Release Order by EraRecommended
0 / 12 watchedRelease order within each era. Start with an era's first item, then sample forward.
Showa era (1954-1975)
- 1 Godzilla The original. Honda's 1954 film is serious; everything after it gets lighter. Required viewing.
- 2 Mothra vs. Godzilla Peak Showa spectacle. Around it sit Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (1964), Invasion of Astro-Monster (1965), and Destroy All Monsters (1968).
- 3 Terror of Mechagodzilla Closes the Showa run. Skipped entries include Son of Godzilla (1967), Godzilla vs. Hedorah (1971), and Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973).
Heisei era (1984-1995)
- 4 The Return of Godzilla Direct sequel to the 1954 film that ignores the Showa sequels. Opens the seven-film Heisei continuity.
- 5 Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah Mid-Heisei high point. Godzilla vs. Biollante (1989) comes before it; Godzilla vs. Mothra (1992) and Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II (1993) follow.
- 6 Godzilla vs. Destoroyah Kills Godzilla and closes Heisei continuity. Godzilla vs. SpaceGodzilla (1994) directly precedes it.
Millennium era (1999-2004)
- 7 Godzilla 2000: Millennium Standalone reboot. Millennium entries are each self-contained except the two Kiryu films, Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla (2002) and Tokyo SOS (2003).
- 8 Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack Often ranked with the best in the franchise. Godzilla vs. Megaguirus (2000) sits between it and Godzilla 2000.
- 9 Godzilla: Final Wars 50th-anniversary film with monsters from across the series. Closes the Millennium era.
Reiwa era (2016-)
- 10 Shin Godzilla Anno and Higuchi's reboot. A Japanese government procedural built around the monster.
- 11 Godzilla Minus One Oscar winner for visual effects. The Polygon anime trilogy (2017-2018) sits between Shin and this film and is optional.
- 12 Godzilla Minus Zero Direct sequel to Minus One from Takashi Yamazaki. Japan November 3, 2026; North America November 6, 2026. Not yet released.
About Godzilla
Toho has produced more than 30 Japanese Godzilla films since 1954, grouped into four eras: Showa, Heisei, Millennium, and Reiwa. Each era resets continuity, so there is no single timeline to follow. The practical path is to sample each era's key films in release order.
This guide covers Toho films only. Legendary's American Monsterverse has its own post on this site. The 1998 TriStar film is also excluded here; it sits outside Toho continuity.
Good to know
Era film counts: Showa 15 films (1954-1975), Heisei 7 (1984-1995), Millennium 6 (1999-2004), Reiwa 6 including Minus Zero. Only key films appear as items; the rest are named in the item notes. Godzilla Minus Zero is dated but unreleased as of this check: Japan November 3, 2026 and North America November 6, 2026 via GKIDS.
