki Matsuo, Akira Ogata, Shin'ya Tsukamoto, and the late Kihachi Okamoto as a photo double.
The first Godzilla film since Godzilla 1985 (1984) (its original Japanese version) to end with a "The End" ("Owari" in Japanese) title card. Like the 1984 film, it was at the end of the credits.
Cameo
Kihachi Okamoto: The legendary director appears as a photo double for Goro Maki, a mysterious scientist that disappeared.
Spoilers
Later in the film, large concrete boom pump trucks are used to inject a blood coagulant into Godzilla's mouth in an attempt to neutralize him. These types of boom pumps were used to cool down the damaged reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plant after the nuclear disaster, allowing contemporary Japanese audiences to draw a comparison between the film's narrative and the events that took place after the 2011 Tohoku earthquake, like many other elements of the film.
The name of the scientist that disappeared at the beginning of the movie, Goro Maki, may be a reference to the character sharing the same name, in Son of Godzilla (1967) and Godzilla 1985 (1984) (played by Akira Kubo and Ken Tanaka, respectively), both reporters/photographers.